In the health field there often exists a dichotomy – those who see patients through the eyes of a medical professional and those who manage patient care as part of a diversified corporation. It is not that common to find hospital staff with both hands-on experience in patient care who also have a solid hands-on experience in business. Martha Harlan, the Director of Marketing and Public Relations at New Hanover Regional Medical Center, came to Wilmington last September with both skill sets.

Harlan started her career in Florida as a registered nurse. While she loved nursing, she wanted a little more in her life. “I was young, I wasn’t married and I wanted to travel.”

She found a way to do both. At the time, airlines saw the benefit of hiring nurses as flight attendants. For the next four years, Harlan worked part of each week as a nurse and the rest of the week flying for Air Florida. When the airline added an international flight, Harlan spent two years “commuting” between London and Florida. As an agency nurse, she was able to “pick and choose” assignments and satisfy her love of travel at the same time.

If that sounds like an ambitious schedule, Harlan also found time to do promotional work for RCA and Sony through an agency in Florida.

“I liked working with the creative team,” she said. When the agency planned to relocate to Los Angeles, Harlan was offered a job with a different path. She and her husband, Steve, an artist, moved to California. “I loved Los Angeles. I worked in film and video production on advertising campaigns for Columbia Pictures and Disney.”

“I left nursing for 10 years,” she said. The skills she learned in nursing – listening and problem solving – were vital to her success in marketing and promotion.

By now the Harlan family numbered four – including two daughters, Danielle and Samantha – when the family decided to move back to the East Coast.

Once again, Harlan returned to her first love.

“I worked in pediatrics, medical/surgical, home care.” Working for a home care agency in Washington, D.C., Harlan rapidly moved from patient care to management.

That position led to working for an advertising agency in Annapolis, Md., where she concentrated on marketing, physician relations, customer service and public relations.

Not one to remain idle, Harlan, in her “spare” time, earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and entered a master’s program in Marketing and Management as she spent the better part of the next decade as the Executive Director of Marketing, Public Relations and Corporate Communications at Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis.

She and her family came to Wilmington in September, 2008 when she began her new position at the medical center.

Harlan had been intrigued by the opportunity to combine marketing at a health care environment and took the position, in part, because “I loved the hospital, and this area is fabulous,” she said.

Her focus at the medical center is to develop a branding strategy, build awareness of the health center, the new women’s and children’s center, the heart programs, including open-heart surgery and the level of care offered by the professional staff.

“The market is different here,” Harlan said about Wilmington. “It’s not that competitive. I’ll be building on a strong brand. I’ll be helping boomers making their health-care decisions. I won’t be selling, but sharing very good health care information.”

Her goals include building programs that meet the needs of the community. For example, she said when helping families as well as patients, she believes staff needs to ask, “What can we do to meet your needs; what is your family facing?”

Harlan also wants to share health-care information and offer preventive programs. She plans to continue to highlight the hospitals outreach to the community through screenings, clinics and seminars. And she said she wants to do more to introduce the physicians to the community.

“We have so many talented doctors here,” she said, noting that many of them came to the hospital with impressive credentials.

“I am thrilled to be part of such a dynamic organization,” she said.

“I am really looking forward to getting involved in this community. I have a passion for helping young children and teenagers. I would enjoy serving on boards or committees that work with foster programs, crisis intervention, adoption services or just mentoring youth. Kids have so much potential, and sometimes they just need support so they can see how they can make the most of their future,” Harlan, the former pediatric nurse said.

On weekends, Harlan works with her husband’s art business. His works are featured in 10 galleries throughout the United States.  The move also marks a turning point in the couple’s lives as empty nesters. Their oldest daughter starts medical school at the University of Maryland in the autumn and their younger daughter is in college.

Since she began working at the hospital eight months ago, Harlan hasn’t spent a summer in this area. When told the weather is hot and humid, and not at all as lovely as Los Angeles in the summer, she smiled and said, “Don’t forget, I grew up in Florida.” She said she has plans to walk miles and miles along the state’s beautiful shoreline.