Brunswick Novant Medical Center Opens July 31

Brunswick Community Hospital leaders have announced plans to open the new Brunswick Novant Medical Center, which will feature 78 beds and all private rooms, on Sunday, July 31.

“We are excited about opening the new hospital in a county where local residents have so passionately declared the need for increased access to healthcare,” said Denise Mihal, Brunswick Community Hospital president. “Our leaders, physicians, nurses and staff will work to ensure that this hospital lives up to the community’s expectations and that it is a model of patient care both locally and across the state.”

The new Brunswick Novant Medical Center is located approximately three miles north of the current hospital on the south-bound side of Highway 17 at 240 Hospital Drive NE in Bolivia.

“Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we are looking forward to moving our patients to the new hospital on Sunday, July 31,” Mihal said. “It will be a day that we have planned for and looked forward to for some time.”

Brunswick Community Hospital has partnered with a national leader in the relocation of healthcare facilities, known as Health Care Relocations (HCR), to assist with the move from the nearly 35-year-old Brunswick Community Hospital to the new Brunswick Novant Medical Center. Based in Ellwood City, Pa., HCR has moved more than 250 hospitals, laboratory facilities and healthcare facilities since its inception in 1993.

Due to state licensure, Brunswick Community Hospital is only permitted to have one emergency department in operation at any one time. Therefore, the first major step in the hospital move on July 31 will be the closing of the current emergency department at 5:59 a.m. that morning and the corresponding opening of the new emergency department at Brunswick Novant Medical Center at 6 a.m.

“We chose a Sunday morning for the move because this is typically a time when we have fewer patients entering the emergency department,” Mihal said. “Any patients who arrive at the emergency department prior to 6 a.m. will be treated in the current emergency department. Then, after 6 a.m., we will begin to direct any new patients to the new emergency department at Brunswick Novant Medical Center.”

At approximately 7 a.m., hospital staff will begin to move patients to the new Brunswick Novant Medical Center.

“We are fortunate to have the assistance of Brunswick County Emergency Medical Services as well as many other local resources to assist in the move,” Mihal said. Brunswick County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) will assist in transporting patients from the old facility to the new hospital.

“Our first priority throughout the move is the safety of our patients and staff,” Mihal said. “We have prepared for several months to have a strong plan in place to ensure the safety of our patients, staff and community.”

According to the hospital’s schedule for the move, patients will eat breakfast in the current hospital and eat lunch in the new hospital.

During the move, hospital leaders will need to put some restrictions on visitation, but by late afternoon, all visitors will be welcomed to the new hospital. Details on these restrictions will be provided to each patient’s family and friends in the days leading up to the move.

Brunswick Novant Medical Center, which is a member of the not-for-profit health system Novant Health, will feature 74 acute care beds, 14 more than the current facility, as well as four observation beds and an additional operating room for five total operating rooms. Services will include a 24-hour emergency department, maternity center, intensive and progressive care units, surgical services, and imaging and laboratory services, as well as physical therapy, speech therapy, cardiac rehabilitation and pulmonary rehabilitation.

The new hospital will also feature patient-focused amenities, including all private rooms, dining-on-call room service, wireless Internet throughout the facility, and extended visiting hours.

“Many people are asking about tours of the new hospital,” Mihal said. “We are excited to welcome community members to their new hospital, so we are planning two special sneak preview events.”

On Thursday, July 14, at 7 p.m., the Brunswick Novant Medical Center Foundation will host a Premiere Event at the new hospital. The black-tie optional fundraising event will feature music, entertainment, food and, of course, tours of the new hospital. Tickets for the event are $100 each and sponsorships are available. For more information, contact the Brunswick Novant Medical Center Foundation at 755-1244.

Then, on Saturday, July 16, the hospital will host a free Sneak Preview Event giving community members a chance to tour the new hospital from 1 to 4 p.m. A ribbon cutting will take place at 1 p.m. that day.

For more information on these events or the opening of the new hospital, visit www.BrunswickNovant.org or call 910-755-8121.