Total Employee Health Program Leverages Connections to Get Results

It features findings from a client case study presented during WorkCare’s April 23, 2025, webinar on Revolutionizing Workplace Wellness, WorkCare’s Total Employee Health Program. The webinar presenters were Justin Freeman, MS, LAT, ATC, operations manager, Incident Prevention, and Morgan Charlow, MS, ATC, CEAS, injury prevention specialist and on-site supervisor for the client program. Freeman and Charlow are certified athletic trainers with expertise in ergonomics, sports medicine, musculoskeletal injury prevention and management, first aid, and wellness. 

What Is Total Employee Health?

Total employee health addresses all aspects of a worker’s quality of life. WorkCare’s total employee health delivery model emphasizes personal well-being, injury and illness prevention, and early detection of complaints such as sprains, strains, fatigue, and heat stress. Organizations benefit from this approach because it supports occupational health and safety goals such as fewer accidents, injuries, and lost workdays; lower medical and insurance costs; and improved employee morale and engagement in work. 

“From our team’s perspective, total employee health means everything is interconnected.”

Justin Freeman
Incident Prevention Operations Manager, WorkCare

For example, an employee with back pain is not fully productive at home or at work. Regardless of the cause of the injury, a variety of interventions are likely to be needed to help reduce discomfort, expedite return to full function, and prevent a recurrence.  

The total employee health program in the case study features a “proactive health management approach,” Charlow explained. The program places WorkCare injury prevention specialists on-site, where they observe processes and procedures, engage with employees as coaches and personal health advocates, and act as injury exposure risk consultants for the business. 

Client Case Study

Over the past three years, Work Care has successfully collaborated with a global power management company to develop and deliver a customized total employee health program. The program was launched at one location with an injury prevention specialist and has since grown to 14 providers in 13 locations. The program has produced useful benchmarks for the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and other types of injuries and innovative wellness solutions across the organization.  

One of the company’s primary objectives was to reduce case rates associated with MSDs that could be safely managed with first-aid interventions before they became injuries requiring OSHA-recordable medical treatment. Following a root-cause analysis of injury trends, WorkCare recommended a three-pronged approach featuring: 

• Immediate on-site evaluation and first-aid-level care for injuries at onset 

• Employee education on ergonomics, injury prevention, and healthy choices 

• Collaboration on workstation ergonomic adjustments and other solutions 

Being present in the workplace has helped WorkCare’s on-site specialists build trust with front-line workers and leaders in positions with responsibility in areas including executive leadership, continuous improvement, finance, operations, human resources, environment, occupational health and safety, and design engineering.

“We’re all part of the culture shift, starting with the community we are serving.”

Morgan Charlow, MS, ATC, CEAS
Injury Prevention Specialist and On-site Supervisor, WorkCare

In addition to on-site personnel, WorkCare occupational health professionals are available 24/7 to provide care guidance via our telehealth program. At the power management company, the WorkCare team: 

• Recommends temporary restrictions for safe work during recovery, as needed. 

• Identifies workplace health hazards and advises on risk-reduction strategies. 

• Coaches employees on proper body mechanics and ergonomic adjustments. 

• Encourages employees to be health- and safety-conscious – on and off the job. 

• Educates employees about physical fitness, nutrition, sleep quality, stress management, smoking, substance use, and other factors that affect health and safety. 

• Supports employee self-management of underlying chronic conditions such as diabetes or hypertension. 

Success Measures

Results from the first year of the program include: 

• 54 percent decrease in total recordable case rates at pilot location(s) 

• 64 ergonomic projects completed in production and office environments 

• Average 4:1 return on investment in total employee health strategies 

From 2021-2024, the company experienced measurable decreases in off-site clinic and hospital visits, workers’ compensation claims, and OSHA-recordable cases. There were also noteworthy improvements in operational efficiencies and opportunities to reallocate resources to other critical business initiatives. Read the Success Story for more details. 

Remembering What is Important

Total employee health program results at the power management company and other WorkCare client locations repeatedly show that employee access to trusted providers who understand population health, specific job demands, and each employee’s personal concerns have a marked influence on occupational health, safety, and productivity outcomes over time. 

As Charlow noted, an employee who is at the same workstation – day in and day out – is a human being who deserves the chance to go home at the end of the day, prepare a meal, play, or relax without pain. With health education and coaching, they can become well-being advocates on their own behalf and for their colleagues, friends, and family members with remarkable results. 

“When we give the employee the power of knowledge and understanding, we’re making real-life connections, allowing them to see their patterns and offering them the opportunity to adjust certain behaviors,” she said. For instance, it may be related to what the person eats, how they sleep, their posture when driving, or whether they stretch every day and get enough of the right kind of exercise.  

“It’s not just about safety professionals and ergonomics,” Freeman said. “It’s about all team members working together to create a safer, healthier, and more productive holistic work environment. It’s about building bridges so everyone can experience the sense of interconnectedness that is essential to the success of a total employee health management program.” 

Contact us to learn how WorkCare can bring Total Employee Health programs like these to your business.