Approach
Novo Nordisk is a global leader in diabetes care, driven by a commitment to help people live longer, healthier and more productive lives. It is this determination that drives our internal NovoHealth global initiative.
NovoHealth is a global programme that promotes and supports healthy living for all employees as a means to prevent type 2 diabetes and other lifestyle-driven diseases – an opportunity for Novo Nordisk to practise what we preach
NovoHealth focuses on four global standards:
- Provide healthy food in the workplace and encourage a healthy diet
- Provide access to and encourage employees to do physical activity
- Provide a smoke-free work environment and emphasise the benefits of non-smoking
- Provide access to and encourage health checks with individual advice.
Introduction
NovoHealth is now implemented in major affiliates, including Japan, India, China, Germany, US, France, Brazil, Turkey, Poland, Italy, the Gulf region, and Denmark. This means that more than 80 percent of all employees are covered by the four global standards.
Some of the highlights of activities during 2009 were:
Denmark
Novo Nordisk won the ‘Denmark’s healthiest workplace award’, with the following comment from the judges of the panel, ‘Novo Nordisk has developed and refined a solid concept around health, which brings Novo Nordisk to the forefront among the most visionary and thorough.’ The competition was created by a group of prominent Danish companies and business organisations, and the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende.
During the month of May more than 3200 employees in Denmark participated in the “We Bike to Work” campaign and biked for a total of 389.297 kilometres, equivalent to almost 10 times around the globe at equator. During May a total of 29, 929 bike days were registered by Novo Nordisk employees. A ‘bike day’ is defined by one person to and from work on bike in one day.
On 31 August, approximately 3,700 employees participated in the 5 km relay run in Copenhagen – together employees ran more than 18,500 kilometres during the event.
Since the launch of health checks to the Danish part of the organisation in 2008, more than 8,300 employees have received a health check and individual health advice, which is 70% of our workforce in Denmark. The perception of the checks has been very positive with more than 90% responding ‘positive’ or ‘very positive’ when asked about their experience of participating in these.
Bicycles are at the disposal of employees for easy and climate friendly transport on the sites in Bagsværd, Kalundborg and Hillerød. The bicycles, which are painted in the Novo Nordisk blue colour, will after 2½ years become a part of a social project in Tanzania. Local bicycle dealers will buy the bicycles, customise them for the Tanzanian market and sell them to local citizens at market price. We are aware of the need for simple and efficient means of transport in the country, but we do not want to ruin the local bicycle industry by just donating the bicycles. Instead we want to support the development of a sustainable local bicycle industry. The project was made possible together with the Danish bicycle company, Baisikeli.
USA
On 1 November 2009, eleven Novo Nordisk employees joined approximately 40,000 runners competing in the 26.2-mile ING New York City Marathon. As in prior years, company staff participated to raise money for the Foundation Team for Kids, part of the youth-services arm of the New York Road Runners in 50 countries globally. The Foundation provides exercise opportunities to children in poor communities, where the risks of obesity and diabetes are highest. Each Novo Nordisk runner raised $2,500, including $1,000 each in company donations.
Germany
For the first time ever, a Novo Nordisk Gutenberg Marathon was held in the city of Mainz, also home of the German affiliate, and main sponsor of the event. In February the German affiliate invited employees from around the world to run either a half or a whole marathon. Almost 100 employees from Germany, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria took up the challenge.
Novo Nordisk also initiated and supported the D-Run project, where ten people with diabetes trained for their first half marathon in spring 2009. The D-Runners were intensively coached and medically checked, and the whole project was documented in a docu-soap format. With the rigorous exercise the former "couch potatoes" experienced impressive health benefits, two participants with type 2 diabetes could even stop their diabetes medication completely. All ten finished the Novo Nordisk Gutenberg Marathon, and the project also won the German Health Media Award 2009 and was finalist for the Novo Nordisk TakeAction award.
Poland
Eight mixed Novo Nordisk teams from Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Bosnia participated in the Marathon Relay (September 26) and the Warsaw Marathon (September 27). Fundraiser? During the marathon weekend, Novo Nordisk was present and gave participants an opportunity to test blod sugar levels, explore healthy nutrition and get some dietary consultations, in the spirit of NovoHealth.
Turkey
In Turkey, newcomers have started to receive fruit bouquets instead of flowers, which can be shared with colleagues. Furthermore, employees are provided with a gift certificate for sports gear on birthdays (approximately 45 euro).