Bend dental clinic makes ‘healthiest employers’ list

Bluefish Dental & Orthodontics was recognized as one of the top three Healthiest Employers of Oregon in 2014 for the 2-99 employee size category by the Portland Business Journal.

Jill Crafton, office manager for Bluefish, accepted the award on behalf of the practice at the luncheon ceremony held yesterday at the Sentinel Hotel in downtown Portland.

“It is so fitting that Jill was able to accept the award on behalf of Bluefish,” said Dr. Catherine Quas, owner of the practice. “Jill’s personal efforts toward her own wellness goals were actually what inspired us to create a wellness program for our team. We couldn’t be more proud of Jill and our entire team for coming together over the past year to have fun and encourage each on the path to wellness.”

The Healthiest Employers of Oregon award was created by the Portland Business Journal to recognize organizations that are committed to creating a healthy workplace. The rankings are determined by a detailed assessment tool developed by Indianapolis-based Healthiest Employers, LLC. The assessment is comprised of 76 scored questions from six key categories, including: Culture and leadership commitment; Foundational components; Strategic planning; Communications and marketing; Programming and interventions; and Reporting and analysis. The categories, proprietary scoring and benchmarking were formed with help from the academic, medical, wellness and business communities.

Bluefish ranked high in the scoring process primarily because of the BlueFit employee wellness program, which was launched in January of this year. The custom program features a variety of offerings including an all-expense paid opportunity to participate in the Personal Effectiveness Seminar at Wings Seminars in Eugene, OR, yoga sessions, financial wellness presentations and paddleboard outings among other workshops and classes. Each month participants keep track of their activities to earn points. A random drawing determines the monthly wellness winner and the person selected can choose a cash reward, payroll contribution toward a wellness related item or activity or to have Bluefish make a donation to a charitable organization of their choice.

“One of the things that we have learned through the process of planning for and then implementing our wellness program is that every individual is unique,” said Bridget McGinn, marketing director and member of the BlueFit wellness committee. “Each member of our team has their own personal wellness goals and motivations. We try very hard to offer a variety of opportunities and incentives to help meet everyone’s interests and needs.”

The Bluefish team is committed to providing their patients with high-quality care and personalized service. To achieve this, they believe that it is important for each employee to be in a healthy state of mind, body and soul. The BlueFit wellness program was created to support this organizational value. One important outcome they have experienced since the wellness program was launched is that team members have experienced a greater sense of camaraderie.

“We are all very respectful of the fact that all of us are on our own journey, and everything is relative?what is extremely challenging for one person might not be a challenge at all for another team member,” said McGinn. “We’ve been gaining a greater sense of appreciation and respect for our differences.”

The top three award winners in each category were highlighted in an Oct. 24, 2014 special publication inserted into the weekly issue of the Portland Business Journal. Bluefish is featured on page nine of that publication.

To learn more about the selection process for the Healthiest Employers of Oregon awards, visit: healthiestemployers.com