Letter from the Board Chair 2023
July 2023 – As Chairman of the board of commissioners for UNC Health Nash, I am pleased to share this annual update on how our community hospital is improving the health and wellbeing of our community.
We continue to focus on providing exceptional patient care with every patient, every time. These efforts are rooted in our four core values – Trust in Compassion, Above & Beyond, Committed to Connections, and Service Leadership – which remind our teams to focus on what is important for our patients and their families, our colleagues and our community.
This work has paid off with several major recognitions the hospital has received in the last year.
In December 2022, UNC Nash was one of only 32 hospitals across the entire country to receive the Top General Hospital designation by Leapfrog, a national organization that tracks and reports hospital performance data. Only elite hospitals that meet the nation’s toughest standards for safety and quality achieve this prestigious designation. In April, we received another Leapfrog A grade, which makes the fourth year in a row that UNC Nash has achieved this top hospital safety and quality rating.
UNC Nash was named a Top 25 Hospital in NC by Business North Carolina for the second year in a row, and we remain an American Nurses Credentialing Center Pathway to Excellence Program. UNC Nash also received national recognitions for heart, stroke, physical therapy, and maternity care.
A major driver in these improvements has been our dyad leadership approach to quality, which designates a physician leader and nurse leader for every service line to drive unit-specific improvements, with involvement and support from every role across the organization.
In the Emergency Department, we implemented a new ‘vertical flow’ model to improve efficiency and patient satisfaction. In this model, patients are evaluated at the front door based on their ailment, then routed through the best pathway to manage their condition most quickly and effectively. This maximizes our resources for patients with more complex needs while providing more efficient and higher quality care to all of our patients.
Similarly, on the inpatient side, we have continued to trial new care models to improve efficiency and the patient and family experience in the hospital. Our patient engagement navigators meet with every patient to help answer questions and address concerns. We launched “First Touch Rounds” where both the nurse and physician round on each patient in the morning to discuss the patient’s goals for the day and answer questions. In addition, we have been exploring ways to maximize our nursing resources while allowing nursing aids and licensed practical nurses to perform at the top of their scopes.
The UNC Nash Foundation continues to help the hospital address social barriers to health and improve the health and wellbeing of our community beyond the four walls of the hospital. Thanks to the generosity of our staff, medical staff and community donors, we continue to expand our Community Paramedic Program and Inpatient Food Pantry, as well as bolster our Patient Assistance Fund. These programs provide needed resources to our most vulnerable patients, contributing to reduced readmissions and better health outcomes.
Our employees have volunteered at more than 30 events in the community, providing health education and other wellness-related activities. Our Employee Giving Campaign raised nearly $100,000 that will directly support the health and wellbeing of our community through our Foundation and the United Way Tar River Region.
Several new providers and specialists were added to our medical staff to stabilize and expand our service line offerings in heart, urology, cancer, ENT, and primary care.
Looking forward, we recently developed a new 5-year strategic plan, with input from the community, medical staff, staff and a variety of stakeholders. The new plan focuses on solidifying Nash as the region’s market leader, distinguished by ease of access, expanded service offerings, exceptional quality and patient experience, and workforce and community engagement.
Our recent recognitions and accomplishments serve as evidence that we are living out our mission to improve the health and wellbeing of our community. On behalf of the board of commissioners, I’d like to thank our dedicated team for all of their work in positioning UNC Nash to meet our community’s needs for years to come.
