AOL’s WellBaby Program: Helping Employees Deliver Healthy Birth Weight Babies

AOL’s WellBaby Program is the sixth of the Socio-Economic Determinants of Health Briefing Series. The series profiles corporate and community initiatives that have addressed one (or more) of the socio-economic determinants of health in profitable or sustainable ways. The initiatives serve as models that corporations and communities can adopt/adapt to enhance both population health and their own organizational performance.

AOL has long supported its expectant and nursing employees. Nevertheless, a recent analysis of cost data revealed that AOL was spending heavily on health care, productivity loss, and turnover related to unhealthy babies. In response, AOL’s Human Resources team—in partnership with Inova HealthSource—substantially revised existing services to include a higher level of personal interaction, additional classes and content areas, expanded counselling services, and greater counsellor availability. The product—the WellBaby program—has led to considerable cost savings and improved health outcomes among employees and their babies.