Improving health services important to growing community

As Brunswick County continues to grow and its population continues to increase, so does its need for more quality, affordable health services.

Many residents are anxiously awaiting the completion of Brunswick County’s newest hospital—the facility that will replace the current Brunswick Community Hospital. Slated to be completed in 2010, the new hospital will encompass 252,604 square feet, with an additional 75,000 square feet of future medical office space. The $107 million hospital will have 74 acute-care beds, four observation beds and five operating rooms.

Additionally, Novant Medical Group, which oversees BCH, is continuing to offer more healthcare services and facilities throughout the county. Likewise, Dosher Memorial Hospital continues to grow and improve its services, and New Hanover Regional Medical Center has branched out more of its services to Brunswick County residents.

Recently, residents also learned Brunswick County would also focus growth on providing more mental health services. A 7,000-square-foot Coastal Horizons Center will open this year in Shallotte. It will provide mental health treatment options and substance abuse and rape crisis services for Brunswick County residents.

Currently, without such a facility here, many residents are forced to make the trek to Wilmington to find similar care. In these difficult economic times, it makes sense to have more of these services offered closer to home.

Additionally, it was recently learned the community would soon benefit from a new hospice facility based in Brunswick County. Last week, the North Carolina Division of Health Service Regulation approved a certificate of need application from Lower Cape Fear Hospice and LifeCareCenter to build the facility in our county.

The new facility will provide another important piece of the overall healthcare puzzle for Brunswick County residents. When complete, the $3.5 million inpatient facility will offer intensive, around-the-clock medical care for hospice patients who cannot be cared for in their homes.

The new hospice facility is scheduled to open in late 2011.

With a growing population base—much of which includes an aging retirement generation—the need for these expanded and improved healthcare services may have never been greater.

As one of the fastest growing counties in the nation, it’s reassuring to see local healthcare providers are serious about meeting more of our needs. As we continue this pattern of growth, hopefully important services such as these will continue to have the ability to keep up.