NKU Wellness

Who is eligible?

The Health Assessment is available to all benefit eligible employees. This includes contract or regular staff that work at least 20 hours per week (1040 hrs./yr.) and full-time temporary, tenure, tenure track and renewable faculty. Work study and grad assistants are excluded.

What is a Health Screening?

The health screening is a free and confidential evaluation of health indicators. The screening will consist of a fasting blood test for cholesterol (HDL and LDL), triglycerides, blood sugar, a complete blood count, and a blood chemistry profile. Measurements of height, weight, waist measurement, blood pressure and body mass index will also be conducted. Partitions will be in place to assure your privacy. The results of these screenings and the answers you provide on the HA will determine your Personal Wellness Report.

Supplemental screenings are available at an additional charge. Payment for these optional tests will be required at the time of your screening by check, cash or credit card (Visa and Master Card accepted). You will have the option to select the following tests when you schedule your appointment:

• Vitamin D test: $35
  * Vitamin D is essential for strong bones because it helps the body use calcium from the foods we eat. Increasing research is revealing the importance of Vitamin D in protecting against a host of health problems, such as osteoporosis, heart disease, certain cancers and more. Click HERE for more information.
• Prostate Specific Antigen test (PSA): $35
  *This simple blood test measures the level of prostate specific antigen in the blood. It is recommended for men over the age of 40 with a family history of prostate cancer and all men annually over the age of 50.
• Thyroid Panel: $37 *Abnormal thyroid may exhibit the following symptoms: unexplained weight gain or loss, fatigue, hair loss, sweating, insomnia or constipation. Panel includes T3, T4, T7 and TSH.
• Hemoglobin A1C: $25
  *This test is a diabetic marker which measures your average glucose level over the past 3 months.

What is a Health Assessment (HA)?

The health assessment is a short, confidential, questionnaire (available in paper form or online) designed to help increase your knowledge about your own personal health.

Sample HA Questions 

1. In general, would you say your health is: 

• Excellent
• Very Good
• Good
• Fair
• Poor

2. On the average, how often do you get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep each day?

• Always or nearly always
• Most of the time
• Less than half the time
• Seldom or never

3. When driving or riding in a car, how often do you wear a seatbelt?

• Always
• Most of the time
• Less than half the time
• Seldom or never

If you choose the online HA questionnaire option, your Personal Wellness Report (PWR) and score will be available online approximately on week after your appointment, as well as mailed to your home 2-3 weeks after your appointment.You will also have access to WellSuite, a website containing many robust resources to assist you in improving or maintaining your health and well-being.

How do I participate?

Step 1: Beginning Tuesday, January 1st thru January 31st, register for your health screening appointment with HealthWorks online or call HealthWorks directly at 513-751-1288 for one of the following dates:

• February 19, 20, 21, 22
  
• Appointments are available from 7:00 AM- 10:45 AM and will take approximately 10 minutes.
• When registering for your assessment, you have the option to complete the health assessment questionnaire in paper form or online.

Step 2: Receive your paper Health Assessment (HA) questionnaire from HealthWorks via interdepartmental mail or receive your online assessment link via email. You must filkl out the questionnaire to receive the blood draw.

• Paper HA questionnaire:
  • Once you have scheduled your appointment, HealthWorks will send you an HA questionnaire sometime during the week of February 11th. The questionnaire will be delivered via interdepartmental mail to the campus address you indicated when you booked your appointment online. Be sure to check that mailbox to receive your questionnaire.
  • You will need to complete this questionnaire (using a #2 pencil) prior to your health screening appointment. Leave the blood pressure and other clinical measurement fields (glucose, cholesterol, etc) blank as those values will be filled in by a health screening technician during your appointment.
  • Bring the completed questionnaire with you to your health screening appointment.
    
• Online HA questionnaire:
  • Once you have scheduled your appointment, HealthWorks will send you a link to and instructions for the online questionnairre via email one week prior to your appointment. The link will be sent to the email account you indicated when you registered for your appointment. All of your information will be completely confidential as you create a unique personal password for your account.
    
  • You will receive another email with the assessment link two days prior to your appointment. If you do not complete your online questionnaire prior to your appointment, you will need to complete a paper questionnaire at the time of your appointment.

Step 3: Attend your scheduled health screening appointment.

• Be sure to fast for 10-12 hours prior to your appointment time. You may have black coffee, black tea or water.
• Please continue taking all medications as prescribed.
• If you chose the paper HA questionnaire, please bring your completed questionnaire with you to your appointment.
• If you chose the online HA questionnaire, please complete it before your appointment. If you do not complete it prior to your appointment, you will need to complete a paper questionnaire at the time of your screening.

Step 4: Receive your Personal Wellness Report (PWR) report:

The Personal Wellness Report

The Personal Wellness Report (PWR) is a personalized and confidential computer-generated report that provides you with an overall health and wellness evaluation. The PWR identifies health risks that you may have, offers suggestions for ways to improve your lifestyle, lets you know where you're doing well with respect to health behaviors, and gives you information you need to take charge of your health. The PWR will provide results and feedback in the following areas:

Fitness, Nutrition, Stress Management, Cancer Risk, Heart Health, Substance Use, Safety, Osteoporosis Risk, Health Age, Lung Function

To see a partial sample of the individual report, click HERE.

• Approximately 2-3 weeks after your screening appointment, you will receive a copy of your PWR and lab work, mailed directly to your home address to protect your confidentiality. 
• If you completed the online HA questionnaire, your PWR will be also be available online about a week after your screening appointment. You will have access to many robust online resources to assist you in improving or maintaing your health and well-being.
• Review your PWR and lab work. We encourage you to share your results with your health care provider.
• If you have any questions about your appointment, please contact HealthWorks at 513-751-1288. If you have general questions about the HA and Health Screening process, please call the Wellness Center at X-1922 or X- 6668 or see FAQs below.

Confidentiality

All health information that is obtained from the HA and health screenings is strictly confidential and treated in compliance with all HIPAA standards. NKU will not be given the results of your individual personal health profile and no information (neither individual nor group data) will be shared with your health insurance carrier. A Personal Wellness Profile will be mailed directly to each participant’s home address, along with the laboratory data collected at the health screenings. More information about how your personal health information is protected can be accessed by visiting the HealthWorks web site.

Click HERE to view a partial sample of the group report.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the cost for the HA?
   
2. Who can participate?
3. What if I'm benefit eligible, but my insurance is carried by my spouse/significant other?
4. Can non-benefit eligible employees pay to participate in the HA and health screening?
5. Why should I participate in the HA?
6. I participated last year, why should I participate again?
7. How long will the HA take?
8. How long will it take to get my results?
9. What is Healthworks?
10. What happens if I have to miss my appointment?
11. How long should I fast for the health screening?
12. What if I forget to fast prior to my health screening appointment?
13. Should I take my routine medication in the morning prior to the health screening?
14. Who can I call if I have questions?
15. How will I know if my appointment time is confirmed?
16. What do I do if I have questions about the Personal Wellness Report?
17. Will I receive a reminder about my appointment?
18. Is this a qualifying wellness activity for the Participate for Perks program?
19. Can I get the health risk screening without filling out the HA?
20. What if I recently had my blood drawn? Can I use the results for the HA?

1. The health assessment is completely free for all benefits eligible employees.
2. The health assessment is available to all benefit eligible employees. Benefit eligible employees are staff (contract or regular) that work at least 20 hours per week (1040 hrs./yr.) and full-time temporary and non-temporary faculty; this excludes work study students and temporary staff. If you have questions about your status, please contact Human Resources.
3. As long as you qualify for benefits from the university you can participate in the health assessment, whether or not you are currently enrolled.
4. Yes, please contact HealthWorks for more information about this option, 513-751-1288.
5. The health assessment will provide you with a FREE comprehensive snap shot of your current health status and health risks. The screening that you will receive has a value of approximately $250. In addition, for your convenience, the healthassessment offered by NKU is made available on campus, during the work day. You will be eligible to win a healthy snack station for your whole department for an entire month by participating. Finally, your well-being matters to your family, friends and co-workers – we encourage you to participate for yourself and for them.
6. As a repeat participant, you will have the opportunity to compare your results from year to year. You will be eligible to win an healthy snack station for your entire department for a whole month! You will have the opportunity to participate in free, on-campus health coaching. And you will be helping the University to plan for the healthy culture supports that will best meet the needs of our campus population.
7. It will take about 15-20 minutes to complete the paper or online HA questionnaire. Your health screening appointment will take 10-15 minutes.
8. Your Personal Wellness Report will be mailed directly to your home approximately 2-3 weeks after your health screening date. If you completed an online HA questionnaire, your PWR report will also be available online within 1 week of your screening date.
   
9. Healthworks is a Cincinnati-based third party vendor. They have been providing work site organizational health enhancement services to companies for more than a decade.
10. If you miss your appointment, you will have to call HealthWorks to reschedule. Please call 513-751-1288 to speak with a HealthWorks representative.
11. Results are most accurate with at 10-12 hour fast. During the fast, you should not eat any food. A light snack will be provided after the health screening. On the morning of your health screening appointment, you may have black coffee/tea (but no herbal tea). You should not have any sugar, honey, cream, or artificial sweeteners during the fast. Water is encouraged, but diet soda and flavored waters/Gatorade are prohibited. Please take any scheduled medication (i.e. blood pressure) as you normally would.
12. You will need to contact HealthWorks to reschedule your health screening appointment. Please call 513-751-1288 to speak with a HealthWorks representative.
13. Yes. Please take all routine medication as prescribed with water, black coffee or black tea. If you have any questions regarding this, please contact HealthWorks at 513-751-1288.
14. If you have any questions about your appointment, please contact HealthWorks at 513-751-1288. If you have general questions about the HA questionnaire and health screening process, please call the Wellness Center at X- 1922 or X- 6668. You are also invited to contact any member of the Healthy Workplace Committee to discuss the HA.
15. Once you book your appointment online, you will immediately receive a confirmation email from HealthWorks. If you do not receive this confirmation email, check your spam folder. If you still do not have a confirmation email, please contact HealthWorks at 513-751-1288.
16. You can contact HealthWorks at 513-751-1288 or schedule an appointment with the NKU Health Coach by calling 572-7780.
17. Yes, you will receive a confirmation email a few days prior to your scheduled appointment.If you choose the online HA questionnaire option, you will receive an email promting you to complete it one week prior and 2 days prior to your sceening appointment.
    
18. Yes, be sure to bring your perk card with you to the health screening. You will receive 2 perk punches for participating.
19. No. You must fill out the HA questionnaire in order to qualify for the health screening. If you do not complete the paper or online questionnaire prior to your appointment, you will need to fill out a paper HA questionnaire at the time of your sceening appointment.
    
20. No. It is necessary to have your blood drawn by HealthWorks to ensure that all test results are available and current to complete the HA process.