Wellness Goes Global as CIGNA Helps Companies Launch Multilingual, Multicultural Programs

As companies increase their global footprint with operations in multiple countries, CIGNA (NYSE: CI) is offering a uniform but localized health and wellness program for multinational companies whose employees are citizens of the countries where they work.

At the heart of the program are a health assessment and online health coaching courses for stress, nutrition, physical fitness and sleep created by vielife, a London-based CIGNA company that develops global wellness and productivity improvement programs. The assessment is available in more than 15 languages, including multiple versions of English, Spanish and French, and is localized so that cultural differences specific to a country are taken into account. vielife’s health assessment and online coaching programs have earned certification for quality from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) under the NCQA’s Health Information Products certification program.

Initially the global wellness program is being offered to a small number of early adopter employers who purchase it as an add-on to their CIGNA health plan.

"Our global wellness strategy is based on the recognition that no two companies are alike, and among multinational companies with operations in multiple countries, no two employee populations are alike,” said David Guilmette, president, National Segment. "CIGNA will work closely with employers to help them deliver wellness programs that meet local needs, which should result in broader employee participation and present more opportunities to help people improve their health.”

One international company with a focus on global wellness for its employees is PepsiCo. "Our intention is to create a global wellness program that’s very personalized and tailored to the specific needs of the individual,” said Ellen Exum, the company’s program director for wellness & prevention. PepsiCo uses the vielife health assessment as part of its program in England and elsewhere in Europe, as well as Australia, Dubai, Mexico, Taiwan and other countries worldwide.

According to Buck Consultants’ 2009 global wellness survey,¹ the strategic objectives for wellness programs vary by global regions, as do the health risks driving wellness strategy. For example, while reducing health care costs is the top strategic objective in the United States, in Europe it’s improving productivity and in Asia it’s improving workforce morale. In the U.S., the top health risk driving wellness strategy is physical activity/exercise, but in both Europe and Asia it’s stress.

"A key challenge for employers seeking to implement global wellness programs is the limited availability of tools and materials that are culturally and linguistically sensitive and tailored to meet the needs of specific employee populations,” said Barry Hall, principal for clinical healthcare and global technology solutions at Buck Consultants.

CIGNA's global wellness program can help an employer understand how the health of its employees affects the health of the business. Management reports can pinpoint the specific health risks the company may face and can measure the potential impact on absence and productivity.

For employees, the global wellness program provides practical, appropriate and achievable recommendations in the areas of stress, nutrition, physical fitness, sleep and work/life balance, and can benefit virtually anybody no matter where they fall on the health spectrum - including people who are healthy and fit as well as those who are living with a chronic health condition.

About CIGNA

CIGNA (NYSE:CI), a global health service company, is dedicated to helping people improve their health, well being and sense of security. CIGNA Corporation's operating subsidiaries provide an integrated suite of medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy and vision care benefits, as well as group life, accident and disability insurance, to approximately 46 million people throughout the United States and around the world. To learn more about CIGNA, visit www.cigna.com. To sign up for email alerts or an RSS feed of company news, log on to http://newsroom.cigna.com/rss/. Also, follow us on Twitter: @cigna and visit CIGNA’s YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/cignatv.

¹ Working Well: A Global Survey of Health Promotion and Workplace Wellness Strategies, November 2009, Buck Consultants, LLC.