ECU Health Beaufort Hospital, a campus of ECU Health Medical Center, hosted free community health screenings, produce giveaways and educational information at its first fall harvest event at the new community garden and outdoor classroom on Nov. 18.
The community garden and outdoor classroom, located next to the ECU Health Wellness Center in Washington was made possible — in part — by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the garden was developed by the ECU Health Patient Education team in collaboration with ECU Health Beaufort Hospital. Internal partners include the ECU Health Beaufort Hospital Food & Nutrition Services team, Community Health Improvement team, Volunteer Services, the Wellness Center, and Facilities & Properties.
“It has been wonderful working with such an innovative team,” said Tammy Thompson, director of Experience Engagement, Education and Design at ECU Health. “They have been true partners throughout entire process.”
Sowing the seeds for health and well-being
Over the summer, the garden started to take shape, resulting in 10 raised beds for vegetables, two large metal planters for herbs, fencing, a shed and space for community members to come together and learn outdoors. The hospital planted the first crops in September for the first harvest event.
Pam Shadle, director of Marketing, Community Outreach and Development at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital, said the opportunity to come together as a team and create something that will benefit the community has been a great experience.
“It’s been a labor of love since the creation of the idea,” Shadle said. “So many of our team members from various departments came together to make this happen, so it’s been a great opportunity for our folks to get involved and I really appreciate that.”
Shadle said the community garden and outdoor classroom is an integral addition to their community health improvement plan for Beaufort and Hyde county residents. While they already feel the great impact of existing programs on community health, the garden will help create new opportunities and help improve those established programs, Shadle said.
Beyond the harvest
The ECU Health Food and Nutrition Services team joined the event and shared easy-to-make recipes inspired by the garden’s produce — which includes vegetables and herbs like broccoli, collards, kale, lettuce, rosemary and thyme. Along with the opportunity to take home fresh, free produce, clinical teams were on hand to offer health screenings for community members, and the Wellness Center team shared information about lifestyle medicine and other services to support community wellness.
“It’s just a great complement to include these offerings because what we’re trying to do is not solely about food,” Dr. Thompson said. “We call these living-learning labs because of the interactive engagement to support healthy lifestyles. This is an opportunity for community members to receive a variety of information and resources for better health.”
ECU Health Chief Experience Officer Julie Oehlert, DNP, RN, said the garden is an important step in the community health work in eastern North Carolina.
“We’re so proud of the teams that made this garden a reality,” Dr. Oehlert said. “It’s going to benefit community members, team members and patients in the hospital and I think it’s really special for us to connect with the communities we serve in this way. We’re excited to offer something unique for Washington and Beaufort County and I know we’re going to learn so much from this project.”
Planning your visit
The garden will be open to community members from 9 a.m. to noon each Wednesday and Friday where any produce ready to be harvested will be distributed and other educational materials will be shared.
Greenville, N.C. – Feb. 24, 2022 – Vidant Health is pleased to announce that Christina Bowen, M.D., ABOIM, DipACLM, has been named Vidant’s first Chief Well-being Officer, and will champion well-being efforts through the lens of team member and provider engagement and equity.
“I am excited about this new role and our commitment to our team’s well-being,” said Dr. Julie Oehlert, Vidant Health Chief Experience Officer. “There is nothing more valuable and contributory to our health care outcomes than the wonderful humans that show up every day to deliver health care and caring to the communities we serve.”
As Chief Well-being Officer effective Jan. 1, 2022, Dr. Bowen is responsible for collaborating with the entire organization to develop, guide and implement team member and provider well-being and resilience initiatives founded on evidence-based best practices and organizational data. She also collaborates with Vidant’s wellness teams to introduce and support new programs that positively influence the population health of the communities in which we proudly serve.
“I am proud to be a part of a health care organization that recognizes the importance of the overall team member experience and is committed to optimizing well-being and resilience efforts,” said Dr. Bowen. “I am very grateful to have the opportunity to pursue my passion of integrated medicine while also positively influencing the communities that I love. This is a way for Vidant to come alongside everyone who has provided amazing care to our patients, especially during the pandemic, and make sure our team members are taken care of and their wellness is in the forefront.”
In addition to serving as Chief Well-Being Officer, Dr. Bowen is an integrative medicine physician with ECU Health Physicians and the Medical Director of The Center for Healthy Living at The Outer Banks Hospital. Her previous roles at Vidant include Medical Director of the Office of Experience and Medical Director of Integrative Oncology. Dr. Bowen is board certified in family medicine, hospice and palliative medicine, lifestyle medicine and integrative medicine, and has received numerous honors and awards, including The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health’s North Carolina’s Community Star in 2020.
“The creation of this role brings continued focus to our intention of belonging,” said Mark Dunn, Chief Diversity, Inclusion and Talent Management Officer, Vidant Health. “It is important to be our authentic selves at work and in the communities we live in and serve. Our collective well-being is important not only to our patients, but to our families. This role will help us provide support and development in an area that is needed now more than ever.”
A native of eastern North Carolina, Dr. Bowen graduated from East Carolina University in 2003 with a doctorate in medicine. In 2004, she completed her internship at Duke University Medical Center and completed her residency at Carolinas Medical Center in 2008. In 2016, she completed a fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona under Dr. Andrew Weil — world-renowned leader and pioneer in the field of Integrative Medicine.
After closing in June 2020, we spent several months diligently assessing how to best utilize the building, while also exploring how to improve access to patient services. Balancing both the community’s passion for the Greenville-based Wellness Center, as well as the need to expand patient services, the organization carefully redesigned the Wellness Center’s space and service model that is mission-focused and sustainable.
The Wellness Center in Greenville will re-open later this year as a destination facility for Vidant’s wellness and outpatient rehabilitation services. Additional details about timing, employment opportunities and memberships at the Wellness Center in Greenville will be shared in the coming months.
Fitness Center
Fitness Center offerings will include membership access to exercise equipment, pool and aquatic programs, group exercise classes, personal training and a KidZone. Services like the Café, CrossFit, children’s gym and camps will not be offered in the revised model.
Outpatient Rehabilitation Services
Vidant’s three Greenville-based outpatient rehabilitation clinics will all relocate to new space at the Wellness Center. This centralized location will improve convenience and accessibility for patients as well as team member collaboration. Vidant Outpatient Rehabilitation includes adult, children and aquatic programs; comprehensive speech, physical and occupational therapy; and many specialty services.
Lifestyle Medicine Clinic
The Lifestyle Medicine Clinic currently housed at the Greenville-based Wellness Center will continue to offer patient visits with medical providers for nutrition, weight loss, diabetes, tobacco cessation, exercise as medicine and other lifestyle treatments. The clinic will also provide wellness programs to Vidant team members.
Ahoskie and Washington Wellness Centers
Vidant plans to resume operation of the Wellness Centers in Ahoskie and Washington, which have been closed due to COVID-19. Outpatient rehab and cardiopulmonary rehab services remain open in the Washington Wellness Center. Children’s after school and upcoming summer camps also remain open in the Ahoskie Wellness Center. The timing for opening these facilities, along with the Greenville-based Wellness Center, is dependent on the ongoing impact of the pandemic.
Vidant remains committed to meeting the health care needs of eastern North Carolina and improving the health and well-being of the region.