Sentara Albemarle Medical Center celebrates 1st year of operation

The new Sentara Albemarle Medical Center (SAMC) marked its first year of operation on August 7 with a celebration for employees, who continue more than a century of service in northeast North Carolina in the third facility to carry the name.

Located in Elizabeth City, SAMC is a 90-bed, full-service hospital serving northeastern North Carolina with approximately 750 employees and 450 medical providers across more than 25 specialties, including emergency, maternity, orthopedics, and surgical care, as well as outpatient laboratory, imaging, and comprehensive breast services.

The story of the hospital’s first year can be told partly by the numbers, including 25 new physicians and other providers who have made SAMC their home and are helping to make it a growing regional destination for healthcare.

"I've had the opportunity to open two new hospitals in North Carolina," said SAMC President Teresa Watson in remarks to the team. "I've never seen a community or a team embrace a new hospital like Sentara Albemarle Medical Center. The joy and pride you all take in this hospital is remarkable."

Watson oversaw a memorable employee celebration to mark the hospital's first year. Hundreds of colleagues gathered on the hospital's back lawn on the hot August morning to form a big number "1," which was photographed by a drone. The team then sang "Happy Birthday dear SAMC" for a video before heading to the cafeteria to dedicate a wall hanging created from blue and green sea glass that employees signed before closing the old hospital last year. The sculpture depicts a stylized sailboat on blue and green waves and includes a quote from President John F. Kennedy that "a rising tide lifts all boats."

Patient data through June of this year reflect the community’s embrace of the new hospital:

• Emergency visits: 41,743
• Babies delivered: 379
• Surgeries: 4,675
• CT scans: 18,676
• MRI scans: 6,923
• Cardiac catheterizations: 89

Among other accomplishments in its first year, SAMC earned its first "Magnet with Distinction" designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center — along with 14 ‘Exemplars’ recognizing areas of exceptional clinical performance. Magnet with Distinction is the most prestigious recognition a healthcare organization can receive for nursing excellence and quality patient outcomes, held by only 10% of U.S. hospitals. Of 158 hospitals in North Carolina, SAMC is just the 12th to earn Magnet recognition.

"Magnet with Distinction means a lot to our community," said Melissa Grootendorst, R.N., chief nursing officer, when the hospital received the recognition. "Our nurses are happier, our patients are safer, and our outcomes are better."

Other notable recognitions during SAMC’s first year include a ‘bronze’ designation for Respectful Maternity Care from the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN). Sentara is the first health system to receive this recognition, which includes all ten Sentara Family Maternity Centers.

SAMC also received a Gold Plus award for stroke care from the American Heart Association, a platinum award for heart attack care from the American College of Cardiology, and a top grade for social responsibility from the Lown Institute, a healthcare think tank which advocates for a just and caring system for health.

"This is a body of work you can all be proud of," Watson said to hospital staff. "This is just the beginning for our hospital, and our amazing team.”