The major players on southeastern North Carolina’s health care playing field are constantly exploring new strategies to retain their share of the health care market, with an eye to future expansion.

Stretching out

New Hanover Regional Medical Center serves a core patient group in New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties. 

In recent years, NHRMC has made inroads into Brunswick and Pender counties, complementing its historical base.

“Expansion plans are carefully considered to meet the needs of those we care for and the overall strategic plans. Our new outpatient cardiology center, which is currently under construction, is one example,” hospital spokeswoman Erin Balzotti said.

Another example is a proposed freestanding emergency department in the Scotts Hill area. The health care system recently submitted a certificate of need application with the state for the 30,000-square-foot building, which would be located next to NHRMC’s Atlantic SurgiCenter.

According to a “tentative timeline,” construction will begin in early 2014, with completion of the building in spring 2015.

NHRMC has also offered services in a 40,000-square-foot medical services complex for several years in The Villages at Brunswick Forest in northern Brunswick County.

Convenience is one key to remaining competitive, she added.

“By providing care closer to where people live and work, residents can get the care they need when they need it,” Balzotti said.

Revamped approach

Novant Health, operator of Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center in Bolivia, was making inroads in New Hanover County when the 2008 recession hit.

Novant Health shuttered some projects, such as a medical plaza near the Autumn Hall development in New Hanover County.

Caryn Klebba, Novant Health director of corporate relations, said all hospitals and health care systems “continue to be challenged by economic factors and an ever-changing health care industry landscape.”

“Across our four-state footprint, Novant Health has made strong progress in transforming the way we provide health care with a keen focus on access and affordability, through growth and expansion in certain areas and the introduction of new technologies and programs to create efficiencies throughout our entire system,” Klebba said.

“We have also focused on transparency in cost, as we know that affordability is an important part of how health care consumers make their decisions.”

Novant Health is based in Winston-Salem and is sole operator of 13 hospitals.

“Over the past few years, Novant Health has opened and plans to open new physician practices in multiple states and has made investments to provide appropriate access to hospitals,” Klebba said.

Novant Health has also entered into strategic and operational partnerships with nearby health facilities and systems, including Cape Fear Valley Health in Fayetteville.

To compliment growth, Klebba said Novant Health’s existing system has introduced new technologies “to allow patients to interact with their health care information and health care team when and where they need it.”

Resources include the integrated electronic health record MyChart, a tool that allows patients to access their medical records online, online scheduling in real-time, e-visits and video visits with doctors.

“Access can be defined in many ways, and Novant Health continues to look for innovative ways to expand access and to make health care more affordable and convenient for our patients, but that does not always translate to opening a new facility,” Klebba said.

Building capacity

Wilmington Health is the largest private, fully integrated, multi-specialty medical group practice in the region.

The medical group has steadily grown through the acquisition of exiting medical groups and new affiliations.

“Wilmington Health is continuing to expand geographically. Part of our commitment is to the patient experience, and part of that experience is having convenient easy access to our health system,” Wilmington Health CEO Jeff James said.

Other providers in the community and surrounding area “continue to show interest in our integrated delivery model,” James said. “Our philosophy hinges on collaboration and integration. We will continue to collaborate and integrate with those providers that are committed to improving quality and reducing cost.”

Meanwhile, James said, the practice is developing more capacity in New Hanover, Brunswick County and Onslow counties.

New relationships and unmet community needs “will continue to drive expansion for Wilmington Health,” he said.