News

Beebe's Employee Weight Watcher Group Loses 1,000 Pounds

08/03/06

A mood of excitement and a sense of accomplishment fill the room at the Beebe Medical Center School of Nursing where the employee members of Weight Watchers® meet each week.

After 21 weeks, the group of 55 members collectively weighed in at 1,040.2 pounds less than they did when they formed their own Weight Watchers® group in February. The loss means that collectively these employees have shed more than half of a ton of weight.

Everyone is very happy, says Jeanne Smith, RN, Employee Health Coordinator at Beebe Medical Center. They are focused on improving their health and the quality of their lives. Their determination and self-discipline is showing results.

The Beebe employee Weight Watchers® program was requested by employees who had watched first-hand the success experienced in a Weight Watcher program by Beebe School of Nursing instructor Barbara Starr.

Mrs. Starr, who has been a Weight Watchers® member for 2 ½ years, not only had lost 103 pounds before their eyes, but she had maintained her lower weight and had become a more active person. She had adopted the healthy lifestyle promoted by Weight Watchers, which focuses on healthy foods and activities and exercise rather than on just losing weight.

I feel good about myself and people have noticed, she says. I am so much more active than I used to be. I have Multiple Sclerosis, which can be limiting in itself, but with the weight off I am able to move much easier. I have participated in several 5K walks, winning first place in one and fifth in another. I actually have "medals". I was also able to participate in the MS Bike to the Bay, and completed 52 miles.

Mrs. Starr emphasizes that losing weight cuts a person's risk of getting cancer, and that the American Cancer Society promotes Weight Watchers® as an organization that is supportive of a healthy lifestyle.

Obesity is a risk factor for so many diseases, she says.

When Mrs. Starr decided to be a trained instructor with Weight Watchers®, several employees asked her to teach a class at Beebe. With the blessing of Beebe Medical Center, she started the group on February 15 with 30 members. Over the months the group has swelled, now including 55 employees. So far, 11 members have met their 10% goal. This is the first goal established by Weight Watchers®. Significant health benefits are gained when an individual drops 10% of his or her body weight. Three members have achieved their weight goal, placing them in ideal body weight range. Two members have attained Lifetime Weight Watchers® status. Once an individual is a lifetime member, he or she must maintain his or her weight within two pounds of goal, and weigh-in monthly.

Mrs. Starr leads the meetings each week where, on average, about 40 members attend. Weight Watchers® has determined that members who attend weekly meetings triple their likelihood of weight loss success and long-term maintenance of a healthy weight.

Employee Health Coordinator Mrs. Smith said she was glad to learn that Mrs. Starr had agreed to run a Weight Watchers® program.

We provide a variety of wellness programs to our team members and were happy to be able to join with Weight Watchers® to help our employees lose weight and improve their health, she says.

Beebe agreed to reimburse the cost of the program to team members who reach their goal weight by the end of the 12-week series, or who complete the first series and re-enroll in the next Beebe Medical Center corporate series. The Medical Center will provide reimbursement for the first three series the team member participates in; then, it will work with Weight Watchers® to assess this reimbursement benefit and determine if it will continue.

This program is not the first implemented at Beebe to help employees lose weight. For the past 20 years the Employee Health Department has offered the fun and competitive The Battle of the Bulge program where employees join teams and compete with one another at the beginning of the year on how many pounds they can lose in six weeks. This year there were 24 departments and more than 300 team members were participated. Many continue to have the Employee Health Department monitor their weight

Other employee health programs include one to encourage smoking cessation and another to encourage regular walking. Beebe offers employees regular testing for diabetes, management of high blood pressure, and a variety of free vaccinations. The education department also offers healthy lifestyle classes that include stress management and humor in the workplace.

Caption 1: Employee members pictured include: Lynn Amey, Joy Bartell, Nancy Bastholm, Linda Bosworth, Sandra Brown, Connie Bushey, Robin Chandler, Emilie Crosser, Heather Friend, Cheryl Graf, Cynthia Gray, Terri Hastings, Nina Hazzard, Robert Hill, Pat Jones, Jo Ann Lathbury, Lynn Misener, Karen Pinyoun, Charlie Podedworny, Barbara Rogers, Caery Rutherford, Marie Sadovskis, Jeanne Smith, Sherill Timmons, and Esther Zuppo.


Caption 2: Barbara Starr, an instructor at Beebe Medical Center, leads the Weight Watchers® group.

Beebe Medical Center is a not-for-profit community medical center with a mission to encourage healthy living, prevent illness, and restore optimal health with the people residing, working, or visiting in the communities we serve. For more information, please visit us online at .