Volume 32, Issue 1: February, 2005

Process Evaluation of an Integrated Health Promotion/Occupational Health Model in WellWorks-2

Mary Kay Hunt, MPH, RD, Ruth Lederman, MPH, Anne M. Stoddard, ScD, Anthony D. LaMontagne, ScD, MA, MEd, Deborah McLellan, MHS, Candace Combe, MS, RD, Elizabeth Barbeau, ScD, MPH, and Glorian Sorensen, MPH, PhD

Disparities in chronic disease risk by occupation call for new approaches to health promotion.WellWorks-2 was a randomized, controlled study comparing the effectiveness of a health promotion/occupational health program (HP/OHS) with a standard intervention (HP). Interventions in both studies were based on the same theoretical foundations. Results from process evaluation revealed that a similar number of activities were offered in both conditions and that in the HP/OHS condition there were higher levels of worker participation using three measures: mean participation per activity (HP: 14.2% vs. HP/OHS: 21.2%), mean minutes of worker exposure to the intervention/site (HP: 14.9 vs. HP/OHS: 33.3), and overall mean participation per site (HP: 34.4% vs. HP/OHS: 45.8%). There were a greater number of contacts with management (HP: 8.8 vs. HP/OHS: 24.9) in the HP/OHS condition. Addressing occupational health may have contributed to higher levels of worker and management participation and smoking cessation among blue-collar workers.