NKU named one of Cincinnati’s healthiest
employers for second consecutive year

For the second consecutive year, Northern Kentucky University has been named the Healthiest Employer of Greater Cincinnati for organizations with between 1,000 and 4,999 employees by the Cincinnati Business Courier.
 

Twenty finalists five categories were recognized yesterday at an event at the Cintas Center. One local organization in each category was named a 2012 Healthiest Employer of Greater Cincinnati. Other winners included Horan (2-99 employees); KLH Engineers (100-199 employees); Gallatin Steel (200-999 employees) and TriHealth (5,000-plus employees).
 

The award methodology was based on a web-based assessment survey comprised of 75 scored and weighted questions, along with an essay submission. The categories, scoring and analysis were developed by a private panel of medical, academic, business, wellness, finance and statistics professionals.
 

Karen Campbell, director of wellness at NKU, said the award recognizes the university’s healthy culture. “Right from the beginning, NKU recognized and emphasized the value of inclusive leadership, health as a shared responsibility and the need for everyone to feel empowered to actively shape our evolving health culture,” she said. “Receiving the recognition of being named a Healthiest Employer of Greater Cincinnati two consecutive years is such an honor and a wonderful affirmation for the collective efforts of our faculty, staff and students.”
 

NKU offers a number of programs and services aimed at making the campus healthier, such as annual health screenings, access to the Campus Recreation Center and healthy food options, health and wellness classes, one-on-one health coaching, ergonomics assessments, walking clubs and on-site massage therapy. Campbell notes that the university is also incorporating health considerations into new facilities, such as taking ergonomics into consideration when designing the Griffin Hall informatics center. Much of this effort is overseen by the university’s Healthy Workplace Committee.
 

Campbell said the data show NKU employees are losing weight, eating more fruits and vegetables, and getting regular preventative health screenings. “Living up to this commitment happens each and every day through even the smallest interactions involving all our stakeholders,” she said. “As we look to the future, we anticipate generating even more momentum for healthy improvements in the areas of environment and policies, culture, and organizational processes and systems through the launching of our own internal healthy department award initiative.”
 

From NKU