Understanding the needs of employees with non-communicable diseases regarding physical activity-related workplace health promotion programs: a qualitative study.

INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCD) is rising and increasingly affects people of working age. Thereby, NCD burden those affected and challenge society, welfare systems and companies in many different ways. Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) is considered promising to improve and maintain employee health and physical activity (PA)-related WHP programs constitute a main area of action. This study aimed to better understand the needs employees with NCD have with regard to PA related WHP programs. METHODS: In an exploratory approach, qualitative partly structured interviews were conducted with 15 employees with NCD. The interviews were analyzed using structuring content analysis with concurrent deductive and inductive main categories, dimensions and expressions. RESULTS: Based on the interviews, four main categories were identified: "subjective health concept", "workplace-related health challenges and coping strategies", "experiences with WHP" and "wishes and needs in terms of PA-related WHP". "Subjective health concept" comprised the personal definition and the personal relevance of health. "Workplace-related health challenges and coping strategies" could be divided into physical and psychological demands and reported strategies were physical activity, nutrition, a supportive social environment and relaxing activities. The "experiences with WHP" comprised type of program, reasons for participation, access channels and subjective evaluation. The "wishes and needs in terms of PA-related WHP" referred to specific PA-content, structural aspects and psychosocial aspects. DISCUSSION: The findings provide insights into the experiences and needs of employees with NCD regarding PA-related WHP and provides recommendations for the further development of WHP tailored to specific target groups. Thereby, WHP for employees with NCD must not only be consistently adapted to the target group's work-related environment, but also take into account their mental, physical, and social limitations.