The Health Care Professional category honors any health care providers other than physicians or nurses whose performance is considered exemplary by patients, peers and other health care providers.
DEANNA CRESCENZI
TITLE: Telemetry Monitor Technician
ORGANIZATION: NHRMC
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID:
“Deanna has committed to NHRMC like no one else I know. She has worked for NHRMC for over eight years and has excelled in everything she has done there. Many of those years, she did so as a single mother after her late husband died of a massive heart attack at a very young age, thus leaving her with three young children to take care of. She picked up her children and moved to Wilmington from the Hudson Valley of New York, where coincidentally enough she found herself watching the heart rhythms of the patients staying at NHRMC.
“I know the individuals in the telemetry department and they are truly the behind-the-scenes angels that no one really knows about. Who knew someone is individually watching your heart, beat by beat, while you are a patient at NHRMC? This would be a perfect opportunity to shine a light on one Health Care Hero that has done so much to monitor lives in the balance there at NHRMC and would most certainly appreciate it the most.
“At a time when the future of NHRMC is a little unsure, it would go a LONG way to pay notice to someone who works almost every day in a somewhat unknown and thankless position.”
- Dante Crescenzi, Deanna Crescenzi’s husband
ANGELA LIVINGOOD
TITLE: Pharmacy Manager
ORGANIZATION: Pender Memorial Hospital and NHRMC
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID:
“Angela Livingood, regulatory compliance pharmacy manager at NHRMC and Pender Memorial Hospital pharmacy manager, goes above and beyond to advocate for her colleagues, to maximize her impact on patients and to help her community members achieve optimum health.
“She is active in many professional organizations and speaks across the state on important topics, such as: Drug Diversion in the Workforce; Identifying and Assisting the Impaired Healthcare Worker; and Home Health and Hospice Role in the Opioid Crisis. She helped develop the NCHA Healthcare Worker Diversion Prevention Toolkit.
“Angela is also a great mentor, teacher, leader and advocate for students and employees. She worked hard to develop a preceptor program for pharmacy students from a variety of programs. The students have incredible experiences being involved in day-to-day work. Additionally, Pender Memorial has been designated as a rural experience site for one pharmacy program. Angela led Pender Memorial’s Community Health Needs Assessment with many other hospitals on the East Coast (led by Vidant). The CDC has invited her to participate in a guidelines development program on antibiotic stewardship.”
– Michael Voorheis
JOHN POPELLA
TITLE: Director
ORGANIZATION: NHRMC’s Air- Link/VitaLink/Regional Transfer Center
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID:
“John Popella exemplifies team devotion with a forward-thinking innovative approach toward continuous improvement and growth. Since becoming director in 2011, John has overseen continuous program growth while never sacrificing quality or dedication to patient and provider safety. To help illustrate this, the AirLink/VitaLink team transported 8,316 patients in 2011 and 17,125 patients in 2018. In support of this growth, his team and ambulance count have expanded.
“One shining example of his ability to adapt and lead his program through change occurred when a private ambulance service in Wilmington closed its doors without warning on a Friday afternoon. In response, John and his team stepped up to meet the community’s needs, leading to a doubling of his non-emergency transport service. . . .
“Additionally, John has successfully overseen the expansion of the NHRMC AirLink program from one helicopter in New Hanover County to three helicopters strategically placed throughout Southeastern North Carolina.
“He also oversaw the transition to a new aviation partner, which allowed AirLink to offer newer helicopters with enhanced safety features while also lowering patient costs.”
- Kevin Collopy
