Wellness Online > WellnessU Overview

WellnessU Overview

WellnessU is an e-course in adult health education.  It is currently in development and we invite your critique regarding whether you think we are on the right track with the right approach to educating and supporting people on how to live a healthy lifestyle.

It provides an easy means for participants to learn health concepts and terms. WellnessU verifies that participants have read each week’s focus article by administering a quiz.   Participants must then enter a weekly log that indicates what action steps they have taken to initiate, and/or upgrade a healthy lifestyle as well as barriers that have arisen.

This trackable interactive lifestyle education program will be available for a fee  to employers on behalf of employees and spouses.  We urge an employer to consider offering it to all employees and insured dependents as an adult online health education program.

It is the only program we know of that provides a system of testing participants on what they can do for themselves to stay healthy if they are and to get healthy if they aren’t.  Reports will be available to employers regarding participant  progress.  However, no personal information is ever disclosed to employers, only whether each week’s activity was completed.

A brief outline of the program:

1.  The four-year course is broken up into two semesters per year and two terms per semester.  Each term is 13 weeks and each semester is 26 weeks.  The reason for 13 week terms is so that students can be rewarded for completion four times a year if they complete each term.

The first term deals with what we call the Circle of Wellness.  There is an intro plus 12 topics that we consider necessary for a fulfilling lifestyle.  Sample articles are available for review.  Participants will be asked to take at least one action step per week for each Circle component .

The second term will deal with Disease Prevention.  No wants to get sick, especially chronic and life threatening diseases, so this topic fits for everyone.   A healthy lifestyle CAN prevent many diseases.

Thereafter the following terms will deal with many of the topics covered by our more than 500 health tips.

Each week students will:

1.  Read that week’s featured article. Each week we focus on one aspect of wellness by reprinting one health tip here.

2.  Take a Weekly quiz. Participants must complete and pass a quiz on that week’s featured article.

3.  Complete a Weekly log. Each week participants must also update how they are doing regarding the following issues.  Logs can be added only when that week’s quiz is successfully answered.

  • Something new.  What new healthy behavior did the participant undertake this week  such as exercising for the first time, cutting out sodas and replacing them with water, adding a salad to your meals, or none at all.
  • Something better.  How did the participant upgrade his or her  lifestyle this week such as walking twice a week instead of once, improving their nutrition by having at least one fruit a day, managing stress better, or no upgrades at all.
  • Barriers.  What kept you for doing something new or something better.  These are challenges to living healthy such as snowy weather that kept you from walking outside, an invitation to a party where fat foods were there for the taking, not enough sleep, family and friends who are non supportive, etc.
  • Personal Comments:  Any comments the participant wants to make about progress to date.

4.  Review Historical logs. Participants can review a historical log of completed weekly quizzes and their weekly logs of Add-ons, Upgrades and Barriers.

5.  Read blogs from our coaches. Newsy updates from one of our coaches are only for WellnessU members.  To learn more about our coaches, look them up under About Us.

6.  Ask a Coach.  WellnessU students can ask questions of our coaches.  Responses will be posted publicly so that any student can learn of the response.   Of course names of inquirers will not be disclosed.

7.  Email reminders. Weekly reminders will be sent by email regarding participation in that week’s required activities.  Participants can opt out of the reminders if they choose.  However weekly participation is a requirement.  Email reminders will include:

  • A reminder that it’s time for this week’s quiz
  • A link to WellnessU and this week’s quiz.

8. Message Boards for students only.  Share successes and concerns with fellow members. 

Enrollment fee

$20 per participant per semester.  Each six-month semester is made up of two 13-week terms.  The complete four-year course will take sixteen terms, which is equal to eight six-month semesters.  Thus WellnessU.

 

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