Introduction
Tobacco smoking is a common problem in the workplace today. It is hard for employers to predict employees’ health concerns related to smoking. The assessment of the physical workplace in terms of equipment and human resources reveals that more than half of employees (the total amount is 65) smoke regularly. The leadership team is concerned that 13 employees have already left and wants to stop the tendency by assessing a particular health issue – the impact of tobacco smoking.
Tobacco Use Statistics
In the United States, tobacco smoking is one of the leading causes of preventable diseases and disabilities. Despite an inevitable decline in overall tobacco use prevalence, more than 47 million American adults (19% of the total population) continue using different tobacco products (Cornelius, 2022). Tobacco use incidence is higher in males, older individuals, and non-Hispanic American Indians in rural areas (Cornelius, 2022). More than 16 million smokers report having at least one smoking-related disease (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). Every year, one in five deaths (480,000 deaths in total) is caused by cigarette smoking (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2022). These numbers terrify and prove that people should define tobacco as a serious health threat to be reduced and prevented.
Data on Tobacco Use: The United States vs. the Workplace
Tobacco use remains a critical issue in the American healthcare system and the workplace. Comparing national and organizational data helps understand why the company must underline the importance of changes. Currently, the staff comprises 60% of males between 32 and 61 years old. Following the national statistics, most employees belong to the most common risk groups defined by sex and age. They cannot quit their habit without specific causes and alternatives. Limited lunch options provoke the desire to smoke instead of eating healthy food. Poor window access and no advertisement explain the inability to find other ideas, except common smoking and communication. Tobacco smoking damages employees’ health significantly, and the leaders should raise this concern for several reasons. First, the employer must help employees create the most favorable and healthy working conditions. Second, the promotion of information and education is proved to be an effective strategy to achieve a positive decline in tobacco use nationally. Thus, there are chances to improve the workplace and solve the existing smoking problem.
Additional Concerns
In addition to tobacco use, such issues as the poor promotion of physical activities and no extracurricular options may negatively impact workplace health. Obesity and overweight are usually explained as primary responsibilities of individuals, while depression is provoked by unfavorable environmental factors (Mata and Hertwig, 2018). With time, obesity becomes another form of addiction like smoking or alcohol and contributes to an increase in mental health disorders like anxiety or depression.
Incidence and Prevalence Determination
The leadership team should know how to determine the incidence and prevalence of obesity and depression among employees. The best way is to find the correlation between the number of “challenged” people when they join the company and in one or two years. Health check-ups (body mass image and depression self-assessment tests) should be annually organized for every employee at the workplace. The intersection between obesity, depression, and tobacco smoking is as follows: no healthy alternatives for employees increase the desire to smoke and decrease the desire to be physically active, which results in depression and other health problems.
Mortality and Morbidity Determination
In the workplace, mortality and morbidity rates related to tobacco smoking, obesity (overweight), and depression are low; still, the leadership team should know how to determine this data. The calculation usually includes the correlation between the number of deaths in a certain period for the population and the total population. About 2.6 million people die from obesity annually, and depression affects more than 350 million people, causing suicidal thoughts (Blasco et al., 2020). In this case, no employee deaths are reported, but it is important to follow the statistics and inform people about possible threats.
Workplace Health Promotion
Data collected on tobacco smoking, obesity, and depression promote workplace health in several ways. First, employees need to think about the environment where they spend most of the day and share their thoughts about how to diversify their activities. Second, health is an individual responsibility, and each employee should mind the statistics and reports to quit their habits and focus on lifestyle changes. Finally, the distribution of information about healthy choices (brochures) is a new task for the leadership team. Health literacy among employees can be improved through regular communication and discussion of alternatives that do not decrease the life quality.
Changes
If the environment changes due to acquiring a larger company or moving the office, the plan based on employee education about healthy habits can be improved. For example, acquisition and merger might provoke new depression-related symptoms like anxiety and worries about organizational changes. Mortality and morbidity of employees due to depression can be increased, but obesity risks will be minimized because of movement necessity and additional physical activities. Another example of how a new environment might affect workplace health is a smoking ban. Employers are free to restrict or even prohibit smoking in the workplace. Still, in addition to long-term perspectives, increased depression due to no smoking may be observed.
Conclusion
This workplace health assessment plan reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. On the one hand, the number of smoking employees prevails and explains the leaders’ concerns about employee turnover and life quality. On the other hand, additional problems like obesity and depression cannot be ignored in the evaluation of the work environment. Thus, improved education, new healthy alternatives, and organizational bans might become the best solutions to promote employee health.
Reference List
Blasco, B. V., et al. (2020). Obesity and depression: its prevalence and influence as a prognostic factor: a systematic review.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). Current cigarette smoking among adults in the United States.
Cornelius, M., et al. (2022). Tobacco product use among adults – United States, 2020.
Kava, C.M., et al. (2022). Worksite tobacco control – a qualitative study on perspectives from employers and employees at small worksites.
Mata, J., and Hertwig, R. (2018). Public beliefs about obesity relative to other major health risks: representative cross-sectional surveys in the USA, the UK, and Germany.