The LOLwell checkup that changed everything

People

The checkup that changed everything

How LOLwell’s care and attention helped surface a hidden risk

On a Wednesday morning in late January, David Scott walked into the LOLwell clinic for what he expected to be a routine annual physical.

He walked out with his life on a completely different trajectory.

“I felt fine,” David says. “Honestly, I thought this was just another check-the-box appointment.”

David isn’t a Land O’Lakes employee. His wife, Monica, works in Dairy Foods customer logistics and has been with Land O’Lakes for more than 25 years. Like many employees and their families, the Scotts have visited LOLwell over the years for annual physicals, vaccination appointments, blood work and the occasional follow-up visit.

LOLwell is part of their routine, and for David, this visit wasn’t any different—until it very much was.

A not-so-routine appointment

During David’s appointment, Angela Laughlin, the nurse practitioner at LOLwell, conducted a standard physical. Nothing immediately alarming stood out; David’s heart sounded normal, and his blood pressure was stable.

Angela asked David routine questions about his health and habits—and it was during this line of questioning that she noticed a couple very subtle symptoms: shortness of breath and slight discoloration in David’s feet.

“It wasn’t one big red flag,” David says. “It was little things. Things I wouldn’t have thought twice about.”

Based on her experience in cardiac nursing, Angela suggested seeing a podiatrist and getting a cardiac stress test.

David didn’t hesitate—a recent conversation with a neighbor who hadn’t recovered well after a heart attack and thinking about a couple friends who had died in their 50s pushed him to make the appointment.

“I can't think I'm immune to this, and I’ve noticed some things as I’ve been getting older,” David says, “so I thought it was a good idea just to kind of see where I stand.”

One week later, he was at Mercy Hospital northwest of the Twin Cities undergoing the cardiac stress test. Within minutes of his appointment, the tone shifted.

“There was one person doing a test and another person helping me with the treadmill for the test. Then another person came in. Then a doctor came in,” David says. “The doctor told me very plainly, ‘If I were you, I wouldn’t leave the building.’”

The Scotts have visited LOLwell over the years for annual physicals, vaccination appointments, blood work and the occasional follow-up visit.

A life-saving procedure

David says the next turn of events was a blur.

Monica was at work when she got a call from the hospital. David told her she didn’t need to come down, that he’d probably just need a stent or something else relatively minor and that he’d be fine.

“He said ‘I'll probably be out, I'll be home, you don't need to come,’” Monica says. “I said, ‘No, I think I should be there just in case.’”

When she got there, doctors took David back for an angiogram, a test that shows how blood is flowing to and from the heart. Monica was told that if they came back with an update on David within an hour or so, it was either really good or really bad news.

An hour and five minutes later, a doctor came out.

David and Monica Scott. Monica works in Dairy Foods customer logistics and has been with Land O’Lakes for more than 25 years.

The angiogram revealed severe coronary artery disease. His heart had three major blockages: one at 97%, two at over 90%. The arteries were so blocked and were in such precarious locations that stents weren’t an option.

David needed triple bypass surgery. Immediately.

“Wow,” Monica remembers saying. “Just, wow.”

Because he had come in on a Wednesday and the surgery schedule was booked up through the weekend, David remained hospitalized until the following Monday, Feb. 2. The surgery was successful, but complications extended his stay nearly two weeks.

Recovery was slow at first. The biggest struggle, David says, was the physical limitations. Because he couldn’t lift his arms above his chest due to the surgery, he had to retrain his body to perform everyday movements such as standing up from a chair.

“You never think about how much you use your arms to stand until one day, you can’t,” David says. “All of a sudden, all these little day-to-day things that you never think about are now impossible.”

At home, they improvised. He used pillows to boost himself on the couch and other seats. At one point, he even borrowed his granddaughter’s booster seat to sit more comfortably at the dinner table.

Over the next few weeks, he started to get his strength back. By March, he began cardiac rehab three times a week. By early April, he was preparing to return to his seasonal job at a golf course.

Today, he’s back to feeling like himself.

“Subtle symptoms matter. We’re not just looking at one data point. We look at the full picture—the history, the exam, the trends over time.”

Angela Laughlin/nurse practitioner at LOLwell

More than a spot for vaccines

Anytime David tells his story, he starts in the same place: LOLwell and Angela Laughlin.

“Without her suggesting that stress test, we truly would've had no idea,” Monica says. “Angela said this case highlights how quietly heart disease symptoms can present and how important time and vigilance are in primary care.

“Subtle symptoms matter,” Angela says. “We’re not just looking at one data point. We look at the full picture—the history, the exam, the trends over time.”

It also happened to unfold during Heart Health Month, a coincidence Angela says is a powerful reminder of why preventative care matters.

“Early recognition changes outcomes,” she says. “It truly does.”

For many employees, LOLwell might only come to mind once or twice a year for flu shots, annual physical exams or maybe a quick visit when something feels off. But stories like the Scotts’ reveal the broader role it can play.

LOLwell, like other in-network clinics covered by Land O’Lakes’ insurance plan, offers no-cost preventative care and chronic disease management, same-day appointments for acute needs and other services for Minnesota-based employees and covered family members. In addition to these services, LOLwell also offers mental health counseling, lab services and health coaching.

Whether it’s from LOLwell or another clinic, Angela says receiving preventative care is critical to help get ahead of some conditions before they become too big to stop.

“When you have more time, you can listen more closely, ask better questions, and catch things earlier,” she says.

For Monica and David, the combination of access, trust and thoroughness provided at LOLwell made all the difference.

“They really look at you,” Monica says. “They really listen.”

LOLwell also offers mental health counseling, lab services and health coaching.

Taking things easy

Today, life looks a little different for the Scotts. They read nutrition labels more closely. David keeps close tabs on his sodium intake. And overall, they move at a slower pace—something David says has been eye-opening.

“You just kind of appreciate the little things a little bit more, too,” he says. “I took our granddaughter to the park for the first time in a long time. There’s a little creek there, and we spent a half hour just throwing sticks into the water. Rather than being like, ‘Oh no, we’ve got to get home,’ I was able to take time and enjoy that moment.”

Monica is also back at work after taking time off to help David with his recovery. She says she is grateful for the support and care she received during an unplanned leave, from HR helping her navigate Minnesota’s new leave policy to her team giving her the flexibility to be there for David without worrying about work.

“I’ll never forget how my team showed up,” she says. “HR, my manager, my coworkers—it meant everything.”

The biggest thanks, Monica says, goes to Angela and LOLwell.

“We’re just incredibly grateful Land O’Lakes has this service,” Monica says. “How many companies do?”

David agrees. On one of the first days Monica went back to work in the office, David came with her for a follow-up with Angela.

“It was basically an excuse to come back and see her,” he said. “I just needed to see her afterwards. When we saw each other, I gave her a big hug. It all comes back to her.”

David adds that while his situation may not be the most dramatic story of life-saving heroics, it’s still a story of heroism.

“There’s no burning car, no sirens,” he says, “but the outcome is the same.”

And all because of one careful exam by one nurse practitioner who had the skill and time to look a little deeper, David Scott is here, living fully and looking forward to what comes next.