Local company sees 85 percent employee use of wellness center

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March 22, 2006

By Scott Fitzgerald The Enid News and Eagle Wed Mar 22, 2006, 10:57 AM CST

It’s too early to measure whether Advance Food Company’s Employee Health & Wellness Center located at 312 E. Garriott is stemming the tide of rising health costs.

But one thing is for sure, it’s being utilized by nearly 85 percent of the approximate 1,300 Advance employees here in Enid and the response is positive.

“The feedback I’ve gotten is that this is the best thing we’ve ever done,” said Brian Hayden, vice president of people services at Advance.

The center opened 11 months ago in a 2,000-square-foot central location that is “easily accessible and affordable to employees,” said physician’s assistant Charity J. Goben.

“We have two goals — to save money on claims and quicker service for employees and their dependents,” Goben said.

Advance officials announced during the opening of the center nearly a year ago that it was joining a handful of companies nationwide that are utilizing wellness centers to help stem the rising costs of health care.

Health care costs for Advance increased from $3.3 million in 2002 to $4.2 million in 2005.

Open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. except for Tuesday when hours are extended to 7 p.m., the center will average from 25 to 30 patients daily.

For a very low minimal co-pay, employees and their dependents can get some basic health care services from Goben and medical director, Dr. Gary Patzkowsky.

The focal point of the center, however, is to educate and help employees monitor their own health.

“They can buy kits that contain questionnaires about lifestyles. There is also a software program available. We do quarterly training sessions with all employees. We try to look at things like nutrition and cholesterol levels. We’re not trying to replace the family medicine practice,” Goben said.

Patient assessments are conducted every 10 months.

“We will be looking for lower instances of cancer and heart disease as we do the assessments,” Goben said.

An advisory board consisting of local medical doctors and company officials is looking at adding cancer screenings this year for employees and their spouses, Goben said.

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