The health of your staff makes a huge impact on your bottom line!

Diabetes and obesity have been on the rise and statistics are frightening.  Costs to employers show up a number of ways, such as in lost productivity and increased health care costs, to name just a couple.

The liability for employers due to employee drug abuse can be staggering.  In addition to breaking the law, try $75-$100 billion per year forked over by employers due to employee drug use, according the U.S. Department of Labor. 

So if you’re imagining a drug user as homeless and on the street, think again!  73 percent are employed and there may be one in your workplace right now!  Many drug abusers are addicted to prescription drugs.  Drug use compromises attendance, performance and behavior, and even more important – safety.

Whether traveling on business or pleasure to Philadelphia in September, there are two major events of the summer that you won’t want to miss.  So drop that laptop and head for performances to soothe even the most stressed among us!

1. The Live Arts Festival in Philadelphia and Philly Fringe is held annually in September and attracts people from around the World.  The Prince Theater on Chestnut St. is home to this yearly event that has gained hugetraction. 

   In 1997, five Philadelphia artists created an outlet for contemporary and experimental performers to show their talents. Originally a five-day event, now it runs for two solid weeks of truly professional and innovative artistic performances.

Let’s get real business travelers: business is business, and the hotel business is no less of one than any other when it comes to wooing the savvy, upscale business traveler.

In the distant past before internet (when was that? LOL), a word of mouth referral was one person speaking to another in conversation over a meal or on the telephone to recommend different airlines, hotels, etc. for business travel and leisure travel.  Now with internet, social media, mobile apps, texting and so many ways we connect to each other, word of mouth has taken on an entirely new meaning and scope -- whether it's business travel or making the best chicken soup!

Health and Healthcare are topics on everyone's minds.  Is U.S. healthcare cost justified by the outcomes achieved?

Tomas Philipson, leader of a research team and University of Chicago economist.  In the team’s recent research paper, published in the latest Health Affairs issue, says that quality may well suffer if cuts to U.S. healthcare spending are made.  In examination of U.S. healthcare, their main focus is on cancer spending and survival times -- comparing patients in the U.S. and ten European Countries from 1983 to 1999 (no available data after 1999 was available).

Statistics say that while social networking sites are big for women, blogs get almost two times the traffic from savvy business women. 

Why?  On blogs, Women find resources and connect with other women  - either entrepreneurial or executive women climbing the corporate ladder.  They share tips, advice and wisdom on almost any topic imaginable, and among the most popular are those that connect career and businesswomen seeking help and connection to others who are equally driven to reach their goals, life balance of work and family, as well as issues like gaining equality at work.

Wherever you live, keeping kids sare in cars is an important topic!  Knowing the basic laws about child restraints will help insure the best chances for safety, and equally important is to know rules parents should adopt about child behavior in cars.

Pennsylvania’s seat belt law states that under age four, children must be restrained properly in a child-safety seat anywhere in the vehicle.  Age four through eight require booster seats to be high enough for the seat belt not to be covering their neck or in an untenable position.  From eight to eighteen, depending on child size and weight of course, they must use a seat belt.

If you or a loved one suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy there may be hope. 

The U.S. National Library of Medicine on PubMed Health states:

Business leaders in Philadelphia have created “The Greater Philadelphia Green Business Program, (which is endorsed by the Penn Environmental Council and the PenJerDel Council).

Objectives of the Program include each member company located throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan area making a public promise to create daily business practices that decrease their impact on the environment. It focuses on each company creating a checklist guiding office users to “green operational practices offices.