We are what we eat, and it shows. It shows not only out, down and around, but in medical claims to insurance companies, if we have healthcare. That fact of life settled squarely on 22 elected and county employees in the Cape May County Administration Building lobby Sept. 11, immediately after the Patriots’ Day Ceremony.
In a spacious area normally the gathering place for artwork, irate citizens, photo opportunities and a display of something interesting was something that looked like the set of The Food Channel. Along the north wall was a long table with colorful vegetables an electric frying pan and bowl of bow-tie pasta, made of whole wheat.
That was the kickoff of what every employee of the County of Cape May will become intimately aware of, if they have not already. Their health is the issue.
Goal of the Wellness Program will be to educate county employees on better eating habits, lifestyle management, like eating fruit instead of doughnuts, walking instead of riding, and keeping an eye on blood pressure, weight and cholesterol numbers. Once educated, the freeholders hope to see an overall downturn in medical claims which, in turn will mean tax savings.
Whether it will ultimately mean pulling in the tax belt a notch of two has yet to be seen, but it would seem to make sense. If the county, which is self-insured, can cut what it pays for medical costs, we should see a saving in taxes to support the county government.
As with any weight loss program, we shouldn’t expect to drop 25 pounds in one week, but a pound or two a week, multiplied by about 900 employees, and it could add up to a lot of pounds and a healthier worker. That’s the goal, but sometimes goals are more easily set than achieved.
Marilou Rochford, director, Rutgers Cooperative Extension Service, donned a red apron and gave her co-workers and freeholders a lesson in healthy cooking and eating. After explaining about fats, which many didn’t really want to hear, she pointed to a colorful chart that compared one chocolate-covered doughnut to something like 128 oranges. Quipped Rochford, when she mentioned that to her son, he replied in a typically-American guy fashion, that he would rather have the doughnut. Therein lies the mission.
Rochford then drafted Freeholder Director Gerald Thornton to assist her in preparing the evening repast for the hungry, wise-cracking crowd. Off came Jerry’s jacket and there, for all the world to see, was the next star of The Food Channel. Move over, Emeril, here comes Jerry the Chef.
There were, of course, a plethora of remarks from the peanut gallery like “Where’s the Gallo wine?” or “It should would taste better with a little Gallo wine.” Such comments were to his former years as a salesman for that vintner.
It was all in good humor, of course. Rochford stayed pretty much to her lesson plan, even when Freeholder Leonard Desiderio wondered, “Where’s the nice, thick steak?”
Joking aside, the Cape May County Employees Wellness Program, under the direction of Wellness Division Coordinator Joann Barnard is serious about offering to employees and their families the encouragement to work toward better health and wellness.
Each month will have a different thrust toward better health. September’s focus is Heart Health and Cholesterol. Remember the “Mission Impossible” television shows that would begin with, “Your mission, should you choose to accept it?” Instead, what this experiment will be is a mission to the possible.
The county’s not reinventing its wheel. It will use people and programs already in place, and make the employees more aware of things offered to them, like blood pressure checks and those darn lying scales that never tell the real weight. (We all know scales are evil, but it’s like the rest of the bad things in this world, like chocolate doughnuts and cream cheese slathered bagels).
Not to be outdone, Joan Rowland, health educator at the Health Department was accompanied by two members of the county Medical Reserve Corps, who were armed with blood pressure cuffs, ready to take the numbers of anyone willing to sit long enough to have it taken.
One man had hit taken and, sure enough, it was off the charts. That’s a danger signal he might never have known had not those ladies been there with their gear.
That is exactly who the Wellness Program is aiming to enlist.
For full disclosure, the program is being done as a partnership with Ameri-Health, which realizes that healthier people are less likely to need expensive medicine or medical procedures.
Honestly, the pasta wasn’t bad, could have used salt, but then, it was healthy food. If we can, as a county, begin to reduce our sweet and salty desires, we might all be better off.
As with many programs of its type, this Wellness Program, which will involve every county employee, will very likely spread to their families (i.e. children), and we all know once youngsters get sold on something, mom and dad, grandmom and grandpop have to follow along. This could possibly be one of the best things that Cape May County government will ever do for us taxpayers. We all could benefit, if we are willing to make some minor changes in what we eat and how we exercise.
I’ll be okay, so long as they don’t take away my ketchup and hot sauce.
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