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Botash hosts successful wellness day

Dr Sebakeng Dr Sebakeng
Dr Sebakeng

Speaking on the rationale behind holding a wellness day on Friday, Botash MD, Kangangwani Phatshwane and Dr Makamu Sebakeng, the guest speaker and emergency medicine specialist, motivated that wellness programmes also help to build team camaraderie and a “culture of wellness,” which in turn, leads to happier, healthier, and more productive employees.

They also added that wellness programmes foster employee engagement with colleagues through team activities and challenges. “The idea behind holding the wellness day today is to not talk about business but to talk about our general well-being. You are the main actors in your lives. If you put more effort into exercising routinely, you will reap the benefits of doing that or receive better health outcomes. You will feel better every day and secondly, you will become productive in whatever you are doing whether at your workplace or home.

Being a well-rounded person in totality will benefit you financially. Some of us are neglecting our health; it is our individual responsibility to take care of our health,” Phatshwane emphasised. In his keynote address, Sebakeng said that the nation was faced with a new challenge of lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

The doctor said these types of diseases can be avoided if people adopt a culture of exercising. “If we don’t change the way we live, lifestyle diseases will affect us. We should at least make sure that we vigorously exercise three times a week,” Dr Sebakeng advised. Experts argue wellness programmes benefit both employers and employees to promote employee wellness.

According to a report by Rise, employee wellness programmes are no longer just a bonus or 'perk', but a critical aspect of today's workplace. The report showed that participating in such programmes can increase employee satisfaction by as much as 70%. 'To feel good, your employees need to be healthy. They add that the employees’ productive performance will inspire others,' said the doctor. Healthy employees, the study explained, are happier employees, which will be reflected in the rest of the workforce. Botash Wellness Day was filled with fun where financial and health institutions, amongst others, offered free counselling to workers and the public.