Non-drug approaches to pain management prove effective
Helpful insights on pain coping techniques from Industrial Safety & Hygiene News (ISHN)
Data from a review of U.S.-based clinical trials published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings suggest that some of the most popular complementary health approaches — such as yoga, tai chi, and acupuncture — appear to be effective tools for helping to manage common pain conditions. The review was conducted by a group of scientists from the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) at the National Institutes of Health.
Millions of Americans suffer from persistent pain that may not be fully relieved by medications. They often turn to complementary health approaches to help, yet primary care providers have lacked a robust evidence base to guide recommendations on complementary approaches as practiced and available in the United States. The new review gives primary care providers — who frequently see patients with chronic pain — tools to inform decision-making on how to help manage that pain.
“For many Americans who suffer from chronic pain, medications may not completely relieve pain and can produce unwanted side effects. As a result, many people may turn to nondrug approaches to help manage their pain,” said Richard L. Nahin, Ph.D., NCCIH’s lead epidemiologist and lead author of the analysis. “Our goal for this study was to provide relevant, high-quality information for primary care providers and for patients who suffer from chronic pain.”
The researchers reviewed 105 U.S.-based randomized controlled trials, from the past 50 years, that were relevant to pain patients in the United States and met inclusion criteria. Although the reporting of safety information was low overall, none of the clinical trials reported significant side effects due to the interventions.
The review focused on U.S.-based trial results on seven approaches used for one or more of five painful conditions — back pain, osteoarthritis, neck pain, fibromyalgia, and severe headaches and migraine — and found promise in the following for safety and effectiveness in treating pain:
- Acupuncture and yoga for back pain
- Acupuncture and tai chi for osteoarthritis of the knee
- Massage therapy for neck pain with adequate doses and for short-term benefit
- Relaxation techniques for severe headaches and migraine.
Though the evidence was weaker, the researchers also found that massage therapy, spinal manipulation, and osteopathic manipulation may provide some help for back pain, and relaxation approaches and tai chi might help people with fibromyalgia.
“These data can equip providers and patients with the information they need to have informed conversations regarding non-drug approaches for treatment of specific pain conditions,” said David Shurtleff, Ph.D., deputy director of NCCIH. “It’s important that continued research explore how these approaches actually work and whether these findings apply broadly in diverse clinical settings and patient populations.”
Read more about this report at nccih.nih.gov/pain_review.
About the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH): NCCIH’s mission is to define, through rigorous scientific investigation, the usefulness and safety of complementary and integrative health approaches and their roles in improving health and health care. For additional information, call NCCIH’s Clearinghouse toll free at 1-888-644-6226, or visit the NCCIH Web site at nccih.nih.gov. Follow us on Twitter (link is external),Facebook (link is external), and YouTube.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
See the original article Here.
Reference
Nahin RL, Boineau R, Khalsa PS, Stussman BJ, Weber WJ. (2016 September 7). Evidence-based evaluation of complementary health approaches for pain management in the United States. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2016;91(9):1292-1306. Retrieved from address https://www.ishn.com/articles/104834-non-drug-approaches-to-pain-management-prove-effective
Take out the earbuds
Intriguing artile from Benefits Pro by Marty Traynor
Walk around any workplace and unless there's a safety issue, almost every employee under 50 is wearing earbuds and remains focused on their own personal music zone. What a perfect metaphor for the barriers we must overcome to gain the attention we need for benefit purchase decisions.
With the fall enrollment season approaching, let's consider some of the ways we should work to “remove the buds” and focus employee attention on the process of benefit enrollment.
- Employer's earbuds must come out first. Employees are not the only ones ignoring the importance of benefit-related communications. Employers often think a simple introductory email is sufficient. That kind of communication is enough if the goal is to tell employees about an event. However, in no way does this type of message convey importance or opportunity. You must convince the employer that a well-designed campaign will be a big positive for them, both in terms of employee engagement and happiness with employee benefit options.
- Know your audience. Many otherwise great campaigns have failed because they are tone deaf to their audience. A program benefitting union members better not be littered with “employee” references. The graphics used to illustrate the benefit plan should also be carefully designed to match the demographics of the employee audience. Designers often tend to show “beautiful people,” but benefit plans need to be shown benefitting real people.
- Use multiple approaches to connect with people. You often hear about the importance of multi-channel benefit communications. Unfortunately, we cannot just say, “Alexa, create a multi-channel campaign to teach employees about their benefits and get them to enroll to best meet their needs.” We must do what's next best and create a campaign that gives employees information in multiple ways: web details, calculators, videos, printable pieces with brief, explanatory, and detailed options. Use on-site materials such as break room table tents and bulletin board posters to augment e-campaigns.
- Use “real speak” whenever possible. The benefits business is full of jargon. Studies have shown that words we use all the time are confusing; even a term like “premium” isn't clear. Most people think of premium as an adjective, meaning “expensive, special or high class.” They don't see it as an everyday expenditure, but rather as a luxury type of item. So when we say “your premium is affordable,” employees may immediately think we are trying to scam them. Watch the jargon, and use terms that make sense to employees.
- Get people in front of people. The best way to communicate is in person. Regardless of how effective an employer's enrollment system is, the most effective communications campaigns still have a human element. Personal meetings, group meetings or call center-based enrollments can all add the personal touch. Without a personal touch, a benefit enrollment campaign may seem empty to many employees.
- Make sure employees know what's in it for them. They need to understand the importance of good benefit elections for themselves. This helps ensure they credit their employer for offering a valued program, and ensures they will understand the importance of good choices in enrollment.
Good luck with your fourth quarter enrollments. Earbuds are not noise cancelling headphones, so there is still a great opportunity to break through to employees and make your benefit communications campaigns your best to date.
See the original article Here.
Source:
Traynor, M. (2016 September 13). Take out the earbuds. [Web blog post]. Retrieved from address https://www.benefitspro.com/2016/09/13/take-out-the-earbuds?slreturn=1474041704
10 Resources to Help Your Employees Prepare for Retirement
Very helpful tips for retirement from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), by Irene Saccoccio.
Social Security wants to help you prepare your employees for a secure, comfortable retirement. Security is the Social Security Administration’s middle name and we want everyone to enjoy the fruits of a lifetime of labor.
We mentioned before that being prepared when you retire can open new avenues of possibilities. Our website has tools and information to help you secure today and tomorrow. When it comes to retirement, we’ve got you covered with 10 tools to help you plan for your retirement, apply for, and then manage your benefits as you go along.
1. Our Retirement Estimator provides estimates based on your actual Social Security earnings record. Plug in different numbers, retirement dates, and scenarios to help you decide the best time for you to retire.
2. Using our Retirement Planner: Plan for Your Retirement can help you find your ideal retirement age, estimate your life expectancy and the amount of your benefits when you retire. You can test future retirement ages and various earning amounts.
3. Read Retirement Planner: Getting Benefits While Working to learn the rules and regulations about work after retirement, how it affects you, and what you should consider.
4. Retirement Benefits provides you with a broad overview of our retirement program. It covers how you earn coverage, how to apply, how benefits are figured, and how to decide when to retire.
5. When to Start Receiving Retirement Benefits takes a look at some factors that can help you make an informed decision about the best time to retire.
6. Your Retirement Benefit: How It Is Figured explains the formula Social Security uses to calculate your benefit amount, describes what factors can affect it, and offers a worksheet to help you estimate your retirement benefits.
7. The Medicare section of our website provides information about the Medicare program and answers general questions on Medicare.
8. Medicare Premiums: Rules for Higher-Income Beneficiaries explains the rules about people with higher incomes. If you have higher income, find out why you will pay an additional premium amount for Medicare Part B and Medicare prescription drug coverage.
9. Your personal my Social Security account is one of the most powerful tools available to secure your retirement. And lucky for you it’s at your fingertips. With a personal my Social Security account, your employees can get their Social Security Statement that shows estimates of their future retirement, disability, and survivors benefits. They can check their earnings to verify the yearly amounts that we posted are correct. They can also get estimates of Social Security and Medicare taxes they’ve paid.
10. Our online retirement application is an easy, convenient, and secure way to trail-blaze your way to retirement. You can complete it in as little as 15 minutes and, just like that, you can start the retirement of your dreams.
With these 10 resources, your employees can stay informed about their retirement options. Information is the first step toward achievement. When you retire one journey ends while another begins. Be ready for your next adventure!
Irene Saccoccio is the National Public Affairs Specialist for the U.S. Social Security Administration.
See the original article Here.
Source:
Saccoccio, I. (2016 September 15). 10 Resources to help your employees prepare for retirement. [Web blog post]. Retrieved from address https://blog.shrm.org/blog/10-resources-to-help-your-employees-prepare-for-retirement
5 rules for engaging millennials in wellness
As wellness programs become increasingly popular, it is important to understand how to get your employees engaged. Dr. Rajiv Kumar lends 6 tips to engaging millennials in your wellness program in the article below.
Original Post from BenefitsPro.com on June 27, 2016
These days, you can’t pick up a newspaper or turn on the TV without hearing a new indictment of millennials.
You know the stereotype: this newest generation of employees is selfish, narcissistic, entitled, and impatient.
I understand where this portrayal comes from — no one admires the guy with the selfie stick — but it’s an inaccurate generalization of my generation.
In fact, a growing body of data has revealed that the millennial generation is more altruistic, socially engaged, and health-minded than our predecessors, making us perfect consumers for employee well-being programs.
The trick is to speak the language of millennials, and as a millennial myself, I’ve got some advice to share.
Here are my five rules for engaging millennial employees in employee well-being programs.
Rule 1: Be legit.
The key to earning the trust of millennial employees is authenticity. Mine is a generation that has grown up with the internet, and thus has a very keen eye for public relations spin, marketing jargon, and advertising. Millennials have grown up truly surrounded by marketing, and they’re a bit immune.
Research has shown authenticity is of utmost value to millennials. 70 percent of millennials will stay loyal to a brand that has earned their trust. And 75 percent view themselves as authentic, meaning that being legit is the truest way to earn that trust.
When you’re considering your well-being benefits, create a brand that resonates and accurately represents your workforce. Use images of real people instead of photo-shopped models. Offer programs that allow people to set their own goals, rather than impose parameters and benchmarks.
Avoid jargon and long detailed benefits explanations. Instead, be straightforward. You’ll telegraph authenticity and your employees will connect with your brand.
Rule 2: Cut to the chase.
The millennial preference for all things direct and convenient is unsurprising given our obsession with authenticity. A marketplace devoid of middle men, where consumers are empowered to make their own informed decisions, is a millennial touchstone. Some of the country’s most impressive consumer companies have tapped into this preference. Consider Uber, Roku, and Airbnb.
The attributes that define the millennial marketplace — speed, convenience, transparency — are the ones that will also shape the future of well-being benefits.
45 percent of millennials say they’re more likely to participate in health and wellness programs if they’re easy or convenient to do. This means that we need to make enrolling in well-being programs straightforward and easy if we’re going to attract the next generation.
Seek out vendors that offer Single Sign On (SSO) integrations to relieve your employees of additional accounts, usernames, and passwords. When possible, offer programs that are flexible — that employees can tackle in their own time, on their own schedule.
This flexibility means programs can easily be accommodated and adopted within an existing or preferred schedule, and your engagement rates will climb.
Rule 3: There’s gotta be an app for that.
An appropriate motto for the millennial generation is “all mobile, all the time.” It may astonish older generations to hear that even a PC is passé to a millennial. Instead, we rely on our phones, tablets, and even our watches for all of the information we need.
Wellness and benefits cannot expect to be an exception to this rule. To remain relevant to millennials, you must allow them to enroll, participate, and access resources from their phone. This is absolutely critical, as millennials have little tolerance for anything else.
The good news is the industry is catching up to these preferences. Many well-being vendors have native apps that employees can download and access through their phones and smartwatches.
When selecting your wellbeing program, find a vendor that is committed to mobile innovation — this trend is advancing rapidly, and you’re going to want a partner that keeps up with the swift pace of mobile invention.
Rule 4: Sharing is caring.
For a generation that is constantly in touch, frequently checking in online, and publicly voicing our opinions, sharing is an important part of millennial life — professional and otherwise. Contrary to the stereotypes, this tendency to “overshare” isn’t just about self-involvement or grandstanding. In fact, sharing opinions, publicly voicing feedback, and reaching out to others serve an important purpose.
More than any other generational cohort, millennials rely on our friends, family, and peers for recommendations and suggestions. This is particularly true in the consumer arena — consider sites like Yelp and Amazon — but it has important implications for well-being benefits as well.
If you’re able to get an enthusiastic group of early adopters to enroll in your benefits program, you’ll likely enjoy a successful ripple effect with millennials. That’s because word-of-mouth is the most effective form of marketing for my generation. This ties back directly to our obsession with authenticity — we trust the recommendations and views of our friends and peers more than the promotional efforts of a corporate department.
When you’re implementing a well-being program, devote time and resources to building a champions network that will get the word out, share updates, and encourage others to join.
This will attract hard-to-engage populations and keep them invested throughout the program duration. Find a well-being vendor that has experience creating champion networks and your program will benefit immensely.
Rule 5: Offer well-being, not wellness.
Unlike previous generations who have used traditional milestones to measure success — climbing the corporate ladder, getting married, buying a house — millennials aspire towards balance, in life and in work. In fact, 97 percent of millennials named happiness as a primary interest. It’s nearly unanimous.
This focus on balance extends to the way millennials conceptualize health, which is much more focused on well-being than previous generations. 72 percent of millennials say they exercise once a week or more, and 95 percent say they care deeply about their health.
For wellness benefits to be relevant to millennials they can’t merely focus on the physical realm of health — clearly, millennials are already on that bandwagon.
Instead, they’ll be drawn to a range of programs that address other ways to find balance and achieve happiness. For example, financial wellness is of great interest to a generation that’s shouldering record levels of debt. My generation would also benefit greatly from emotional resiliency programs, since we are incredibly stressed.
To engage millennials in wellness, you have to extend the definition to embrace holistic wellbeing, incorporating programs that address the multiple factors that contribute to work/life balance, including mental, social, and emotional variables. Companies that adopt this millennial view of well-being will be much more successful in attracting, retaining, and engaging the most powerful generation in the workforce today.
Read the full article at: https://www.benefitspro.com/2016/06/27/5-rules-for-engaging-millennials-in-wellness?ref=hp-blogs&page_all=1
Source:
Kumar, R. (2016, June 27). 5 rules for engaging millennials in wellness [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://www.benefitspro.com/2016/06/27/5-rules-for-engaging-millennials-in-wellness?ref=hp-blogs&page_all=1
6 ways to overcome distractions
Originally posted by Erin Bramblett, HR specialist with Insperity, an HR outsourcing firm on https://ebn.benefitnews.com.
If anyone knows a thing or two about multitasking, it’s benefit managers. From understanding the compliance complexities of the Affordable Care Act to navigating the nuances of ERISA, benefit managers are experts at juggling several priorities. Yet multitasking and having to deal with constant interruptions can negatively affect work quality, according to a recent study from the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.
“Prioritize what you need to get done as an employee and do those things early in the day,” says Bramblett. “Focus on what needs to get done, whether it’s three things or five things, and focus on those until they’re done.”
“Write that bulleted list, include scheduled breaks and cross them off as you complete them. That will help you stay focused,” advises Bramblett. “And taking a mental break in between tasks will help employees shift gears a little more easily.”
A five-minute break to update your status can easily turn into a 30-minute waste of time, says Bramblett, who advises keeping social media pages closed during the work day. But if you absolutely can’t go all day without seeing what those crazy cats on Instagram are up to, then schedule it as part of your break on your to-do list.
“It’s hard to not say ‘yes’ to every assignment that comes your way,” says Bramblett. “But you’ve got to make sure you’re keeping your to-do list at a realistic level.” She advises communicating with your team, your boss or your clients to make sure your daily priorities are correct and that you’re finding out which things are most important for you to get done each day.
“It is scientifically proven that individuals work better when they are single-tasking,” says Bramblett, citing an American Psychological Association study that showed multitasking undermines efficiency by as much as 40%.
“If employees feel like they have to multitask because their boss keeps coming at them with multiple projects and asking for updates on 15 different things in a day, that would certainly be something that would create that environment so you want to ensure you create that work-life balance,” advises Bramblett.