Cultivating care: Metrolina Greenhouses partners with Novant Health to support employee wellness

Dealing with a nagging cough or a persistent ache but too busy to get it checked out? Sometimes taking hours off from work to see a doctor feels like a luxury you just don’t have. That’s especially true when you’re responsible for getting 2.7 million poinsettias out of your greenhouses and into stores before the holiday rush.

Metrolina Greenhouses believes that time, cost and access are barriers to care no employee should be forced to face alone. That’s why, for more than 11 years, the innovative horticultural powerhouse has partnered with Novant Health Employer Solutions (NHES) to bring the healthcare clinic to its employees. It’s part of the company’s commitment to providing a “world-class employee experience.”

“[The clinic] is set up so any employee on our healthcare insurance can go to the clinic at no charge. So, where you might normally have to go to a doctor and pay $30 copay, at the clinic there’s no cost. We absorb that cost for employees on our insurance,” said Maria Taylor, chief people officer at Metrolina Greenhouses.

For Shasta Ebert, the clinic’s nurse practitioner and a Novant Health team member for 18 years, trading the clinical setting of urgent care for the verdant greenhouses of Metrolina has been a welcome change – especially when the chrysanthemums are in bloom.

“I'm in a unique position because I work for Novant Health, but on-site, I feel like I'm a Metrolina employee too. They've become like family,” said Ebert.

“That’s what I love about the clinic. It’s different from any setting that I've ever worked as far as hospital or urgent care, where you see people once that you never may see again. Here, I get to see them on a regular basis. And a lot of them have become friends. I know their history. I know their family. I know them socially. So, it helps me be able to take care of them in a more holistic way.”

Metrolina Greenhouses was founded in 1972 by Tom and Vickie Van Wingerden, who arrived in the U.S. from the Netherlands with a dream and $5,000. Beginning with a modest 20,000-square-foot greenhouse in Huntersville, North Carolina, they rooted their business firmly in the local community. Soon, their vision outgrew their initial space. Today, the company boasts two locations, spanning over 200 acres of greenhouses, nearly 300 acres of outdoor growing space, and 1,000 acres of land. With a dedicated workforce of 800 year-round employees and 400 seasonal workers, Metrolina Greenhouses has become a cornerstone in the horticulture industry, supplying more than 70 million plants annually to 1,400 retail outlets, including Lowe’s, The Home Depot and Walmart.

With the second generation of Van Wingerdens in leadership roles, the family-owned company continues to flourish by never losing sight of the guiding principles that made it what it is today: a focus on growth, commitment to customers, passion for innovation, and an eye on the future. Healthy employees who feel valued have always been at the heart of that success.

“One of our core values is caring about the person and creating a safe environment. Tom cared about innovation and quality and technology across all facets – including the health and wellness of the individual. We still live through that legacy of Tom to keep the employees healthy,” explained Taylor.

Metrolina’s commitment to its workforce is evident in its industry-leading employee retention. Over 40% of Metrolina workers have been on the team for more than six years. The organization’s sincere belief in investing in the well-being of its employees has been deeply rooted in its culture since day one.

“It’s about providing a benefit to our community as a whole,” Taylor said. “And if we can help [our employees] go back into the community a little bit more whole than when they came in, that's meeting our mission. That's fabulous. And that's where we want them to be.”

That commitment doesn’t stop at the wellness clinic. Metrolina Greenhouses also partners with Novant Health and other providers to schedule on-site mobile mammography, skin screenings, vaccine clinics, and a wide variety of other services to increase access to care and keep employees healthy, happy and productive.

While house calls may be a thing of the past, “greenhouse calls” are something for which Ebert (Shasta to her patients) has become well known.

“Spring is always beautiful. But it’s also a time when I try to keep a closer eye on the employees, because they're stressed and working very hard. So, that's one of the times when I try to go out to them because they may not feel like they have the time to come in to see me,” explained Ebert.

“One of the things we love most about her is she's not afraid to go out into the greenhouse just to check on someone if she doesn't have an appointment,” said Taylor. “That's amazing service. You can't get that at a doctor's office. She truly cares about the health of the employees.”

Learn more about how Metrolina Greenhouses is leading innovation across the horticulture industry.

Novant Health Employer Solutions is committed to collaborating with employers to enhance the well-being of their employees. For additional information about our solutions-based service offerings and to explore how we can address unique business needs, visit https://www.novanthealth.org/services/employer-solutions/.