Since our 1994 and 1997 application and award, the program at Union Pacific Railroad has continued to evolve. For example, after 1997 our main program, called Project Health Track, was expanded to include ten risk factors and chronic health conditions. Program outcomes from Project Health Track are presented in this application along with results from our other health promotion initiatives.
Our program has also continued to gain both internal and external recognition. Internally we had Health & Welfare declared as one of eight Big Financial Deals (BFD) for the years 2001-2006. (Please refer to page 1 of the Program Documentation for a compete explanation.) This puts health on the same level as seven other important railroad issues like fuel costs and business in Mexico. We were able to get this attention placed on health because of our program outcomes as well as historical and recent evaluation studies that have been conducted.
Program Description
Narrative Description of Program
Since our 1994 and 1997 application and award, the program at Union Pacific Railroad has continued to evolve. For example, after 1997 our main program, called Project Health Track, was expanded to include ten risk factors and chronic health conditions. Program outcomes from Project Health Track are presented in this application along with results from our other health promotion initiatives.
Our program has also continued to gain both internal and external recognition. Internally we had Health & Welfare declared as one of eight Big Financial Deals (BFD) for the years 2001-2006. (Please refer to page 1 of the Program Documentation for a compete explanation.) This puts health on the same level as seven other important railroad issues like fuel costs and business in Mexico. We were able to get this attention placed on health because of our program outcomes as well as historical and recent evaluation studies that have been conducted.
Externally, we had one of our most significant cost savings articles receive a four-star rating and listed as one of 11 significant studies cited in Dr. Pelletier's 1998 review. Two other significant studies were published in the peer-review literature since 1997 that had desired effects on our program. Also, several case study presentations were made at the request of national and international groups. In 2001, UPRR was also the first large company to receive the Platinum Award from the Wellness Councils of America, which is given to organizations, and institutions that are able to demonstrate the link between health promotion objectives to business outcomes. Union Pacific's vision is to be the healthiest company in America. Our continued emphasis on using theory-driven programming coupled with consistent senior management support will be combined to help us reach this goal.
Contact Summary
| General Information | |
|---|---|
| Program Name | Project Health Track |
| Company Name and Address | Union Pacific Railroad1416 Dodge St.Omaha, NE 68179 |
| Contact Person | Joseph A. Leutzinger, PhDProgram Administrator |
| Program Information | |
| Program Category | Chronic DiseaseHigh RiskWorksite-based |
| Year begun | 1987 |
| Total number of individual participants | Over 85% of employees have participated over the years |
| Number of currently actively enrolled | Over 75% of employees |
| Access to Program | All Union Pacific employees and their spouses |
| Program targeted at Healthy People 2000 and/or Healthy People 2001 goals | Yes - 2/4 |
| Program goals (in priority order) | (1) Continue lifestyle related health care claims(2) Enhance employee productivity(3) GImprove employer relations(4) Decrease injuries and absenteeism |
Evaluation Summary
As a two time C. Everett Koop Award winner, we feel it is not only important to have new data but also to demonstrate how we used old and new data to gain additional resources and stature for our program. At Union Pacific, evaluation has always been a critical component of our program and is responsible for much of its success and evolution. Several evaluation projects have been conducted since 1997 and are outlined in this application. This abstract will summarize three of the major evaluation projects.
Often in business much attention is given to forecasts based on actual figures. This served as the impetus behind our cost scenario study. This study was significant in having Health & Welfare classified as a Big Financial Deal (BFD) in 2001 (described on page 1 of the program documentation), and underscored the importance of prevention at Union Pacific. In summary, we showed that the difference in health care costs alone between the scenarios of program elimination and a program achieving a 1% risk reduction was $99.4 million per year. A 1% reduction in risk has previously been achieved at Union Pacific. The results from this study were instrumental in gaining additional support and resources for our health promotion program.
A pilot study for smoking cessation was conducted using Zyban and our Project Health Track counseling protocol. The results from this study showed that our protocol was extremely effective among program compliers. Strategies for increasing our compliant group was practical and significant results from the study. This study helped us gain support to implement a more comprehensive system-wide smoking cessation program to all employees, and helped convince senior management and healthcare providers to review the study results and incorporate the findings into their plans. In addition, changes were made to the protocol which are likely to result in increased rates of compliance and quit rates among participants.
Due to union agreements, it is difficult for UPRR to access its own health care cost data. An initiative was undertaken in 1998-99 to gather our data and analyze the total cost for all health related expenses. This analysis was used to justify our existing health promotion program as well as supplement the results from the two studies mentioned earlier. As you will see on pages 5 and 6, the following results were reported between 1990-1998: personal injury costs decreased 21%, personal injury - medical decreased 2% and long-term disability decreased 4% while total health care costs per employee decreased 16%. The results cited above as well as the outcomes mentioned throughout the application will show how we have used our data to evolve and raise the stature of our health promotion program at Union Pacific.
Evaluation Documentation
Critique
Reviewers were vigorous in their praise of this program, finding it broad-based, well-studied and integrated with company goals ¾one of the best Koop programs over time. They noted many program enhancements since the last application, good publishing data, excellent ROI documentation and explicit targets linked to Healthy People.
Reviewers found the Smoking Cessation Program particularly effective, with the company-wide smoking rate decreasing from 40% to 26%.
A concern for the failure to develop and implement a plan to gain union cooperation and acceptance of change was voiced by one reviewer and it was also noted that there was no control group for the risk reduction program nor for the fitness center impact on injury reduction and fitness improvement.
Overall, however, this program was touted as impressive, insightful, innovative, and exemplary. One reviewer said that Union Pacific Railroad "does not meet the standard...it IS the standard."