|
|
Publications and Products
Fact Sheet
Diabetesatwork.org
Launched in April 2002, Diabetesatwork.org*
is the first online resource specifically designed to address the management
of diabetes in the workplace.
- It was developed for top-level managers, occupational health providers,
benefits and human resource managers, and employees.
- Diabetesatwork.org is a free, easy-to-use Web site that enables companies
to assess their need for diabetes education at the worksite. Users can
download more than 30 resources that can be used to inform employees
about how to best manage their diabetes while at work and how to reduce
their risk for further complications.
- More than 30 lesson plans and fact sheets can be downloaded and E-mailed
to employees. Topics include general weight loss and exercise; managing
diabetes if you are a shift worker; supervising an employee with diabetes;
business travel and diabetes; and taking an occupational health history
for an employee with diabetes who is choosing a health plan.
- The Web site was developed in collaboration with the National Diabetes
Education Program’s Business and Managed Care Work Group and is
hosted by the Washington Business Group on Health. Other collaborators
include the American Association of Health Plans, National Business
Coalition on Health, and the Washington Business Group on Health.
Diabetesatwork.org fills a great educational need in the business
community.
- Web site content was developed by diabetes educators, occupational
health care providers, wellness managers, and health plan benefits managers
who saw a great need to make diabetes educational information easily
accessible and user-friendly to employers and managers at both large
and small companies.
- The information on diabetesatwork.org can be used to create low-cost
education programs, fact sheets, Web sites, and news health bulletins
for employers that can be printed in company newsletters. The information
can also be incorporated into current health management programs, health
fairs, and brown bag lunches, and can help senior managers make the
business case to top company executives about the need to address diabetes
in the workplace.
Making the Business Case for Diabetes Education in the Workplace
Diabetes is on the rise in epidemic proportions.
- Nearly 17 million Americans have diabetes.
- Average age of onset of type 2 diabetes is 51 years old, but during
the 1990s, many people in their 20s and 30s were diagnosed with type
2 diabetes.
- Adults with diabetes die of heart disease 2 to 4 times more than people
without diabetes.
- The risk for stroke is 2 to 4 times higher among people with diabetes.
- Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults
aged 20 to 74 years old and is the leading cause of end-stage renal
disease.
- More than 60% of nontraumatic, lower-limb amputations in the United
States occur among people with diabetes.
- Type 2 diabetes is a growing epidemic among Native Americans, African
Americans, and Hispanics.
- Prevalence data for diabetes among Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians
or other Pacific Islanders are limited. Some groups within these populations
are at increased risk for diabetes. For example, data collected from
1996 to 2000 suggest that Native Hawaiians are 2.5 times more likely
to have diagnosed diabetes than white residents of Hawaii of similar
age.
Diabetes does affect corporate America and its bottom line.
- In 1997, diabetes accounted for 14 million lost disability days and
an average of 8.3 days off from work per year. People without diabetes
or other chronic conditions averaged 1.7 days off from work.
- The total cost attributed to permanent disability among people with
diabetes is estimated at $37.1 billion.
- Direct and indirect costs of diabetes total nearly $100 billion a
year. Overall, medical costs of people with diabetes are four times
those of people without diabetes or other chronic conditions.
Corporate America can help employees manage their diabetes or
reduce their risks of developing it.
- With employees spending more than one-third of their days on the job,
corporate America is in a unique position to address this health issue.
- It is in the employer’s best interest to try to work with their
employees who have diabetes or are at risk for the disease to improve
productivity and lower health costs as well as help employees stay in
good mental and physical health.
- Current data from the American Diabetes Association show that people
with diabetes who control their disease by keeping their blood sugar
down cost employers only $24 a month, compared with the $115 a month
for people with diabetes who do not control their blood sugar.
* Links to non-Federal organizations are provided solely
as a service to our users. Links do not constitute an endorsement of any
organization by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred.
The CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization
Web pages found at this link.
Top of page
|
