Citation

Leffer M, Grizzell T. J. Occup. Environ. Med. 2010; 52(3): 336-339.

Affiliation

From Federal Occupational Health, Bethesda, Md; Primecare Corporate Health Solutions, Owings Mills, Md; and Uniformed University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Md.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/JOM.0b013e3181d44d8d

PMID

20190648

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:: To determine the effects of a physician-organized wellness regime (POWR) on a cohort of firefighters while applying the 2007 National Fire Protection Association Standard 1582. METHODS:: A prospective evaluation comparing baseline with postintervention injury rate data among 252 Howard County, Maryland firefighters with analysis of return on investment. RESULTS:: After implementation of POWR, the Howard County fire department showed a 40% reduction in recordable injuries during year 1, which increased to 60% during year 2. Return on investment was shown to be 4.6:1 by the second year. Moreover, the subpopulation of overweight firefighters showed statistically significant weight loss during the intervention period. CONCLUSION:: POWR, a specific type of wellness initiative, can lead to substantial cost savings from an injury-sparing perspective alone and has potential to decrease cardiac risk factors among a high-risk population of firefighters.

Language: en