Planning for workplace health promotion should be integrated into the social security institution’s strategic planning.

In facilitating and enabling workplace health promotion, the social security institution must plan services which focus clearly on the needs of the target group (its client enterprises/organizations).

Based on analysis of the situational assessment and data on the health needs, the institution leads a consensual process of identifying priorities for action.

The social security institution ensures that the workplace health promotion programme focuses on the health needs of the target population and national health priorities.

The social security institution supports a workplace review to identify existing structures and activities which support workplace health promotion and develop a health profile of the target population.

The social security institution ensures that there are adequate resources to conduct a health needs assessment and that responsibility for performing it is clearly assigned.

Assessment of health needs is an essential step when defining issues that must be addressed in a workplace health promotion programme. A health needs assessment (HNA) is a systematic method of reviewing the health issues facing a population, while also assessing the structures and programmes already in place that support workplace health promotion. The results of a health needs assessment contribute to developing effective workplace health promotion strategies.

When the basic elements for workplace health promotion are in place, the social security institution can move forward by:

• Assessing the needs of the target group;
• Planning its activities.

The social security institution maximizes the potential of partnerships in developing and implementing workplace health promotion initiatives.

This can be called the “synergistic effect”.

The social security institution identifies and actively engages all stakeholders in workplace health promotion.