Be Healthy Celebration Week at Lek, a Sandoz company

The Be Healthy Celebration Week activities encompass all four pillars of the Be Healthy initiative (Move, Choose, Know, Manage) and thus contribute to a comprehensive approach to the health of associates. During the whole week, Lek’s associates can join organised sports activities, lectures and courses for healthier lifestyle during working hours.

They can learn the basic of Nordic walking, one of the healthiest ways of recreation where the whole body is active, with Petra Majdič, together with the only two Nordic walking technique instructors in Slovenia. The associates can attend a lecture on balanced diet and on managing stressful situations in the workplace held by Dr Nada Rotovnik Kozjek. They can measure their ankle-brachial index and have their tumour marker levels for detecting the presence of prostate cancer tested. The associates will also have an opportunity to take a first-aid refresher course conducted by the Ljubljana Medical Centre Rescue Station.

»Everybody takes care of his/her own health, however it is the responsibility of an employer to encourage the employees to embrace healthy lifestyles. Healthy and relaxed employees can cope more easily with challenges both at the workplace and in their private lives,« said Robert Hribar, Head HSE at Lek, a Sandoz member, on the occasion of the Be Healthy Celebration Week. »Therefore I am pleased that this year, movement, healthy eating and well-being activities have once again taken over Lek’s premises for a few days. The program is designed so as to enable a comprehensive approach to maintaining a healthy lifestyle of the associates. We focused particular attention on our associates in production and therefore adjusted the program of activities during the Be Health Celebration Week to their work schedule.«

About the Novartis global Be Healthy initiative

The health and well-being of associates is a top priority for the Novartis Group and a natural extension of the company purpose of “care and cure”. With this aim, three years ago Novartis launched the internal Be Health initiative order to help its associates to take an active role in taking care of their own health. The global Be Health initiative is dedicated to associates within all Novartis affiliates and runs throughout the year.

Novartis is focusing on prevention programs in Be Healthy because statistics from the World Economic Forum (WEF) show that workplace health and well-being programs addressing lifestyle changes can help prevent up to 40% of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and lung disorders. The World Health organisation (WHO) recently set a global target to reduce NCDs by 25% by the year 2025, and Be Healthy is the contribution of Novartis toward this goal.

Be healthy has a broad reach within Novartis. At launch in 2011, 76 of the largest Novartis Group company sites across 32 countries were involved, reaching 80% of affiliates’ associates. In 2013, more than 176 sites across 50 countries are implementing Be Healthy and the program now reaches 95% of associates.