Prevention at work

The workplace is a key setting to promote the health of the adult population. Find out all about our workplace programmes and how to book them.

Given the amount of time many adults spend at work, the workplace is an obvious place to promote healthy lifestyles. Workplace health promotion involves creating a work environment that promotes positive health, with benefits for both employers and employees.

Health promotion is good for business as well: it reduces sickness-related costs and increases productivity as well as spreading the word about a healthy lifestyle.

Workplace health and the Irish Cancer Society

Our health promotion unit supports Irish organisations in their efforts to promote healthy work environments. And our healthy lifestyle programmes raise awareness of cancer prevention, highlight the importance of early detection and develop the personal skills of employees to motivate behavioural change.

Our programmes educate employees about the components of a healthy lifestyle such as healthy eating, physical activity, quitting smoking, alcohol awareness, ‘sun smart’ behaviour and early detection. Research shows that the risk of cancer can be reduced by up to 50% by adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Our programmes

Information sessions

Our talks can vary in length from 45 minutes to one hour and are workplace specific. All sessions will address risk factors and the importance of early detection.

Topics include:

• Mixed audience reducing your risk of cancer
• Male audience reducing your risk of cancer
• Female audience reducing your risk of cancer
• Healthy eating, physical activity and weight control
• Breast awareness
• Being ‘Sun smart’
• Quitting smoking (introductory session only)

Information days

Information days provide an opportunity for employees to learn more about common cancers (skin, bowel, lung, breast and prostate) and the importance of early detection of cancer.

The information days can take place in or out of your office. During these information days, we can set up a stand, which will be manned by a health promotion advisor who will be available to provide information leaflets and offer advice on cancer prevention and early detection. As part of this service, we can offer a carbon monoxide monitoring and advice on quitting for smokers.

Quitting smoking: 6-week course

Research has shown that quitting smoking can be highly effective in a group setting. The aim of this six-week course is to motivate and encourage people who wish to quit by helping them establish a framework for success.

Participants are invited to attend a one-hour session for six weeks. A trained smoking-cessation counsellor facilitates the group. The facilitator helps participants plan and prepare to quit, making it more likely for them to succeed. This course, which can be organised onsite, caters for 12 to 15 people.

Topics covered:

• All smoking cessation methods
• Coping with withdrawal symptoms
• Coping strategies to deal with cravings
• Tips for quitting
• Health effects of smoking
• Benefits of quitting
• Relapse prevention

Each participant also receives our ‘Stop Smoking’ pack, including the ‘Quitting’, ‘Just be Smoke Free’, and ‘Beauty of Quitting’ booklets.

Quit smoking: one-to-one sessions

We can also provide one-to-one quitting smoking counselling service. This service provides an opportunity for smokers to meet with our counsellors on a one-to-one basis to discuss their individual smoking addiction and get support and advice in quitting.