The Healthy New YOU Expo returned to Emory campuses earlier this month, with the goal of helping employees start the new year with their health and well-being in mind. This popular event featured cooking demonstrations, chair massage, mini fitness classes, talks by wellness experts and exhibitors in the areas of nutrition, fitness, stress management, ergonomics, finance and more. 

The expo was held Jan. 9 at eight Emory locations this year. The main location at the Emory Student Center on Emory’s Atlanta campus had an all-time high attendance of nearly 450 employees. Total attendance across all sites was 1,572 employees.

"We have been hosting the expo at Emory since 2013 and this was our best turnout yet,” says Dawn McMillian, senior wellness specialist with Emory Health & Wellness and coordinator of the expo. “This year we were excited to extend this event to our employees at our newest hospitals, the former DeKalb Medical facilities.”

Expo locations featured speakers who discussed a variety of topics including personal safety, sleep hygiene and how to recognize when your elderly family members need assistance. 

“These are all really pertinent areas for our employees” says McMillian. In addition to the speakers’ presentations, expo attendees had an opportunity to interact with a number of exhibitors representing Emory departments and local partners. 

McMillian’s hope for the expo was that “employees got assistance with making whatever changes they wish to improve their well-being. Everyone deserves to start off 2020 with a healthy new you and a little fun too.” 

Resources available year-round

Although Healthy New You lasts only one day, Healthy Emory offers a wide variety of programs, resources and services throughout the year to support and promote employees’ efforts to live healthy lives. Initiatives focus on improving health and wellness in three areas: physical activity and fitness; healthy eating and weight; and stress or emotional health.

• Healthy Emory Connect is Emory’s personalized web platform and mobile app that helps participants track healthy habits such as taking the stairs, eating a healthy breakfast or gauging their mood. Employees can earn incentives to help save on medical expenses by tracking activities and participating in challenges.
• Active Works encourages Emory employees to add more movement and activity to their days. Those who take the Active Works pledge commit to finding simple ways to make more active choices at work, such as taking a few laps around their building or office space throughout the day.
• The Move More Challenge pits employees against each other as teams compete to see who can log the most steps during the time period. The annual challenge began in 2015 as a way to engage employees in more physical activity and has been widely successful, with thousands of employees participating each year.
• The Diabetes Prevention Program is a one-year, small group program that teaches participants how to eat healthy, increase physical activity and manage stress in order to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes. This national program was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and includes workshops, healthy cooking lessons and more.

For employees interested in finding resources close to home, Healthy Emory’s Community Resources page provides a county-by-county listing of programs in the metro Atlanta region. From farmers markets to fitness centers, each area offers services that encourage healthy lifestyles.