Ahoskie, NC – ECU Health Roanoke-Chowan Hospital Perioperative Services Department, in collaboration with the American College of Surgeons, is proud to announce that Tomekia Perry, sterile processing technician with ECU Health Roanoke-Chowan Hospital, has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Kankuben Baxiram Gelot Scholarship.
This distinguished scholarship was established by Raguvir B. Gelot, MD, FACS, to honor his mother’s legacy while supporting professional development among health care colleagues at the hospital where he dedicated 35 years of service.
Ms. Perry’s selection recognizes her commitment to advancing her expertise in perioperative care. The scholarship award includes a $2,000 stipend to assist with registration and related costs for an approved educational or professional development program.
She has been officially approved by the Perioperative Services Department Manager and the American College of Surgeons to complete the Certified Sterile Processing Technician program, further strengthening her skills in the health care field.
“We are incredibly proud of Tomekia’s achievement and dedication to professional growth,” said Brian Harvill, president of ECU Health Roanoke-Chowan Hospital. “Her selection for this scholarship underscores our commitment to supporting individuals who strive for excellence in patient care and surgical services.”
Chris Norman, PA-C and medical director of ECU Health’s Transfer Center, said he always knew he wanted to work in health care. “My family had a lot of health issues when I was growing up, and I thought I’d be a doctor,” he shared. “Then as an undergraduate, I was introduced to the physician assistant (PA) role. What really drew me in was the idea of doing what I wanted without being in school for so long, and the flexibility to swap specialties.”
After working elsewhere, Norman found his way to ECU Health through the recommendation of a colleague. “She made the switch from our former employer to ECU Health, and she recruited me with her talk about the growth she made as a provider, the team cohesiveness and the overall way PAs are treated,” he said. That professional support has kept Norman in eastern North Carolina for 20 years and has offered pathways to advance his profession, which now include Norman’s work with the NCAPA as president.
The North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants (NCAPA) aims to, “strengthen the PA profession in North Carolina through advocacy, education and support to improve healthcare for all patients.” Norman helped write that mission statement, something he’s proud of. “If PAs want to advance our profession and help our patients, we have to advocate for ourselves,” he said. “The NCAPA is the only organization solely dedicated to the advancement of the PA profession in North Carolina, and our mission statement resonates with my personal values. We all have one goal for our efforts; our ‘why’ is singular, and that’s my life’s work.”
While Norman learned about the NCAPA in school, he said he didn’t fully appreciate the organization’s significance early on. “If you’re interested in your profession and leadership, you should get involved,” he said. “Once I stepped in, I was all in.”
Initially, Norman got involved by joining work groups and subcommittees, but when he wanted to do more, a colleague suggested he run for a board seat. “This is my fourth year on the Board of Directors, and from there I’ve continued to become more involved, including advocacy in the state legislature and the Leadership and Advocacy Summit with the American Academy of PAs – that is a national conference and you go to Congress. This has been my third year of doing that.” Because of his service and hard work, Norman was then approached about running for president of the NCAPA, a three-year commitment; he is now in his second year of service in that role.
In March, Norman participated in the state Lobby Day, where he, along with many PAs from across the state, advocated for bills that remove obstacles for the PA profession in the state and improve access to care, especially for the rural areas in eastern North Carolina.
“I enjoy my work in Raleigh,” he said. “I get to talk to and advocate with the legislators to have an impact on our mission. And if we keep having these conversations, we will impact the profession.” It’s important that PAs get involved because, he said, “no one tells your story better than you, and no one else understands your needs and concerns.”
Getting bills passed and increasing PA participation in the process have been Norman’s major goals. “Last year we had over 150 PAs and PA students participate in Lobby Day,” he shared. “This year, we had more than 200. A lot of the students came from East Carolina University’s PA program.”
Making this type of difference wouldn’t be easy without the support of ECU Health. “I have a deep-seated drive to learn and tackle new challenges,” Norman said. “ECU Health provides opportunities and encourages my desire to learn and contribute in new ways. Paired with being laser-focused on our mission and values, I love getting up and coming in to work every day, knowing we’re all focusing on the same mission.”
Norman also wants other PAs to get involved. “We need someone to do the work,” he said. “Getting involved with the NCAPA shows a passion that your profession should be the best it can be. Use your own voice, because you are a part of the solution. If you’re a PA and interested in furthering your profession, your first step is to become a member.”
To learn more about the NCAPA, visit their site here.
When Ophelia Hill applied for a job at ECU Health in the Medical Center cafeteria in 2009, she was looking for a stable job that could grow with her. “I was working in fast food, and my aunt and uncle both worked at ECU Health. I wanted to work where I could retire, and this job [in Food and Nutrition] was my foot in the door,” she said. “I needed to earn money and I needed stability.” Little did she know that job would lead her to a role as lead surgical tech coordinator with the East Carolina Heart Institute (ECHI) at ECU Health Medical Center.
Ophelia, a Greenville native, always knew she wanted to help people – something that matched well with her work at ECU Health. “I worked in the cafeteria for a while, but I wanted to do something different, so I applied for a job in Material Services and worked in Laundry & Linen,” she said. “I did that for 11 or 12 years, but I was also a nursing assistant and would pick up shifts from Central Staffing when they needed me.”
Ophelia found that she enjoyed the work as a nursing assistant, but there wasn’t an opportunity to work in that role full time. “I knew I wanted to do hands-on patient care,” she said.
A trip up to 4 North with a colleague solidified that goal. “One of my friends in Supply Chain often worked on 4 North and one day I went with her. I saw staff performing a bedside procedure in a patient’s room and I asked her about it,” she shared. “‘What are they doing, and how can I do that?’ I wondered. That very night I researched different careers and found the surgical technician certification program at Wilson Community College, so I applied and I got in!”
Shortly after being accepted, Ophelia discovered the certification program was transitioning to an associate’s degree. It was also about that same time when she learned about the HomeGrown program from her team leader.
The HomeGrown program supports ECU Health team members seeking a first-time degree while providing the flexibility for them to continue working at ECU Health. Seven different degree programs are eligible for the program, including surgical technology, and eligible team members can work part time while being paid full-time and maintaining their benefits. “Mr. Vandiford, my manager at the time, told me about the program and he and my team were so great about letting me adjust my hours so I could do what I needed.”
Ophelia graduated with her associate’s degree, and three years ago, she started her new job as a surgical technologist in the ECU Health SurgiCenter. She later transitioned to the ECHI, and in December, her leader suggested she apply for a lead coordinator position. She started her new role on March 9.
The new position requires Ophelia to use her skills as a surgical technician to support the team at the ECHI. “I work a late shift and cover for those who get off at 3 p.m., so I still have to scrub up,” she shared. “I also work closely with the sterile processing department (SPD) staff to create trays and instrumentation, call in orders for broken equipment and keep up with the surgical flow. Wherever they need me, that’s where I am.”
The path to this role might have been a long one, but Ophelia said she feels like it was meant to be. “It seemed like when I stepped into this role, I didn’t have obstacles and it wasn’t as hard to do the work because I love it.”
It also helps that she works with a great team. “I love the flexibility of this job, and the people I work with make it possible for me to do anything. Not everyone gets that kind of support.” She also values making a positive difference in patients’ lives. “I get to be a part of a team that increases the quality of life for each patient we see,” she said. “We all have a common goal, and that’s what gets me going.”
Ophelia isn’t quite done with her education yet, either. “In May, I will graduate from Pitt Community College with a degree in health information technology,” she shared.
None of this would have been possible without the support of her fellow team members, her leadership and ECU Health’s HomeGrown program.
NCWorks is an initiative through the state of North Carolina for young adults aged 18 to 24 who are interested in exploring careers in health care. The program brings together various statewide agencies including the Department of Commerce, Public Instruction and the NC community college system to create opportunities for young jobseekers to find employment.
NCWorks offers tools, resources and knowledge needed to build a strong foundation for participants to begin their career. ECU Health is one of many work sites across the state for the NCWorks program.
In addition to helping young adults gain valuable skills, the program also creates a pipeline of talent that potentially leads to participants becoming members of the ECU Health team. By equipping young professionals for success, ECU Health strengthens its workforce and contributes to the local community by acting on the mission of improving the health and well-being of eastern North Carolina.
The program runs for approximately three months during which participants are part-time team members at ECU Health, gaining hands-on experience in a health care setting. During these three months, they learn about roles in health care from their fellow team members.
Throughout the program, participants are supported with continuous coaching from the workforce development team through learning skills and receiving guidance to help them thrive in professional environments. Both technical and soft skills are important for working in a professional environment and the program helps them develop and navigate these skills.
Program participants also receive guidance and mentorship from current ECU Health team members to learn the ins-and-outs of the workplace. At the end of the program, participants understand the importance of ECU Health’s mission, vision and values and have embedded that into their daily work.
Kara Dozier, a member of the Food and Nutrition Services team, is currently serving as an ambassador and the first participant of the NCWorks Project at ECU Health.
Kara got involved in the program when she met Toyta Kee, a talent pipeline consultant at ECU Health, at a job fair at the Greenville Convention Center. “I saw Ms. Toyta’s ECU Health sign and decided I’m going to talk to her and see what this is about. I did, and I gave her my application that I had printed out, and she said she would contact me,” Kara said.
Kara reached out to Toyta and got connected with the NCWorks program, which Kara has now been a part of since October 2024.
“Overall, my favorite thing about the program is it allows me to be more self-sufficient and provides a great opportunity for different positions at ECU Health,” she says, “I definitely would recommend this program to everybody who’s interested because it is a great opportunity for anybody who wants to get their foot into the ECU Health door!”
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Each day in hospitals, clinics and other clinical settings across ECU Health, nurses take on roles beyond the medical care they provide – they’re a support person, a patient advocate, offer a hand for food services and help keep rooms clean all while bringing high-quality, compassionate care to patients in eastern North Carolina.
On May 6, to mark the start of National Nurses Week, ECU Health nurses invited board members, executives and other leaders to take part in “Walk-a-Mile with Nursing” to offer the opportunity to shadow a nurse and experience all the different roles that nurses play each and every day at ECU Health hospitals.
“Many of us have experienced the hospital setting through the eyes of a patient or a loved one, but today we got a chance to experience it through the eyes of the people who make high-quality, compassionate care possible at ECU Health: our nurses,” said Chief Nursing Executive Dr. Trish Baise during the roundtable discussion immediately following the three-hour shadowing session at ECU Health Medical Center. “I hope this experience to walk alongside nurses across our hospitals provides an even deeper appreciation for the work they do and the incredible difference it makes in the lives of so many.”
Bob Greczyn, chair of the ECU Health Board of Directors, was one of the guests on the hospital floor during “Walk-a-Mile” and he shadowed nurses on the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at ECU Health Medical Center.
He said taking part in the event gave him the best morning he’s had in a long time. He was most impressed with the way teams – doctors, nurses, dieticians, pharmacists and more – worked together to care for patients on the unit.
“I’ve heard about doing rounds on patients and how the teams work together, but I’ve never actually been able to see it happen. Now I know what happens, and I know they didn’t just do it for my benefit,” Greczyn said. “I want to thank all the nurses who choose to work here for what you do, because it’s really important.”
Walk-a-Mile with Nursing was also held at community hospitals across ECU Health, where participants captured a glimpse of the community-centered care that makes rural hospitals unique. There, they witnessed team members treating neighbors, family and friends – a testament to the power of hands-on nursing in rural communities.
Gary Stanley, ECU Health Chowan Hospital Development Council Board Member and Lead Chaplain for ECU Health Bertie and Chowan, reflected on his experience with the Walk-a-Mile with Nursing event.
“It was truly an incredible experience,” Stanley said. “Nurse Konner Mims exemplified attentiveness, compassion, and respect, fully embracing the ECU Health model of patient- and family-centered care. This experience was profoundly impactful—I am a different chaplain because of it.”
Dr. Michael Waldrum, ECU Health chief executive officer and Dean of the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, and Donette Herring, ECU Health’s chief information officer, both had the opportunity to return to their clinical roots prior to their leadership roles.
Dr. Waldrum shadowed Carolina Pena, staff nurse III, on the Medical Intensive Care Unit at ECU Health Medical Center. As an intensivist for many years, he said it was great experience to be back at his “home.” He was grateful for the opportunity to shadow Pena and see the heart of ECU Health nursing on display with care, compassion and excellence.
Herring visited the Surgical Intensive Care Unit at the Medical Center. It was a fitting return for her as she said the intensive care unit was her last unit in a clinical role before she transitioned to leadership. She said she wasn’t sure what to expect for the day, but she was grateful to be welcomed in by the unit and have open, honest conversations with the team. She said her biggest takeaway from the day was the importance of taking time to listen to the experiences of nurses and understand their needs.
Pena said she felt this event was important to connect nurses with leadership and non-nursing team members to have their voices heard.
“This was so important to have, because as a nursing staff we go through a lot with patients, doctors, family members and everyone. We never really know if anyone is going to hear our concerns,” Pena said. “I know Dr. Waldrum has been an intensivist before, he knows what happens in our unit, but just having him there, hearing our concerns, seeing our patients, asking questions, it really gives us a sense that we’re being listened to and that we matter. I think that’s very important for our nurses.”
Overall, the event served as the perfect way to kick off National Nurses Week. Other events focused on celebrating nurses and their contributions to high-quality care unfolded throughout the week, and the Walk-a-Mile experience provided a first-hand understanding of just how powerful nurses are in a patient’s life.
“Today has far exceeded my expectations in terms of turnout and the genuine desire to connect, understand and walk a mile with nursing team members,” Baise said. “I’ve done this in previous roles, and there is more enthusiasm today than I’ve seen before, and I think it speaks to the authentic nature of everyone in this system. I’m so grateful for the nurses and units who hosted everyone today and sharing their work with everyone here.”
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To be a health care provider is to answer a calling. For some, the journey to health care is a straight line; for others, the road is winding. This series features stories from ECU Health team members who took the winding road, but found the destination to be worth the effort.
Dr. Roberto Portela, the chief of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) division of the department of emergency medicine at ECU Health Medical Center and associate professor at East Carolina University in the department of emergency medicine, grew up in Puerto Rico. Originally, he aspired to be a veterinarian. “As a kid, you think about what you’d like to do, and taking care of animal sounded like a good fit for me,” he said. “I love animals.” But when he joined the military in 1994 and received training as a combat medic, he discovered he loved acute care. “Trauma care – those first minutes or hour of patient care – attracted me.”
Dr. Portela said his work in the military was instrumental in not only finding his path to emergency medicine, but also in how he carries himself as a physician. “The military teaches respect, and as a physician, you need to be respectful to your patients and colleagues,” he shared. “Everybody has a mission and a role, and you don’t always know what’s going on in your patient’s world, so just be respectful.”
After his military service, Dr. Portela attended the University of Puerto Rico to receive his MD and specialized in emergency medicine at the University of Puerto Rico Hospital in Carolina. He ended up staying there for nine years teaching residents how to be emergency medicine physicians. “Then in 2013, I moved to the United States and started as a faculty member at ECU,” he said. “The main thing that brought me here was the desire to expand on my specialty in EMS. In Puerto Rico, I worked in my home program as an attending, I worked with the state EMS system as their online medical control, I helped as a medical director and served as a volunteer in our rescue squad in Puerto Rico. Thank God, ECU gave me that opportunity. I came here, and the doors opened for me.”
Those open doors led to the chance to serve as the EMS medical director for Pitt County, the chief of the EMS Division of the Department of Emergency Medicine, the program director for the EMS Fellowship, a member of the state EMS disciplinary committee and the president for the NC Chapter of the National Association of EMS Physicians. “It was incredible for me; because of my being here and the people in leadership who supported me, I’ve had these opportunities,” he said.
Dr. Portela also spoke about his team and the difference they make every day. “I think all emergency medicine physicians are cut from the same cloth, because they could have picked any specialty, but they chose one that provides care 24/7, 365 days a year,” he said. “The dedication they display every day is amazing – they are resilient.”
There’s also a big difference between his work with ECU Health and his work in Puerto Rico – namely, his access to resources and in-house, high-quality care. “I used to work in a small hospital where I had to transfer patients all the time to get better care; what ECU Health can offer as a system of care with a level one trauma center with multiple specialties – there’s not a lot we can’t do here,” he said.
To those considering a career in health care, Dr. Portela said don’t hesitate. “Ignore the static or what you might hear. At the end of the day, you must remember why we do health care – because somebody needs help. It’s that simple.” He also emphasized that there are many roles and opportunities for those considering a health care career. “From our care partners to all our nurses, to our physicians and tech, orderlies and lab technicians, everybody has a role and it’s a system. There are multiple jobs out there and so many opportunities to make a difference – if you’re thinking about it, just jump in.”
Rebecca Zelnar, a staff nurse III in the post anesthesia care unit (PACU), loved being a travel nurse, and after working for a Florida health system for nearly 20 years, she thought she’d never find a staff position that was as fulfilling. That all changed when she came to ECU Health Medical Center, where she now feels at home.
The Gainesville, Florida native knew early on she wanted to be a nurse.
“I was a candy striper, and in high school I knew I wanted to be a nurse; but then things happened in my family to where I couldn’t go to college right out of high school,” she said. “I got a job and got married, had kids. I worked in the legal field. But nursing nagged at me. In my mid-to-late-twenties, I went back to school. I worked a paper route and as a CNA to pay for school, and I graduated top of my class 24 years ago. I just knew that was what I wanted to be. I went right into the ICU and never looked back.”
She worked at the University of Florida Shands Hospital in the trauma unit for 18 years. “I love critical care. I worked in the surgical trauma ICU at UF and loved it. I love that patient population, and I loved being a part of making science at a teaching hospital,” she said.
Then the pandemic happened, and Zelnar said she saw that as an opportunity to make a change. “My husband and I bought a camper and moved into that, with plans to travel at some point, but then the pandemic came and there was an opportunity for nurses to go to New York City and help,” Zelnar explained. “I asked the Lord if that’s what He wanted me to do. Twenty hours later, I was a Covid nurse in New York.”
Her experience in New York was challenging, but her previous experience in critical care and her work in the ICU float pool prepared her for working in different settings. “There was a lot of fear [in New York]; it was terrible times. I saw how weary those nurses were, and I wanted to be a relief to them. It taught me to rely on my skills in the moment.”
After her time in New York, Zelnar traveled to Texas and worked as a travel nurse in El Paso, Corpus Christi, San Antonio and McAllen before coming to ECU Health in 2021. Her daughter lives in Rocky Mount, and Zelnar said it was nice being closer to her. “I worked in central staffing for the ICU, and I thought I’d just continue traveling when my contract was up,” she said. “But as that time approached, I realized I couldn’t bear leaving this family I’d come to know. It brought me to tears to think about leaving.”
Zelnar said she talked with her husband and she prayed about it, and after talking with the manager of patient care services in the PACU, Amy Sawyer, she decided she wanted to stay. “Amy had a PACU position open, and I accepted the job immediately,” Zelnar said.
“Rebecca brought the knowledge she had gained from working in multiple PACUs,” Sawyer said. “Shared knowledge is so valuable because we always aspire to learn and grow in the nursing profession. Rebecca is compassionate and her patient care is extraordinary. She always advocates for the best possible care for her patients, and she’s been an amazing addition to our family.”
Part of what enticed her to stay were the leadership and staff she worked with every day as a traveler. “I liked the overall friendliness of the staff towards travelers; they didn’t treat you differently. I liked how the nurses cared for each other. It’s a big family, and people are caring and compassionate. It made me want to be a part of their team.” That sentiment stuck with Sawyer. “Rebecca had been traveling for a while but missed the sense of belonging somewhere. She felt that she truly belonged here at ECU Health,” she said.
Rebecca also highlighted the skill set of her colleagues. “The talent of nurses in this unit is very high. It’s the best group of nurses I’ve worked with for long time. It’s the best management team I’ve ever worked with, and I love being a part of the PACU and all their initiatives.”
When asked if she’d recommend ECU Health as a permanent home for other travel nurses, she didn’t hesitate to answer. “I would definitely recommend ECU Health,” she said. “I’m actually recruiting my daughter-in-law, who is a nurse, and my son, to move here from Florida so she can work here. There is a lot to offer for nurses – professional councils, Magnet designation – it’s definitely a place to develop professionally.”
Zelnar said she’s settled in and plans to get her perioperative certification and serve on the unit council, something she hasn’t done in a long time due to being a traveler. “It just feels right,” she said. “I want to work at the bedside and take care of patients, and I love going to work. We moved the camper here and plan to eventually buy some land and maybe build a tiny home. I hope to spend many years at ECU Health.”
The ECU Health Foundation recently recognized four team members at ECU Health Medical Center with 2024 Brody Awards, on behalf of the Brody families of Kinston and Greenville.
The Brody Awards, established in 1988, are given to team members who demonstrate unparalleled care, compassion, professionalism and commitment in all they do. The awards honor a registered nurse, an allied health professional, a clinical support team member and an Intensive Care Unit nurse.
The 2024 honorees are: Pam Hall, triage telephone nurse in Medical Oncology; Melinda Edwards, trauma registry supervisor; Kaitlin Lehrke, staff nurse II on the Surgical Intensive Care Unit; and Stacey Greenway, former director of Cardiovascular Disease Management.
Outstanding Nurse of the Year: Pam Hall
Pam Hall started her career as a nurse 42 years ago and joined then-Pitt County Memorial Hospital in 1991. She spent time on a number of units – pediatric intensive care, admissions testing, recovery and pre-operative – as well as the ECU Health SurgiCenter and ECU Health Pain Management before moving to her current role.
Today, as a triage telephone nurse, she connects with patients with cancer who call in for concerns or symptoms they are experiencing.
“Any of the patients that come to the hematology, oncology, surgical oncology clinics, they’re all given our phone numbers to call if they have any kind of problems, concerns, or if they’re having symptoms from chemotherapy, post-operative complications, anything like that, they call us,” Hall said. “Our calls are answered by nurses, and so we try our best to handle things for the nurses in the clinic so they can focus on the patients in clinic and anything that my co-worker and I can do to get an issue addressed or taken care of, we do.”
Whether it’s reaching out to the symptom management team, helping get patients to scheduling for an appointment or answering a quick question for a patient, Hall said she’s grateful to be someone patients and team members can count on when help is needed.
Hall said she enjoyed the interview process involved in the selection of Brody Award winners as it gave her an opportunity to reflect on the work she’s done.
“I’m just so very thankful to the Brody family that they thought I was worthy of this award. The team of people that interviewed me for this asked such thought-provoking questions and then I’m just humbled that they felt like I deserve this award,” Hall said. “I’m a telephone triage nurse and I told them in the interview, ‘I don’t do hands-on patient care anymore, so I really don’t feel like I am deserving of this award.’ I’m trying to look not too far in the distant future of when I retire and this was my transition. It’s been a struggle because I love hands-on patient care so the fact that they chose me was very humbling.”
Clinical Support Staff of the Year: Melinda Edwards
Melinda Edwards started working with trauma registry at then-Pitt County Memorial Hospital through a student job at East Carolina University in 1995 and joined the team full time 26 years ago.
Edwards said it’s been a joy to work in trauma registry over the years, thanks to a strong team and knowing her work makes a difference.
“The team is phenomenal, and I really do like the people I work with. They really have the best interest of the patient at heart. We’re not bedside, but you’ve got to have the data to be able to support any initiative,” Edwards said. “In addition to being a really great group from the surgeons and nurses to my team, it’s knowing that I am making an impact directly on patient care and for the injured patients of eastern North Carolina who come through our doors.”
As a Wayne County native, she said serving the region she has called home all her life is especially meaningful and she’s proud to help patients and families experiencing trauma.
While Edwards said she was humbled by the recognition as a Brody Award winner, she was excited to take the opportunity to highlight the important work her team does each day. The trauma registry team compiles data of all trauma events that require a hospital visit and helps the system make informed decisions on care pathways, prevention, improvements and more. While most would just associate trauma with direct patient care teams, she said the work behind the scenes is vitally important as well.
“There’s a whole other group of team members involved, and that’s trauma registry – they’re the engine to the car,” Edwards said. “I tell my team every opportunity I get, ‘What they do is incredibly important because we can’t move forward without data, we can’t do the research without data. The leadership team recognizes that, it’s about everybody in that division that’s helping move this system forward.”
ICU Nurse of the Year: Kaitlin Lehrke
Kaitlin Lehrke is a staff nurse on the SICU at ECU Health Medical Center and joined the team as a new graduate nurse from East Carolina University’s College of Nursing in June of 2020. She said it was an interesting experience to start her career as a nurse during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the team in trauma has helped her develop as a nurse.
Lehrke said the team is like a family to her, something that started when she first visited the SICU unit as a nursing student during her rotations.
“I remember walking in as a student absolutely terrified but I felt very welcomed by everyone that I met,” she said. “I felt welcomed in a way that was more than just, ‘We want you to be successful because we need you here.’ I felt welcomed because people genuinely wanted me to be successful. Everyone I came into contact with, my manager, coworkers, educators, there was no option but to be successful. I felt that everyone went out of their way to make sure, even as a student, I had the resources to be successful.”
While interviews for Brody Awards are meant to be in person, Lehrke had a virtual interview in October as she was heading to western North Carolina to assist with relief following Hurricane Helene. Originally the plan for her group was to do search and rescue but the area she visited needed more help with getting houses ready to be rebuilt.
“The church we partnered with had us at a house where the foundation had completely failed, so we were trying to get stuff out,” Lehrke said. “I’ve never seen anything like it. It felt like a movie of just like this town had just been ransacked, people were emptying out their houses, there were piles and piles of people’s livelihoods and family heirlooms on the side of the road, waiting to be picked up. It was tough to see.”
Lehrke said she returned to western North Carolina during Pitt County Schools’ spring break to continue supporting rebuilding and recovery efforts.
Allied Health Professional of the Year: Stacey Greenway
Over the years, Stacey Greenway has nominated others for Brody Awards but never considered that she may be nominated or selected for an award herself. She said the team she works alongside of and the progress of patients seen in cardiovascular and pulmonary rehabilitation has guided her work over the years.
“It was very exciting to learn I’d been selected, but it was more humbling than anything else. There are so many people in this health system that dedicate themselves to their work and to their patient care,” Greenway said. “It’s such an honor to be highlighted and I’m just proud of the work we get to do. We all work really hard, but it’s also fun to know you’re supporting patients in your community.”
During the interview process, Greenway said she was grateful for the opportunity to reflect on her time with ECU Health and the team she has supported along the way. Though she has since moved to a new role within the system, she received the award as director of cardiovascular disease management.
Over the last year, she said, cardiac rehab at ECU Health has made great strides to support patients and expand services offered in the region. She said her team examined how they can best educate patients in cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation and how they can best help patients understand the rehabilitation process.
“That project was great and the whole team worked together to make that happen,” Greenway said. “Then we worked together with our partners in ECU Health Physicians to be able to open intensive cardiac rehab in Roanoke Rapids which has been unserved, not underserved, for quite some time in cardiac rehabilitation. It’s nice to be able to have that service there as a part of the trajectory of patient care.”
Congratulations to the 2024 Brody Award winners!
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The 2024 North Carolina Governor’s Volunteer Service Awards winners include two ECU Health Medical Center volunteers, one ECU Health team member and the ECU Health Beaufort Hospital volunteer team. Established in 1979, the award honors the true spirit of volunteerism by recognizing individuals and groups who make a significant contribution to their community through volunteer service. Individuals or groups from the public, nonprofit and private sectors may be nominated for this award.
Mary Hall
Mary Hall is the senior services prevention coordinator at ECU Health, and she has worked for the health system for almost 25 years. “My role at the hospital is in older adult health,” she said. “I do a lot of promotion around prevention, including with our falls prevention coalition, and I emphasize the importance of social and active engagement. This aligns with my volunteer work, too.”
Hall represents ECU Health and Pitt County on several statewide, regional and local councils and taskforces to serve the senior population, and it was her work with the Pitt-Greenville Senior Games that earned her a nomination for and recognition as a North Carolina Governor’s Volunteer Service Award winner.
“I started by volunteering at the spring Senior Games,” Hall said. “Then, I started helping out in the fall at the Senior Games state three-on-three basketball tournament held in Greenville.” Hall said she often serves as a scorekeeper or time clock keeper, but eventually she was named a volunteer coordinator for the event. “I oversee the other volunteers who come to the tournament. I make sure they know where to go and what they’re doing, because these games can be very chaotic.”
Hall said she was inspired to volunteer because it’s a way to promote what she preaches at work. “When you retire, you can’t just sit. You need to do something to keep the mind and body moving. Some of the seniors played sports in high school or college, and they have continued that through their lives, but there is also the silver arts piece, where people do ceramics, painting, poetry or carpentry. Everyone has an opportunity to participate in the Senior Games, even if they aren’t athletic.” As importantly, participants get the chance to meet and make friends with other people their age. “It’s about the fellowship and the fun. That’s important as we age.” Hall also enjoys working with students and younger people. “Many volunteers are students, and it’s fun to see them realize that these older people have a lot of life to live.”
While she’s honored to have won the award, Hall said that’s not why she volunteers. “Volunteering is an obligation we as citizens have to give back to our communities,” she said. “Older adults are my community, and people can get a great sense of satisfaction when they give their time, expertise or even a shoulder to cry on. It builds a sense of purpose.”
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ECU Health nurses from across the system gathered at the Hilton Hotel in Greenville for the 11th Annual ECU Health Nursing Summit where they engaged with esteemed speakers and discussed the future of nursing across eastern North Carolina and beyond.
The summit aimed to address the transformative period nursing is experiencing amid complex challenges. It served as a platform for meaningful discussions on integrating leading-edge technology and innovative practices. Chief Nursing Executive Trish Baise shared that the nursing summit was one way to connect with and empower nursing team members to be a part of designing ECU Health’s future.
“The nursing summit provided a wonderful opportunity for hundreds of our ECU Health nurses from across the region to come together,” said Baise. “We were able to create a national-caliber conference in our own backyard tailored to the mission of our rural health care team. The energy of our nursing team was palpable.”
Keynote speakers included Rich G. Kenny, who explored the future of Generative AI for nurse leaders, and Sen. Gale Adcock, who discussed health care policy and advocacy. Brian Floyd, ECU Health’s chief operating officer, reminded nurses of their mission to improve the health and well-being of eastern North Carolina, highlighting the organization’s unique care for the rural region.
The summit also included breakout sessions that covered topics like well-being, AI in health care, six dimensions for influencing team culture and nursing policy advocacy. Additionally, a panel discussion explored emerging trends in health care.
Keynote speaker, Olivia Lemberger, innovation scientist from the American Nurses Association, highlighted the future of nursing innovation and praised the camaraderie among nurses at the event.
“There is a deep sense of community among the colleagues at ECU Health,” said Lemberger. “There was a positive energy that was palpable. This is something I wish every nurse had.”
Mandi Civils, ICU and Central Staffing Office manager at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital, reflected on the summit’s impact.
“At the heart of health care transformation for ECU Health was the great nursing summit, where dedication met innovation, and passion will fuel progress going forward,” Civils said. “It was my honor to be part of an event that inspired me to believe I can be anything I want to be when I grow up.”