How the Cummins LiveWell Center fosters a culture of whole-person health and wellness
Cummins, Inc., a global manufacturer of power solutions based in Columbus, Ind., has always been committed to a culture of whole-person health and wellness.
With 30,000 employees in the U.S. alone, their workforce crosses many cultures, demographics, roles, and backgrounds. Cummins recognized that a diverse workforce has diverse needs and sought to create a tailored healthcare experience for their employees. To create this experience, Cummins and Premise Health, partners since 1999, decided to go all-in on whole-person healthcare designed to serve their members — mind, body, and spirit. In 2016, they launched the LiveWell Center for their Columbus, Ind. employees, a comprehensive wellness center with a patient centered medical home model of primary care and a big mission: to reimagine healthcare for Cummins employees.
The Challenge
Cummins sought to give their employees an amazing benefit: healthcare that worked for them. They took on the challenge of developing and implementing a meaningful health and wellness strategy. As part of the process, Cummins leadership identified key traits that would need to be in place for their strategy to be effective.
First, manufacturing workers and field technicians make up a large segment of their population. Many find it inconvenient to get time away from the shop floor, are on the road often, or can’t get in to see a community provider when they need to. As a result, the Cummins team identified better access as a necessary element to maximize healthcare benefits for employees. Second, Cummins knew that employee benefits focused solely on physical health would leave significant gaps in the areas of mental healthcare and social drivers of health (such as access to fresh, healthy food.) These areas play a critical role in someone’s overall wellness and Cummins was determined to fill the gaps. A comprehensive primary care approach was needed to match Cummins’ whole- person health and wellness strategy.
Alongside these traits, Cummins needed to continue managing chronic conditions in their workforce, such as diabetes and heart disease, while navigating rising healthcare costs in the community. Cummins leadership knew it was time to take a bold approach to primary care — one that was accessible, comprehensive, and high-quality.
The Solution
The Cummins team worked with Premise to turn their bold healthcare strategy into real world results. The two organizations developed a comprehensive wellness center that combined primary care, occupational health, behavioral health, provider- dispensed medications, wellness, and musculoskeletal services such as acupuncture, chiropractic care, and physical therapy. These healthcare offerings were further boosted by the addition of a teaching kitchen where members could learn the concept of “food as medicine” and how to cook fresh, affordable, healthy, and delicious meals.
With increased access to care, the integration of behavioral health and social drivers of health, and a focus on health improvement in place, Cummins scaled their investment and strategy in a few ways:
Proactive Member Engagement
The Cummins team launched purposeful engagement campaigns designed to communicate to their employees and their families what resources were available and how to access them. These campaigns used multiple marketing and communication channels, and even included Premise teams visiting different Cummins’ sites to meet employees and promote the services available to them. Aiding in the success of these campaigns was their focus on ensuring employees had virtual access to their local wellness center, allowing them to engage with providers when and where it was most convenient for them.
Inclusive and Holistic Care
They launched the “It’s OK” campaign that aimed to destigmatize mental health challenges, teaching Cummins employees how to connect with the mental health resources available while encouraging those struggling to reach out for support. The campaign was such a considerable success that members have demanded continued expansion of discussion groups and other employee resources. This campaign was reinforced by digital and in-person access to local Premise behavioral health counselors for employees to see on an ad hoc or ongoing basis.
Data-driven Approach
Most importantly, they conducted a robust internal analysis of claims information, population health insights, and social drivers of health data. By combining these sources, the Cummins benefits team was able to paint a detailed picture of their employees’ backgrounds, needs, wants, and challenges. They were able to see specific population segments that faced chronic illness, mental health needs, access barriers, and environmental factors, like living in a food desert, which impacted their health. Equipped with this information, Cummins developed an informed strategy and worked with Premise to support employees by placing healthcare services that were both needed and wanted where they made the most impact.
The Outcome
The LiveWell Center, Cummins’ flagship wellness center in Columbus, Ind., implemented through partnership with Premise, executes on Cummins’ health and wellness strategy to outstanding success. The center’s performance demonstrates an effective healthcare strategy that increases engagement and improves health outcomes.
Increased Utilization
The LiveWell Center saw an increase of 12% in primary care visits from 2020 to 2022. Digital visit adoption (video or phone) also rose from nearly 4% in 2019 to 25% of total visits in 2020 – a trend that is still maintained today. Increased engagement means better health and lower out-of-pocket costs for Cummins employees.
Behavioral Health Adoption
As a result of the “It’s OK” campaign, Cummins has seen incredible growth and engagement with counseling services. Behavioral health visits increased by 140% in just three years (2019 to 2022).
Chronic Condition Management
The LiveWell Center continues to excel when it comes to helping members manage key chronic conditions. A mark of clinical excellence, members see control metrics* exceeding 95th percentile HEDIS, including:
These results, combined with a net promoter score of 92, demonstrate industry-leading quality and exceptional experiences across all sites. Cummins continues to pursue comprehensive health and wellness for their employees, leveraging innovation, communication, and advanced primary care strategies to care for their workforce.
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