Research has demonstrated that faculty, staff and student health, productivity and academic success are inextricably linked. Because of this, the National Consortium for Building Healthy Academic Communities (BHAC) is committed to improving the well-being of our students, faculty and staff, the institutions they represent and the communities they serve. Recognizing that academia should construct a culture and environment that focuses on comprehensive/systemic wellness, and not siloes of programming, BHAC has created the Healthy Academics Designation program.

Through the BHAC Healthy Academics Designation process, BHAC recognizes institutions that demonstrate best practices in student, faculty and staff health management and well-being, and helps them to align their practices with sustainability, health, productivity and academic outcomes. BHAC provides an ongoing continuous improvement process, irrespective of an institution’s size and experience in health and well-being management for their campus community.

The BHAC Healthy Academics Designation program measures an academic institution’s population health management and well-being practices in three key areas: 1) institutional engagement and alignment, 2) population health and well-being management, and 3) outcomes reporting. Designation can be conducted for the faculty/staff population, the student population, or both, depending upon how the institution addresses the health and well-being needs for these individuals. The designation process is comprised of three steps:

 

Step 1: BHAC Online Assessment
After your institution identifies itself as being prepared and registers (paying all appropriate fees), you can access the BHAC Healthy Academics Designation online assessment. You have one month to complete the on-line assessment.
•    The assessment measures the maturity of your institution’s health and wellness practices.
 
Step 2: Virtual Audit
if your institution scores at least 70% on the on-line assessment, a 3-4 hour virtual audit is conducted by teleconference with one-two BHAC designation team members. As an designation candidate, you will respond to a set of questions and requests for information in the form of a 45-minute presentation.
•    A description of your institution to assess the campus culture and environment.
•    Review and validation of your institution’s online assessment results.
•    Extensive discussion and feedback on your institution’s plans, strategies and areas of improvement.
 
Step 3: Designation Confirmation and Action Plan
Based on information received during the audit, the BHAC designation team will adjust your final score. Designation is awarded based on the total adjusted score and according to the following criteria.
BHAC Institution of Distinction in Health & Well-being: 90% of the total score    
BHAC Institution of Excellence in Health and Well-being: 80% of the total score         
BHAC Institution of Merit in Health and Well-being:  70% of the total score
•    You will receive a detailed BHAC Designation Action Plan and your designation status.
•    As a BHAC designated institution, you will receive formal recognition and promotional materials for use in external relations and institutional communications.
•    If your institution does not meet the minimum designation criteria, you may qualify to receive a provisional status with a designated timeline for improvement.
Re-designation must be renewed every 3 years to maintain or improve your designation status.

 

Please access the assessments below at your leisure and click on each one to complete.

 

Faculty/Staff Assessments

Leadership Support, Administrative and Institutional Alignment

Health & Wellbeing and Benefits Policy Alignment

Wellbeing Support, Risk Factor Intervention and Medical Management Alignment

Environmental Alignment

Communications Alignment

Community Engagement

Data Management Alignment & Outcomes Reporting

 

Student Assessments

Leadership Support & Alignment

Health & Wellness Policy Alignment

Student Campus Safety

Primary Prevention

Data Management Alignment

Communication Alignment

Community

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

Q. What is the value of becoming a BHAC designated institution?
BHAC designated institutions can expect that:
•    The designation process serves as a “cultural catalyst” in developing and sustaining a culture of health and well-being
•    The designation process provides a “strategic road map” for improving health and wellness management and well-being practices and processes.
•    The designation process serves as a continuous quality improvement platform for making better value-based investments in employee, faculty, student and institutional health.
•    Designation provides added recognition and prestige as having one of the healthiest campuses in America, thus enhancing the institutions reputation, recruitment/retainment practices, and being viewed as a “university or college of choice.”
•    Designation strengthens the application for other national institutional recognition programs.
 
Q. What are the long-term goals of the BHAC Designation Program?
Since designated institutions need to demonstrate significant health and wellness and productivity-related savings, the goal is to provide financial benefits to BHAC designated institutions:
•    BHAC designation should be viewed by the community as a positive factor, having value when considering as a place of employment and/or study (e.g., a healthier institution is one where I want to work or send my child, etc.)
 
Q. How much does BHAC designation cost and how much time is involved?
Full designation fees are dependent on your level of BHAC membership and the pieces of your designation (student population, employee/staff population or both). On average, institutions should budget 40 to 60 hours to complete the designation process.
 
Q. What are the categories included in the BHAC employer designation
For each of the areas listed below, you will assess your organization’s relative compliance using multiple choice descriptors listed in various categories.
1. Business Alignment Practices that address how well your health management/well-being initiatives are aligned with the organization’s business goals and their value in supporting these goals as a health and productivity management strategy.
2. Leadership support and Alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s leadership network supports and aligns with your health management/well-being initiatives. Successful health management/well- being programs show strong leadership engagement at all levels.
3. Data management alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s data management capabilities are aligned with your health management/well-being initiatives. Appropriate data collection and evaluation is critical for demonstrating the total value and effectiveness of sponsored initiatives.
4. Employee benefits alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s employee benefits align with your health management/well-being initiatives and help reduce cost and access barriers to engaging in sponsored programs.
5. Policy Alignment Practices that address health management-related policies that support and align with a culture of health. Appropriate policies not only protect the rights and safety of employees, but also help remove or reduce barriers to health engagement.
6. Environmental Alignment Practices that address environmental alignment and its value in supporting and encouraging positive health management/well-being practices in the workplace.
7. Communications Alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s communications are aligned with your health management/well-being initiatives. Leveraging your organization’s communication channels is a critical success factor in engaging your target population(s).
8. Administrative/Operations Alignment Practices that address organizational engagement and alignment within your program offerings. Having a dedicated staff person(s) and/or “wellness committee” with standard administrative procedures are important for creating accountability.
9. Primary Prevention and Health Maintenance Practices that address primary prevention and health maintenance within your program offerings. These practices are critical for keeping the majority of employees healthy and low-risk
10. Risk Factor Intervention/Modification Practices that address risk factor intervention/modification within your program offerings. These practices are important in helping “at risk” people manage their risk(s) and avoid more serious chronic health conditions due to these risks.
11. Decision Support and Medical Management Practices that address decision support and medical management within your program offerings. These practices help employees/dependents become better healthcare consumers and be more engaged in managing health problems.
12. Well-being Information and Support Services Practices that address well-being information and support services within your program offerings. These resources/services help employees balance the demands of the job with the personal challenges/responsibilities of daily life
13. Community Engagement Practices that address your organization’s engagement in health management/ well-being in the communities in which you operate. Engaging in community health efforts supports your organization’s own employee health management goals.
14. Work Safety Practices that address work safety within your program offerings. Assuring a safe work environment not only protects your employees, but also can serve as a foundation for your health management/well-being initiatives.
15. Process Outcomes Questions that address process outcomes related to your health management/well-being initiatives. For each process outcome, please provide the appropriate data requested. If you are not able to provide the requested data, then please check the designated box.
16. Risk Factors/Clinical Outcomes Questions that address risk factors/clinical outcomes related to your health management/well-being initiatives. For each process outcome, please provide the appropriate data requested. If you are not able to provide requested data, then please check the designated box.
17. Financial Outcomes Questions that address financial outcomes related to your health management/ well-being initiatives. For each process outcome, please provide the appropriate data requested. If you are not able to provide requested data, then please check the designated box.
 
Q. What are the categories included in the BHAC student designation
For each of the areas listed below, you will assess your organization’s relative compliance using multiple choice descriptors listed in various categories.
1. Leadership support and Alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s leadership network supports and aligns with your health management/well-being initiatives. Successful health management/well- being programs show strong leadership engagement at all levels.
2. Institutional Educational Alignment Practices that address how well your student health and wellness initiatives are aligned with the institution's broader educational mission and their value in supporting the student experience.
3. Data management Alignment Practices that address how well your organization’s data management capabilities are aligned with your health management/well-being initiatives. Appropriate data collection and evaluation is critical for demonstrating the total value and effectiveness of sponsored initiatives.
4. Policy Alignment Practices that address health management-related policies that support and align with a culture of health. Appropriate policies not only protect the rights and safety of students, but also help remove or reduce barriers to health engagement.
5. Environmental Alignment Practices that address environmental alignment and its value in supporting and encouraging positive health management/well-being practices on campus.
6. Student Life Services Practices that address your institution’s student life services as part of your campus health initiatives. These resources/services help students balance the demands of study with support services as well as options in expanding the academic experience.
7. Administrative/Operations Alignment Practices that address organizational engagement and alignment within your program offerings. Having a dedicated staff person(s) and/or “wellness committee” with standard administrative procedures are important for creating accountability.
8. Institutional Engagement Practices that address how well your institution’s communications are aligned with your student health and wellness initiatives. Leveraging your institution’s communication channels is a critical success factor in engaging your target population(s).
9. Community Engagement Practices that address your organization’s engagement in health management/ well-being in the communities in which you operate. Engaging in community health efforts supports your organization’s student health management goals.
10. Process Outcomes Questions that address process outcomes related to your health management/well-being initiatives.
a. Process Outcomes: Participation/Engagement - Participation and engagement data in health and wellbeing programs and services.
a.    Process Outcomes: Communications – Modalities of communication strategy with evidence on touch-points if applicable.
b.    Process Outcomes: Immunizations Participation and health outcomes (incidence/prevalence) associated with preventive immunizations.  
11. Risk Factors/Clinical Outcomes Questions that address risk factors/clinical outcomes related to your health management/well-being initiatives. For each process outcome, please provide the appropriate data requested. If you are not able to provide requested data, then please check the designated box.
a.    Student Health Services Practices that address decision support and medical management within your program offerings. these practices help students become better healthcare consumers and be more engaged in managing health problems.
b.    Risk Factors/Clinical Outcomes: Health Measures - Health outcomes associated with preventive screenings, healthy behaviors and risk distribution.
c.    Risk Factors/Clinical Outcomes: Clinical - Health Measures – Health outcomes associated with preventive screenings, clinical services, healthy behaviors and risk distribution
d.    Student Safety/Violence Prevention - Participation and engagement data in preventive efforts; prevalence of safety/violent medical and law enforcement reports
12.    Student Campus Safety/Injury Prevention - Participation and engagement data in preventive efforts; prevalence of safety/injury medical and law enforcement reports.