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The Impact of Lifestyle Diseases on Workers’ Health and Workplace Resilience: 
A Business Case for Prioritizing Wellness in Trinidad & Tobago​

By Dr. Ishta Rampersad, Clinical Director of Occumed Ltd.

 
 
LINKAGE Q4 (2025) - HSSE 360: INNOVATION FOR RESILIENCE
As a Board-Certified Occupational Medicine Specialist with over sixteen years of private practice, I have witnessed firsthand how lifestyle diseases quietly erode worker health and productivity, and ultimately organisational resilience. In Trinidad and Tobago, as in many parts of the world, Type II diabetes, hypertension and obesity have become defining public health challenges. Their impact extends beyond the clinic and deep into the operational fabric of businesses. The true cost is measured not only in dollars spent on medical care, but also in absenteeism, presenteeism, reduced productivity, higher turnover, and diminished morale.
Yet within this challenge lies an opportunity. Organisations that strategically invest in the health and well-being of their workforce are positioning themselves for long-term resilience. The future of HSSE requires us to rethink health not as a personal matter, but as a core business imperative.
The Silent Epidemic
As mentioned above, Trinidad & Tobago has one of the highest burdens of lifestyle diseases in the Caribbean that affect large segments of the working age population. Many individuals remain undiagnosed or poorly controlled, often because symptoms are subtle until complications emerge.
Type II Diabetes. affects energy levels, cognitive function, wound healing, and susceptibility to infection. Workers may experience fatigue, blurred vision, or neuropathic symptoms; each posing safety concerns. Poorly controlled diabetes increases absenteeism and health insurance claims and is linked to long-term disability.
Often called “the silent killer,” hypertension frequently goes unnoticed until a significant cardiovascular event occurs. High blood pressure is strongly associated with stroke, heart disease and kidney failure, conditions that often remove individuals from the workforce permanently.
Obesity is both a disease and a risk amplifier. It increases the likelihood of developing diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, joint disorders and certain cancers. It also raises the risk of workplace injuries and worsens ergonomic strain. For employers, obesity increases insurance costs, reduces stamina, and contributes to higher musculoskeletal claims.
These conditions do not occur in isolation; they are interlinked and often coexist. When they overlap, the risk to worker well-being and organisational performance multiplies.
Lifestyle Diseases
The business impact of lifestyle diseases is frequently underestimated. While clinical symptoms are managed at the individual level, the organisational repercussions are broad and cumulative.
Employees with uncontrolled chronic diseases are more likely to take sick days for medical appointments, complications or acute illness. Diabetic workers, for example, average more sick days per year than non-diabetic peers. This creates operational gaps, overtime costs and workflow disruption. Workers struggling with unmanaged chronic conditions may have less stamina, slower reaction times, and reduced ability to handle physical tasks. Knowledge workers may experience impaired concentration and reduced mental agility.
Workers who are physically present but not functioning at full capacity often cost companies more than absenteeism itself. Fatigue from diabetes, headaches from hypertension, or mobility limitations from obesity affect performance and increase risk of incidents.
Chronic diseases also drive up medical claims. For organizations that fund employee medical plans either fully or partially the financial burden can be substantial.
Complications from lifestyle diseases can lead to long-term disability or early retirement. For the business, this results in hiring costs, training demands and loss of institutional knowledge.
· In the context of HSSE, lifestyle diseases are not “soft issues.” 
A workforce with underlying chronic illnesses is inherently more vulnerable during crises, emergencies, and peak-demand situations.
Worker Health
Resilience is the ability of an organisation to anticipate disruption, adapt and thrive. Traditionally, HSSE resilience focuses on systems, processes, and physical safeguards. However, organisational resilience is equally dependent on human resilience. A healthy workforce recovers faster from disruptions. The COVID-19 pandemic sharply highlighted this truth: individuals with underlying lifestyle diseases were far more likely to suffer severe illness. 
· As businesses in Trinidad and Tobago navigate economic challenges and risks, workforce health becomes a strategic advantage. In essence, healthier workers create healthier businesses. Companies that invest in wellness experience lower absenteeism, 
· higher productivity, 
· improved morale, 
· enhanced retention, 
· stronger safety culture and 
· reduced insurance costs.
Building Resilience
Addressing lifestyle diseases requires an integrated, strategic approach—not isolated wellness events or ad-hoc medical screenings.
Implement workplace screening and surveillance including blood pressure checks, glucose testing, BMI monitoring, and health risk assessments. This helps identify early disease and track trends. Data-driven insights allow companies to target interventions where they are needed most.
Develop tailored workplace wellness programmes. One-size-fits-all wellness initiatives are ineffective. A successful programme must consider cultural habits, food preferences, local disease prevalence, shift patterns and workplace layout and job demands. Programmes may include on-site dietitian visits, healthy meal options in staff cafeterias, group physical-activity initiatives and condition-specific support groups.
· You can also strengthen the role of occupational health services in your organisation. A trained occupational medicine physician can conduct fitness-for-duty assessments, 
· monitor chronic disease management, 
· identify workplace contributors to health decline, 
· design targeted interventions and 
· advise leadership on strategic health investments.
Embedding occupational health within the business strategy not just as a compliance function is transformative.
Promoting physical activity during the workday can be simple, low-cost interventions such as walking clubs, standing desks, stretch breaks, and activity challenges can significantly reduce obesity risk and improve cardiovascular health.
Improve the food environment! 
Food is one of the most powerful tools for managing diabetes, hypertension and obesity. Organisations can influence daily choices by providing healthy cafeteria options, reduced-sugar beverages, portion control guidance, nutrition labelling and partnerships with local caterers to reduce salt and oil. 
Stress contributes to hypertension and poor lifestyle choices. Mental health programmes reduce burnout and provide employees with coping tools that indirectly improve physical health.
Leadership must champion wellness, not as a compliance requirement, but as a critical business strategy. When executives participate visibly in wellness initiatives, engagement increases across the organisation.
Of course, measuring outcomes and evaluating ROI is key. Establishing metrics including absenteeism rates, claims data, staff participation, and biometric outcomes ensures accountability and demonstrates the financial value of investing in wellness.
Modern technology can significantly enhance workplace health strategies. Innovations include wearable tracking devices for tracking, AI-powered health-risk prediction models, telemedicine consultations for chronic disease management, digital nutrition coaching, virtual fitness programs and automated appointment reminders. Incorporating modern technology makes health programmes more accessible, personalised and scalable, especially for organisations with remote or shift workers.
Conclusion
I have seen the difference between teams struggling under the weight of chronic illness and teams revitalised by proactive wellness support. The companies that thrive in the future will be those that recognise wellness not as an employee perk, but as a core pillar of business. By prioritising the prevention and management of lifestyle diseases, organisations are not only protecting their employees, they are safeguarding their own long-term success.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Ishta Rampersad is a leading Specialist in Occupational Medicine with over twenty years of experience shaping healthier, safer, and more resilient workplaces across Trinidad & Tobago. As Clinical Director of Occumed Ltd, she delivers innovative, evidence-based medical solutions that enhance employee well-being and organizational performance. Dr. Rampersad previously served as Head of Occupational Health at the North West Regional Health Authority and as a board member of TTOSHA, contributing significantly to national health and safety policy. A President’s Gold Medal awardee, she holds an MBBS from UWI, a Master’s in Occupational & Environmental Medicine from the University of Aberdeen, and MFOM qualifications. Passionate about holistic wellness, she is expanding Occumed’s services to integrate wellness, health, and aesthetic medicine.