Nearly three months after purchasing NHRMC, Novant Health is beefing up the “regional” in New Hanover Regional Medical Center.

The private, nonprofit announced a series of changes Tuesday that integrate key NHRMC leaders into Novant’s newly formed Coastal market as well as systemwide roles with the Winston-Salem-based health network. The new lineup means a Brunswick County health care executive is now in charge of NHRMC, while an NHRMC executive takes over the helm at Novant's Brunswick hospital.

Prior to the purchase of NHRMC, its footprint in the tri-county region was limited to Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center in Bolivia. The nearly $2 billion deal expanded that presence dramatically, making the 35,000-employee system the major health care provider in Brunswick, New Hanover and Pender counties. 

Shortly after the sale closed Feb. 1, NHRMC president and CEO John Gizdic became an executive vice president and chief business development officer for Novant. He will oversee the development of the Eastern market and also is responsible for the coastal region.

With Gizdic joining the corporate team, Novant announced Tuesday that Shelbourn Stevens (pictured above) will become president of NHRMC and the Coastal market, including oversight of Brunswick Medical Center and Pender Memorial Hospital.

Stevens has held numerous leadership roles with Novant, most recently as president and chief operating officer of Brunswick Medical Center. 

With Stevens taking on a new role, Laurie Whalin (pictured at right), vice president of clinical services at NHRMC, will become president and chief operating officer of Brunswick Medical Center. In addition to her Brunswick-specific duties, Whalin, who has a doctorate in pharmacy, will oversee several services across the region, including imaging, laboratory, respiratory therapy, pharmacy, neurosciences and cancer, according to a Novant news release.

“I’m excited to see these leaders in their new roles that will not only positively impact the local community, but also Novant Health as a whole,” Gizdic said.

“These changes reflect the steps we are taking as a system to fully integrate Novant Health and New Hanover Regional Medical Center in our pursuit to deliver advanced, accessible and remarkable care to the area,” Gizdic said in the news release.

Novant Health also announced the following changes:

• Andre Boyd will remain chief operating officer of New Hanover Regional Medical Center, with additional responsibility for surgery and cardiac services across the region, facilities, patient flow and support services.
• Ruth Glaser will be president and chief operating officer of Pender Memorial Hospital, with additional responsibility for home care, rehabilitation services, EMS and transport services. The facility is owned by Pender County and managed by NHRMC.
• Dr. West Paul is the new senior vice president and chief clinical officer for the Coastal market. He was previously chief clinical officer at NHRMC.
• Dr. Philip Brown will be the system chief community impact officer as part of the Novant Health diversity, inclusion and equity team, engaging the Novant community in the advancement of health equity. He was previously the executive vice president and chief physician executive at NHRMC.
• Dr. Joseph Pino will expand on his local responsibilities to include systemwide medical education as the senior vice president of medical education. He is currently NHRMC vice president of graduate medical education.

The new appointments take effect May 1.