The Importance of Telling Your Organization’s Well-being Story and How to Tell It, with Mitch Martens

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About this Episode

Mitch Martens is the Senior Wellness Manager for Population Health at Northern Arizona Healthcare (NAH). He has a background in psychotherapy and prides himself in the ethos of NAH, encapsulated by their motto, "Improving health, healing people." 

In this episode, Mitch discusses his affinity for mentorship, the difference between wellness and well-being, and his passion for inclusive and collaborative well-being. He sheds light on some of the creative programs currently in use at NAH, including wellness ninjas and bereavement boxes, while also suggesting nifty ways to increase employee engagement and leverage the importance of wellness in a post-pandemic world. 

Mitch, a firm believer in authentically caring about the health, safety, and well-being of both customers and employees, also reveals how the unprecedented Global Healthcare Accreditation For Business Program has helped NAH solidify and communicate its story of caring for its people. 

Key Takeaways from this Episode

"I think if you have the courage to show yourself, to show up and just be authentically you, people start to recognize that, and then they start to see the strengths that you bring to a company and a relationship."

"Improving your employee engagement scores also improves your customer and patient scores. Guess what, when your employers are happy, guess who else becomes happier?"

"Wellness doesn't just mean Mitch losing weight. What about Mitch's well-being? What about his financial and social well-being?" 

"Well-being used to be this thing that we did to people because we're the company, we're the boss, we're the parent, and we know best. And really where I see things evolving is this idea that we should allow the employee to decide what's important to them and then partner with them on their well-being path as opposed to us authoritatively deciding." 

"I think most people know that going to a hospital usually feels yucky. I mean, unless you're going through a pregnancy, we associate hospitals with death, with pain, with difficulties, and with challenges. We [NAH] want to be a beacon of health, not just a four-walled building that solves your immediate problem and then pushes you out. We want to be this ecosystem of health and well-being to encourage longevity by creating a community and a space that magnetizes people to want to come together."

"That's really what this accreditation does [GHA For Business]. It forces you to tell your story about how you take care of your people's health, safety, and well-being, both employees and customers, in your work environment." 

"That is probably one of healthcare's problems. We don't take enough time to celebrate the great work we're doing because, honestly, we don't have time to celebrate. This accreditation helped us solidify the work that we're doing and help to celebrate our organization in a way that was important to us."

Show Breakdown

00:24 - Mitch Marten's experience in well-being.

04:31 - Mitch on the importance of mentorship, especially as one matures.

06:13 - How has Mitch seen well-being evolve and what are the biggest challenges he has seen as an employer?

10:16 - What is the importance of meeting employees where they are at and having inclusive well-being?

12:01 - What is the most innovative thing in well-being that Mitch is currently working on?

17:39 - What are wellness ninjas? 

23:29 - What made Mitch and Northern Arizona Health (NAH, go through Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) for Business? 

26:30 - Did NAH's leadership embrace the GHA For Business process?

30:10 - How NAH uses GHA For Business as a communication tool for current and future employees.

34:10 - Some closing words of wisdom from Mitch.

About

Mitch Martens

Mitch is the Senior Wellness Program Manager for Population Health at Northern Arizona Healthcare in Flagstaff, AZ. For the past 25+ years, Mitch has cultivated academic and professional experiences and applied them to the importance of turning theory into practical applications. He follows a simple philosophy that can be found in any of his programing…humans are motivated at the heart and when you risk going there, the possibilities are endless. His invitation to all of you, “Come stand outside and become outstanding.”

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