Tailored E-Mails in the Workplace

Abstract

egular physical activity is essential to improving health in U.S. society. Research has shown many benefits to regular physical activity (Warburton, Nicol, & Bredin, 2006), including improved weight control (Irwin et al., 2003), reduced lipid profiles, increased high-density lipoproteins, and lowered low-density lipoproteins (Dattilo & Kris-Etherton, 1992). Regular physical activity also improves musculoskeletal fitness, leading to fewer functional limitations, improved mobility, and overall improved quality of life (Warburton, Geldhill, & Quinney, 2001). An inverse relationship between frequency and intensity of exercise and risk of disease was established; thereby, highly physically active individuals are at the lowest risk for disease (Warburton et al., 2006). A physically inactive population is at risk for several chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, hypertension, obesity, depression, and osteoporosis (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2002; Warburton et al., 2006). Along with the increased incidence of disease in a physically inactive population are economic consequences of increased morbidity and mortality among those with chronic disease. The economic costs of chronic disease are two-pronged; direct costs include those associated with prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of chronic conditions (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2002) and indirect costs include the value of lost wages to the individual who is unable to work and the value of future earnings that may be lost due to premature death (U.

Active8! Technology-Based Intervention to Promote Physical Activity in Hospital Employees

“…20 Research adopting SMS and e-mail physical activity promotion is limited in the health care workplace setting. Although previous research indicates that e-mail and SMS are both plausible channels for health promotion communication, [13][14][15][16][17][20][21][22] it is not known if one channel is more effective than the other in prompting behavior change. Further, efforts to increase physical activity may have benefits for health-related quality of life (HRQoL), which has been shown to be negatively affected by poor health behaviors.…”

“…As the proportion of individuals with mobile phone, e-mail, and Internet access escalates, opportunities to use such communication technologies for mass-reach health promotion are on the increase. Technology-based health communication interventions using e-mail and shortmessage service (SMS) have demonstrated the potential to improve health behaviors in employees from nonhealth care workplace settings, [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] although there is little evidence from the hospital workforce. E-mail interventions have demonstrated increases in moderate physical activity in selected health care employees in administrative roles only.…”