32 percent said it was "too risky to take time off."  Other responses included "other people depend on me and I don't want to let them down" (25%); "too busy to stay at home" (12%); "save sick days for child care emergencies" (9%); "don't work when sick" (6%); "save sick days for vacation time" (5%); "save sick days for elder care emergencies" (3%); and "other" (8%).

These lines of thought all create problems for businesses.  First, you have an employee coming to work at less than 100 percent capability, and their job performance during time of illness will probably reflect that.  Secondly, there is a very real possibility that they will pass along their ailments on to co-workers.  As this gets spread around the office, it can easily turn into a mini-epidemic.  And at that point, the costs to businesses can grow excessively.

According to CCH Incorporated, a company that produces electronic and print products for various markets, unscheduled absenteeism can cost up to an average of $602 per employee, annually.  A separate survey of eleven U.S.-based telecommunications organizations found that 72 cents of every dollar of costs related to employee absence stems from lost productivity, rather than hard costs, such as health care and disability benefits.

As the impact of sickness and health conditions continues to climb, the importance of wellness programs and health screenings should not be overlooked in the business environment.  A growing field of the medical community is focusing on preventive medicine, the purpose of which is to catch and address health issues before they turn into problems.  It also works with developing healthy lifestyles for its patients in terms of diet and exercise programs.

Preventive medicine is recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) and as such, practitioners in this field are licensed physicians who have successfully completed a preventive medicine residency program following a one-year internship.  By working with a board-certified preventive medicine physician, employers can establish programs that detect any health problems an employee might have or be facing in the future, and get them referred to a specialist for the proper treatment.

More and more businesses are looking at policies of health promotion and disease prevention as a way of keeping both employees healthy and reducing insurance costs.  Employers can work with preventive medicine providers in terms of providing screenings and informative clinics for their employees, and workers can get an accurate picture of their current health as well as a plan for developing healthier lifestyles.

The old saying is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure - in today's business world, a more apt slogan might be that a few dollars of preventive medicine is worth thousands in lost productivity, sick time, and lower morale.  It might not flow as well as the original, but it should sound like a pretty good deal to employers everywhere.