Customized Digital Health Improvement Plans: Schwan’s Delivers For Employees

Stella Move coach, Steve, assesses Brenda through a 20-minute series of movements, observing mobility, stability and functional control to understand current performance and injury risk.

Schwan’s Company, the iconic Minnesota food company with nearly 12,000 employees nationwide, has long been famous for its wide selection of food available everywhere you eat, including restaurants, schools, grocery stores, and at home through its home food delivery service. But equally impressive is its approach to proactive and innovative employee wellness offerings, such as the Stella Move individual instruction program. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota named Schwan’s a Trailblazer in recognition of its inspiring efforts in building positive health outcomes for its employees.

Schwan’s Health and Wellness Lead, Norma Streich, said the company first became interested in Stella Move after studying data that showed a concerning level of musculoskeletal issues, things like tendinitis and arthritis, among its employees. Stella Move is a program that offers movement evaluation followed by recommendations for strength and stretching exercises, to be monitored by a coach and tracked by an app. Schwan’s agreed to offer Stella Move, as a free health benefit to employees as part of a pilot program.

“People are so busy and we know not everyone has time to go a trainer or even make all of their physical therapy appointments,” says Streich. “We wanted to offer something for people to help themselves, on their own time.”

Eighty-five people signed up in Schwan’s Bloomington office and 17 in its St. Cloud facility. To kick things off, each employee received a health assessment from Stella Move coach Steve Ahlvers, who then designed a customized physical therapy plan, with help from a proprietary software program.

“The Stella Move technology uses an algorithm to evaluate functional movement and provide corrective strength and stretching exercises,” explains Ahlvers. “Sports teams have used it to great success and now Blue Cross and Blue Shield is hoping to offer it to employers. Schwan’s was our first test case.”

Brenda Huntington, an executive assistant in the home-service business unit, stepped up to be part of this first group of employees, although since her health condition is plantar fasciitis, she stepped lightly.

“I’m 48 and not as flexible as I used to be,” she says with a laugh, “but coach Steve got me set up with the app and exercises, which took me about 15 minutes a day. I did them for six weeks and was re-evaluated and the exercises were adjusted. I can say that after a couple of months the heel pain is gone. I also feel like my core strength is better. I’m not a great exerciser so this has been great for me.”

Also a fan is Sara Rice, who is in learning and business development with the company. She had been dealing with post-partum joint issues in her shoulder after the birth of her third child. Her challenges were time and energy, which anyone with three children can relate to. Stella Move synced up nicely with her busy schedule and appealed to her let’s-try-it philosophy.

“I’m a joiner so I was excited to be a guinea pig on this pilot project,” she says. “I liked how specific the plan was for my issues and how the goals connected to my broader health goals and that I could do them from home. It’s been a positive experience for me.”

The Stella Move program includes a 12-week personalized Movement Improvement program that is accessible on the Fusionetics mobile app and desktop website.

Schwan’s is evaluating the program and making plans for future health care delivery options. One thing is for sure: the company won’t stop being proactive. The health of its employees is too important. And the lessons it’s taken from this pilot have proven helpful not only in terms of individual progress but macro-realizations.

“When we analyzed the issues that kept showing up in our health and disability plans, we assumed the majority of issues were coming from our drivers in trucks and people in manufacturing, because they’re moving more,” says Streich. “But what we’re learning is that it’s our employees in the corporate offices that are having the movement issues — the back issues, the knee issues, the hip issues. It’s from sitting too much. We found that surprising, but it shows up in the data. We have to get people moving more every day and programs like Stella Move can play a big role in that.”