The Cape Fear Valley Bladen Hospital employee who exemplifies process improvement

ELIZABETHTOWN - “Keeping health care local has been a priority since Cape Fear Valley Health and Bladen County Hospital joined forces in 2012,” Charles Ray Peterson, chair and Bladen County Hospital advisory member posted in a recent Cape Fear Valley Bladen Hospital packet. “Bladen County sought a partner to keep health care local and Cape Fear Valley Health knew it was important for our community to have a place close by when care is needed. The goal has always been to keep health care here. Over the past 12 years, we expanded our services, opened additional clinics, and upgraded equipment to ensure that Bladen County residents do not have to travel far to receive the care they need. As our community continues to grow, so does the need for increasing access to health care. Bladen County Hospital Foundation is on a mission to continue making a lasting impact in Bladen County. As we look to the future, we invite you to grow and blossom with us. We remain committed to our promise of keeping health care local and we look forward to expanding our footprint for generations to come, to make sure that our community has the resources they need when it matters most. The Blossoming the Image in Bladen County campaign is our opportunity to continue investing in our health care, so we are able to care for our growing community. Our next step is to construct a new medical office building as a part of the Bladen’s Bloomin’ project with ExpressCare and Primary Care, including Ultrasound and X-ray Machines. We will also be adding a new MRI facility (behind Bladen County Hospital), which will accommodate more patients. With these new facilities and technologies, our patients can receive needed care, close to home. This is your opportunity to make a difference in our community. Join us as we look forward to the future of health care in Bladen County.”

“So, what’s on the horizon for us,” CFVBCH CEO Spencer Cummings said. “We are looking to bring a fixed MRI here to Elizabethtown. We are in meetings currently to develop a timeline to get that up and running. We are trying to get a date of Jan. 1 to get the first patient in there. We have a mobile truck that comes here twice a week. Once we get the building ready, there will be about 850 people that don’t have to travel so far for that service.”

The logistics of what was described was well thought-out and logistically, the local health care system under the direction of Cummings and the supporting foundation is sound.

“Health concerns can be addressed more quickly and healing treatment can begin as soon as the problem has been identified,” they published. “Access to this level of care will improve health care outcomes and the patient experience. We also strive to make this facility, as well as the upcoming MRI site as comfortable as possible and to make patients at ease, by providing adequate and comfortable seating for everyone in the waiting areas and the exam rooms. A new Ultrasound Machine will be used for a variety of reasons such as monitoring pregnant mothers, examining breast lumps, checking thyroid glands, evaluating blood flow and can be used for screening exams such as carotid ultrasounds and aorta screenings. The X-ray Machine will assist with identifying fractures, revealing bone tumors, finding bone infections and much more. A new MRI Machine on the campus of Bladen County Hospital will accommodate more patients, have longer operating hours and use the latest advancements in technology than the current arrangement. The building will have a generator, which is especially important for bad weather conditions, patient safety and preservation of vaccinations.”

“With a fixed MRI we take back 50% of our market from Southeastern Regional, Columbus Regional, Sampson Regional and 20% from New Hanover Regional while adding a much-needed service to our community,” Cummings said.

The new fixed MRI service will be located at the site of the former Phillips Internal Medicine Practice that is currently rented for $21K per year. It is the only place adjacent to the hospital to expand services. This building was purchased in December 2023.

The vision for patients and families in Bladen County needing access to care in their own backyard, was unveiled in the information about a new 8,500 square foot Medical Office Building (MOB)with an ExpressCare and Primary Care that will provide high-quality health care in the region.

Enter Jonas Woodruff Jr., who has an MBA from Fayetteville State University and possesses a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt (LSSGB) which is a certification that demonstrates a thorough understanding of Lean Six Sigma and its application to process improvement.

Four years ago, the Cape Fear Valley Bladen County Hospital brought Woodruff aboard as Regional Director of Physician Practices and he has been a valuable cog in the wheel of progress at the health center.

“I am heavily involved in the new MOB,” Woodruff said. “I have been working diligently on this project. That’s been a focus of my work. We have X-ray going into that building which will give us more capabilities to see patients right there and diagnose what we see. It’s going to be in the Industrial Park at 1082 Executive Drive.”

Though the building is still in construction, there is no date when the initial staff will go in and begin to set up, but Woodruff is anticipating somewhere between August and the first of next year.

In making the Bladen County Hospital more visible and approachable, there have been many articles written to highlight employees and updates. Woodruff, a humble man would have opted to give information without his photos or his story, but he is an integral part of the excellence that CFVBCH strives to achieve in its hires, its procedures and its future plans. He is just one example of the success stories that surround this medical center.

According to his LinkedIn profile, he is described as “An experienced health care professional with success in leading multidisciplinary teams in various clinical departments. An innovative problem-solver with demonstrated expertise in driving strategic, financial, operational and clinical excellence while efficiently managing stakeholder expectation. Possesses a servant and collaborative leadership style focused on developing employees and fostering an environment of cohesion.”

Just to track him down for an interview was a process as he is always focused and always on the go – dealing with processes, personnel and priorities at CFVBCH not to mention wearing a health worker’s firefighter hat as he puts out many fires and is a problem solver.

Woodruff grew up on the East Coast, and was brought up in a home where his mother was a driver’s ed teacher and his dad was a welder in the shipping industry, employed at the Naval shipyards of Newport News.

He grew up with a love for sports and excelled as a football player. He graduated from high school in 1989 before heading to St. Paul’s College and then into the military. He was with the 82 ^nd Airborne Division for nine years and nine months.

“When I was younger, I always dreamed about jumping out of airplanes,” he said. “So, I joined the Army and enlisted in Virginia. I then went to airborne school and was a medic in the army. I spent most of my career at Fort Bragg.”

A serious back injury caused an exit from the Army and opened a door for a new direction and his path to Bladen began. With his medical background from the Army, he was gathering valuable experience that would not be his job, but would be valuable information for his current position.

As he was making plans to leave the army, he was also making plans to go on to get his MBA for his life after the Army. He had a discipline in medical administration. After a few other medical positions, the opportunity to work in Bladen came up.

“A director job came open here,” he said. “Actually, there were two jobs that came open, and I was happy where I was, but was encouraged by my supervisor to apply for these jobs. After the interview, I was still making up my mind when a dear friend told me that she thought Bladen was where my calling was. They hired me. I had never been to Bladen County, and I’ll say this; what I’ve been told was true. I was told, ‘If you love them, they will love you.’ Now, I’ve had a lot of jobs but one of my goals when I was a young man was to always give back to the community. I chose Cape Fear because this hospital and this community met my overall goals. We have a family environment here that I wouldn’t change for the world.”

Woodruff speaks to the importance in strategic health care.

“It’s in quality care and finances,” he said. “Those two things are paramount, because at critical access hospitals all over the country are closing. And we’re not. And we’re not because of our quality care and we are ensuring that we are financially sound. Those things must be equal. It’s a tough subject to discuss when you talk about community because in most people’s minds, health care should never be about money… and which it shouldn’t. But. Health care has to be about quality care and financial quality care. Without it we could lose our facilities here.”