John Gizdic, the executive vice president and chief business development officer for Novant Health spoke on the difficulties the hospital has had to deal with due to the pandemic.
He did, however, clarify that this was not unique to New Hanover County: “Our industry has faced unprecedented challenges over the last two years. With the pandemic, severe labor shortages, supply shortages, record inflation, and extremely limited access to capital. Now, these challenges are not unique to New Hanover County."
Over the past three months, New Hanover Regional Medical Center hired over 300 nurses, including traveling contract nurses, to try and tackle the labor shortage issue — as well as improve patient care.
Novant Health has also invested millions of dollars in Health Careers Education in the Cape Fear Region. According to Gizdic, $2 million has been invested in collaborative investments and scholarships, including with UNCW and CFCC, around what Novant calls its coastal region.
UNCW was also a partner in launching iHEAL, which is a program that educates students of all ages about health careers.
$200,000 was the total value of scholarships invested for local students, to increase the pipeline of local health sciences students into health careers in the region.
Disclosure notice: Novant Health provides has provided underwriting support for WHQR.
