Joann Anderson, RN, MSN, president and CEO of Southeastern Health in Lumberton, has been awarded the North Carolina Healthcare Association’s (NCHA) highest honor — the 2019 Distinguished Service Award. The award is given each year to an NCHA member executive whose contributions to the healthcare field have had a positive and lasting impact at the local, regional, state or national level.
Anderson received the award July 18 at NCHA’s Summer Membership Meeting in Pinehurst.
“Joann is a strong advocate for improving and protecting access to care,” said NCHA President Steve Lawler. “She is a respected voice in her community and among her peers at the state and national level.”
Her experience and passion for healthcare delivery in a rural setting have contributed to the growth of Southeastern Health to now include 40 primary and specialty care clinics in a four-county area, a freestanding ambulatory surgery center and clinic facility in partnership with local physicians, and the Southeastern Health Mall, offering outpatient and community health services.
She has built strong relationships in the community through collaboration and partnerships with local government, schools, and the Lumbee Tribe to promote and improve health.
Her leadership during Robeson County’s response and rebuilding following Hurricane Matthew in fall of 2016 demonstrated the essential role hospitals play in a disaster and what it means to be prepared to care. Despite a week-long power outage and historic flooding, the hospital remained open and operational, caring for staff and patients.
Always ready to accept new challenges, Anderson established a partnership with Campbell University’s School of Medicine to bring a medical residency program to Southeastern Regional Medical Center and its network of clinics. She has volunteered her time to serve in leadership roles with NCHA and the American Hospital Association. She currently serves with the NC Southeastern Partnership promoting economic development for Robeson County and southeastern North Carolina.
Anderson began her career as a staff nurse in her home state of Kentucky, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing and a master’s degree in nursing administration. Prior to her move to Southeastern Health in 2007, she served as CEO of Pikeville (Ky) Medical Center.
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Watch NCHA’s video about NCHA’s 2019 Distinguished Service Award winner Joann Anderson here: https://youtu.be/GTDRSnqsqqU.
NCHA represents North Carolina’s hospitals, health systems and care providers — teaching, rural, small community, suburban, specialty, and continuing care facilities — providing acute care, outpatient care, ambulatory care, rehabilitative, behavioral, psychiatric and veterans’ services. NCHA’s mission is to improve the health of the communities where we live and work by advocating for sound public policy and collaborative partnerships.
For more information, contact:
Stephanie Strickland, NCHA, 919-677-4241
Amanda Crabtree, Southeastern Health, 910-671-5499
