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Hospitals Deliver Mixed Messages on Wellness

 |  By Anna@example.com  
   June 22, 2011

A couple weeks ago, my colleagues and I were discussing how healthcare, ironically, appears to be one of the unhealthiest industries in the country. When perusing hospital websites, I can't help but notice in many bio photos, nurses or physicians are overweight.

Are healthcare workers really practicing what they preach in terms of wellness? The doctor's office has come a long way from the days when physicians used to puff cigarettes while diagnosing patients. Now smokers are shooed outside hospital walls for their nicotine fixes and more hospitals are putting hiring bans on those who smoke.

Next month, SSM Health Care hospitals are launching a tobacco-free hiring policy in order to set a better example for patients. If an applicant admits to using tobacco on the job application, they are eliminated from the hiring pool.

The reason is clear: Each smoker costs a company an additional $3,400 annually in health care costs and lost productivity, according to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"As an organization that provides healthcare, we want to encourage our employees to take better care of themselves and set good examples for our patients," said Chris Sutton, SSM spokesman.

The SSM hospitals are eliminating what many think as hypocritical – doctors who can't or refuse to follow their own advice. From the marketing perspective, hospitals and their employees should be united on wellness promotion. But banning smokers opens a can of worms…what's next, a ban on hiring obese docs?

I chatted with a former morbidly obese doctor last week about whether physicians have a responsibility to be healthy role models for their patients. Nick Yphantides, MD, Chief Medical Officer for San Diego County, used to straddle two scales to weigh his 467 lb body. He was a candidate for seven different chronic disease medications, had high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high risk for many other conditions as a result of his weight.

After embarking on a "big fat Greek diet" and a journey to all 50 states, Yphantides lost a total of 270 lbs.

"As a guy who spent a majority of my life as a board-certified hypocrite, it pains me to see those preaching one message and living another," he says. "People doubt what I say but have to believe what I do."

Yphantides lives by the mantra of St. Francis: "Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." He considers it his duty to his patients to promote a healthy image. Other health systems are following in his footsteps in the journey to promote their staff's personal wellness journeys.

BayCare Health System, which operates 10 hospitals in the area including Clearwater's Morton Plant, Mease Countryside and St. Joseph's in Tampa, has launched an employee weight-loss competition called the Ultimate Loser. The winning man and woman each will receive $3,000 as a reward.

Tampa General Hospital's wellness program focuses not only on weight loss but also on healthy behaviors, like as eating breakfast. Participants who stick with the plan and keep a daily journal will be entered in a drawing for cash prizes. The hospital has hired two full-time wellness educators, who say that for every $1 spent on employee wellness, companies can expect to save $3 in health care costs after three years.

The issue of weight can be an uncomfortable one to discuss with patients and Tampa General is working to tip the scales in a healthy direction. Physicians must educate patients on healthy behavior, but should follow the same healthy principles they preach.

A recent case where image calls credibility into question involves Regina M. Benjamin. Many critics fault the new U.S. surgeon general for being overweight as she addresses the nation's obesity problem.

But the fact remains: Subconsciously we all judge those giving us advice. Would you go to a hairstylist who is always having a bad hair day or a dentist with rotting teeth? Yes, these people can still do their jobs, but the image they are promoting (intentionally or not) does not quite align with the profession. We all have our vices; who's to say that thinner people are any healthier? Nurses and physicians have hectic schedules, often with little sleep or downtime, which can adversely affect weight. Why not cut them a break?

If you want to promote wellness within your healthcare organization, offer a weight-loss program like the one at Tampa General, or create other incentive programs that encourage good employee health habits.  

Hospitals have a right to set an example for their patients, but physicians still have the right to make healthy choices on their own accord especially on their own personal time. Staying healthy should remain an unspoken rule in the healthcare community—no one likes a hypocrite.

Readers – do physicians have the responsibility to be healthy role models for their patients? Should hospitals have a role in their workers' wellness? Discuss.

Questions? Comments? Story ideas? Anna Webster, Online Content Coordinator for HealthLeaders Media, can be reached at awebster@hcpro.com.
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