Chris Peek, President & CEO, CaroMont Health
In what ways has being based in Gaston County influenced your approach to healthcare delivery and patient care?
The growth we have seen in Gaston County over the last 10 years has driven CaroMont Health to be intentional with our own growth. We had more than 1.1 million patient encounters last year, and the demand for our services continues to expand. It is imperative to stay to our mission to serve our community and support projects and expansion that make sense for their specific needs. For me and a large majority of our employees, we don’t only work in this community, we also live here. That makes it all the more important to ensure the healthcare we provide is exceptional and we consistently deliver it with compassion.
What strategies is CaroMont Health implementing to meet the growing healthcare needs in Gaston County?
In 2019, CaroMont Health announced plans to invest more than $350 million in capital projects in and around Gaston County. Projects included the construction of a new patient tower at CaroMont Regional Medical Center in Gastonia, the construction of a second hospital and medical campus in Belmont, and several renovation and expansion projects in the health system’s network of medical practices.
The South Tower at CaroMont Regional Medical Center in Gastonia opened in May 2023. This state-of-the-art facility prioritizes care, comfort, and safety for patients and care teams in the critical care setting.
The medical campus in Belmont is nearing completion. We recently opened the Medical Pavilion that includes the Belmont Surgery Center, CaroMont Heart & Vascular, CaroMont Pulmonary Medicine, CaroMont Womens Health, CaroMont Surgical Associates and CaroMont Breast Surgical Specialists.
CaroMont Regional Medical Center-Belmont, the 66-bed hospital that will anchor the Belmont medical campus, is scheduled to open in January 2025. The hospital will include a 16-room Emergency Department; maternity unit with labor and delivery; surgical suite with two operating rooms, an OB/GYN suite and endoscopy suite; and comprehensive imaging and diagnostic services.
Recruiting and retaining healthcare professionals is a challenge nationwide, and Gaston County is no exception. How is CaroMont Health addressing the challenges of workforce recruitment and retention in the healthcare sector?
With over 4,500 team members in more than 60 locations across the region, CaroMont Health is always looking for qualified candidates to join our team. We strive to be our community’s most trusted healthcare partner and that begins with healthcare professionals who understand that every patient deserves exceptional care and unwavering compassion.
Recruitment and retention require a multi-faceted approach, and we certainly employ the tactics that one might expect. However, the one I think is the most important and the one we’re most proud of is the partnerships we have developed in education. Over the last five years, we have worked to bolster and accelerate partnerships with Gaston County Schools, Gaston College, Belmont Abbey College, Gardner Webb University and others in the region to support continuing education for our employees and eliminate financial barriers for students to train for healthcare careers. Our goal is to grow the healthcare workforce right here – to offer our employees the opportunity to move into new healthcare modalities and to create pathways for students to explore and engage with healthcare careers.
There is the Health Sciences Academy with Gaston County Schools. We have worked with our partners at Gaston College to develop several nursing career pathways supported by robust scholarships. Belmont Abbey College recently launched their health sciences program with undergraduate and graduate programs.
It’s important to us that we help create opportunities for people to grow up here, be educated here, and to ultimately work here – caring for their friends,family and neighbors. We want to not only help build the healthcare workforce, we want to help build the community on a personal level.
What do you envision for the future of healthcare in Gaston County, and how will CaroMont Health contribute to that vision over the next half of the decade?
I think the future of healthcare in Gaston County is very bright. We already have some of the most skilled and caring healthcare providers in the region, and we’re investing heavily in our clinical programs to enhance and expand the services we offer. We have a laser focus on quality and safety. CaroMont Regional Medical Center is consistently recognized by The Leapfrog Group for exceptional patient safety, with more “A” ratings than any other hospital in the Charlotte region. We also have incredibly dedicated people who genuinely care about improving the lives of others. Those are the elements we’ll need to ensure Gaston County receives the best healthcare possible now and in the future.
Ultimately, it is our goal that a person never needs to go anywhere else for exceptional health care – that you not only trust we are the best place to care for your family but also that, with few exceptions, we offer every procedure or service you could ever need. I’m confident we’ll get there.
