A corporate perspective on health promotion: reflections and advice from Chevron.

In summary, our program's focus on helping-management meet their business needs has been the most important component of our survival. We have used a conceptual philosophy that involves health change on multiple levels: individual, environmental, and cultural. We have demonstrated results, but most have not been financial. Our preference would be to provide services that our management values and at the same time demonstrate that our services deliver a tangible financial return. Our difficulty in doing so has been the lack of an integrated database and a small budget. We have supported large-scale studies as a participant, both in the HERO database' and in studies conducted by the MEDSTAT group (in progress). We will continue to participate in such activities to further the science of health promotion. Despite the success of our programs at Chevron, we continue to have to defend ourselves against those who question the value of health promotion. This is particularly true during cost reduction initiatives that focus on cutting everything that is not required for the business. Health promotion is not a necessity in corporate America's viewpoint. As with most prevention programs, health promotion must prove itself to be taken seriously. Getting management's continued support is a combination of adding value to their business, doing so cost effectively, measuring outcomes and communicating them, and finally, impacting management in a way that they experience the positive impact of wellness on a very personal level.