This year, the Greater Wilmington Business Journal’s Health Care Heroes Awards returns front and center at Cape Fear Community College’s Wilson Center.
 
Finalists for this year’s awards will be honored at the awards event on Nov. 1. Winners will be announced, and a special lifetime achievement honor will be bestowed.
 
They are this year’s Health Care Heroes, nominated by patients, peers, co-workers and families.
 
The Business Journal has put on the Health Care Heroes awards program since 2013 to honor the people and organizations making an impact on the quality of health care in the region.
 
Included in this year’s awards special section are the finalists in eight categories: Community Achievement, Health Care Executive, Innovation in Health Care, PA/NP, Nurse, Physician, Volunteer and the Unsung Hero category, recognizing anyone who works in health care but not necessarily fitting the other traditional award descriptions.
 
A panel of judges had the task of wading through stacks of nominations and focused on some fundamental questions for the nominees. Do they go above and beyond in their daily work? Have they contributed an idea or formed an organization that impacts the community? Are they heroic – whether in big, life-saving ways or quiet, everyday ways?
 
In many cases, the standouts were clear. In others, the choices were tough.
 
Also on Nov. 1, Bonnie Brown, the longtime head of the New Hanover-Pender County Medical Society, will be honored as the recipient of this year’s Lifetime Achievement award (read more about her work here).
 
Congratulations to all the finalists and winners of this year’s Health Care Heroes Awards.
Info: WilmingtonHCHeroes.com.
 
-Vicky Janowski, editor
Greater Wilmington Business Journal
[email protected]
 

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About the Judging

Each year, the Business Journal opens up the nomination process to the community for the Health Care Heroes Awards. 

Our outside judging panel combs through the nominations and applications to pick the finalists and winners in each of the categories as well as the Lifetime Achievement honor. 

Judges who know or work with the nominees disclosed any potential conflicts. In the cases in which judges were nominated in a category, they were recused from the deliberation process.

Victoria Bellamy, Novant Health

Danielle Clark, PNC Bank

Johnsie Davis, Novant Health

Rob Harper, Novant Health Heart & Vascular Institute

Jim Hundley, Retired Physician

Alexis Hunter, Wilmington Health

Elaine Loyack, Delta Dental of North Carolina

Michael Pawlikowski, TeamLogic IT

Daniel Thompson, Well Care Health

Jack Watson, UNCW College of Health and Human Services

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Meet the 2024 Health Care Heroes finalists:

Community Achievement:

• Health Equity Team, Lower Cape Fear LifeCare 
• Ministering Circle, The Ministering Circle of Wilmington, NC
• Wendy Holdsworth & Socorro Costa, Clinic Director of Christ Community Clinic & Executive Director of El Cuerpo, Christ Community Church

Health Care Executive: 

• Andres Afanador, Medical Director/Clinical Assistant Professor, Novant Health New Hanover Medical Group
• Angela Ives, Executive Director, Community Care of the Lower Cape Fear
• Mary Ellen Naylor, Dean, Health and Human Services, Cape Fear Community College

Innovation: 

• Brunswick Surgery Center
• Taylor Bazemore, MD, Novant Health Heart & Vascular Institute
• Michelle Sumrall, Manager of Respiratory Services, Cardiovascular Diagnostics and Novant Brunswick Wellness Center, Novant Health

Lifetime Achievement: 

• Bonnie Brown, Retired Executive Director, New Hanover - Pender County Medical Society

Unsung Hero: 

• Karen Monroe, Device Clinic Coordinator, Novant Health Heart & Vascular Institute
• Nicholas Powers, Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA), Well Care Health
• Maria Rodriguez, Volunteer Interpreter, Red Cross & Christ Community Clinic

NP/PA:

• Tiffany Bowers, FNP-C/Family Nurse Practitioner, Dawson Med & Dawson Med Urgent Care
• Kendra Kellermann, FNP, Child Medical Evaluation Provider, Carousel Center Child Advocacy Center
• Chris McKinley, CEO & President, Coastline Wellness

Nurse: 

• Leah Gillikin, BSN, RN/Clinical Nurse Education Specialist, Lower Cape Fear LifeCare
• Julie King, BSN, RN/Chronic Care Manager, Wilmington Health
• Sarah Mylott, BSN, RN/Clinical Manager, Well Care Home Health

Physician:

• Lekeshia Jarrett, Family Medicine Physician, Wilmington Health
• Kateryna Kotlyarevska, Pediatric Endocrinologist/Clinical Assistant Professor, Novant Health Nunnelee Pediatric Multispecialty Clinic/UNC Health Children’s Wilmington
• Deric Weiss, Chief Medical Officer, Lower Cape Fear LifeCare

Volunteer:

• Mary Jo Conlogue Volunteer, Lower Cape Fear LifeCare
• Tony Dunn Volunteer, Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center
• Harry Thranhardt, Volunteer Veteran Advocate, Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center