- Don’t smoke or use tobacco
- Exercise for about 30 minutes on most days of the week
- Eat a healthy diet
- Limit use of salt
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Get enough quality sleep
- Manage stress
- Get regular health screenings
There are simple things companies can do to promote heart health as well. Here are some examples of what Gilbane offers:
Free Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) training on project sites and in the office
Do you know that over 80% of those that learned CPR at work, administered it at home or in their community. Gilbane shows its core value of caring by offering CPR / AED training classes in our local offices. By the end of a recent class, 12 new Gilbane employees were ready to assist a colleague, family member or friend if they were ever to have a need for CPR or an AED.
Encourage Regular Health Screenings
Gilbane promotes regular screenings through our wellness program incentives. To assist with regular blood pressure checks, Gilbane’s headquarters has a blood pressure cuff device in the kitchen area with a privacy screen so that employees can easily check their numbers during the workday. High blood pressure, or hypertension, can indicate your risk for heart disease and stroke, as well as number of other conditions.
Provide Fitness Rewards
At Gilbane, we support employees that strive to maintain their own health and wellness and reimburse a percentage of the cost of expenses such as gym/health club memberships, stationary equipment, heart rate or blood pressure monitors and weight management programs. This program makes it easier to maintain active and healthy lifestyles.
Make it Easier to Maintain Good Health
As part of Gilbane’s commitment to our employees’ well-being, we recently enhanced our Wellness Program into a mobile app that provides the resources needed to maintain good health including tracking steps and health habits, providing sleep and nutrition guides, and promoting regular screenings through incentives.
Celebrate National Wear Red Day
Organizations around the country, including Gilbane, celebrate National Wear Red Day on the first Friday in February, to bring greater attention to heart disease awareness as the leading cause of death for Americans. Some offices also sponsor or participate in local Heart Walks and help raise money for their communities.
Let us know how your organizations are making heart education a part of your company culture or try implementing our ideas to ensure you can enjoy a healthy and safe February and rest of 2019!
Resources:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention https://www.cdc.gov/
New ACC/AHA High Blood Pressure Guidelines Lower Definition of Hypertension
High Blood Pressure or Hypertension
