WVU Medicine PCH is now official

Jan. 28—PRINCETON — Princeton Community Hospital is now officially part of WVU Medicine.

"Today is the culmination of a two-year effort to become a full member of the WVU Medicine health system," said PCH President and CEO Karen Bowling during a ribbon-cutting and flag-raising program on Friday.

The PCH Board of Trustees' vision has "become a reality today," she added.

Bowling said the City of Princeton was also an integral part of the process and helped to make it happen.

The hospital is now WVU Medicine PCH, and Bowling said the hospital can take all of the great things already being done there and "take it up a notch and focus on what we can do better."

The system, which includes 22 hospitals, can help the hospital do that with many added services and resources, such as telemedicine, that will provide needed health care close to home, she said.

"It is an exciting time to be here at Princeton Community Hospital," Bowling said.

Rusty Sarver, WVU Medicine PCH Board of Trustees President, said the process to reach this point took a lot of "late nights, phone calls and strategizing, but we pulled through."

"I couldn't be more excited for the future," he said. "This is the start line, starting something great. I can't wait to see what it does for our community and for the people that I love."

Albert L. Wright Jr., President and CEO of WVU Health System, said the gathering in a large tent in the WVU Medicine PCH parking lot looked like a "Mountaineer tailgate" party, with blue and gold everywhere.

"I am excited to be here," he said, adding that his involvement started on Labor Day weekend in 2020 with a conference call from Sarver and other board members telling him about Princeton.

"At that point, I had not thought about this far south in the state," he said. "But ... our job is to improve the health trajectory in West Virginia."

Wright said a few weeks later he and a team visited and toured the hospital.

"I fell in love," he said. "I could see we had all of the ingredients to bake a beautiful cake here and bring Princeton and Bluefield into the WVU family."

Wright praised Bowling as a "superstar" who "loves Southern West Virginia," and often says, "Albert, these are my people."

Bowling, a Bluefield State University graduate and Mullens native, took over the reins of the hospital in June 2021.

"We are going to do really great things here," Wright said, adding that in the last 10 years the academic and medical capabilities in Morgantown have been built up.

"Simultaneously, we have built out a network of completely interoperable hospitals with electronic medical records," he said. "Wherever you go in our health care system ..." patients' medical records follow them.

That helps bring lower costs and more effective care, he said.

"Thank you for allowing us to be here today," Wright said. "Thank you for helping us meet our vision to improve the health trajectory in West Virginia."

WVU President Dr. E. Gordon Gee was also on hand for the ceremony.

"I am so thrilled to be here," he said. "This university ... belongs to 1.8 million West Virginians."

Gee said the university has the responsibility to provide three things: great "Pre-K through life" educational opportunities, health care and prosperity.

"The state is our campus, and nothing is more important than health care," he said. "It's not simply about having hospitals ... But it's about providing hope and opportunity for everybody in West Virginia."

Gee said that "no child should ever leave West Virginia to get great health care," referring to the new WVU Medicine Children's Hospital.

"We now have a world class medical center (in Morgantown)," he said. "You now have a world class hospital in Princeton, West Virginia."

Mike Webb, WVU Medicine PCH board member and Princeton City Manager, said it is a great step forward for everyone.

"As far as WVU and Princeton coming together, this enhances health care really not only Princeton but in the region ... We are extremely proud of that and looking forward to it," he said.

Bowling also recognized three long-term employees at WVU Medicine PCH as well as three long-term doctors.

The employees are Madelene "Madge" Howard, Sandy Hager and Leona Hendricks.

The doctors are Dr. Generoso Duremdes, Dr. Gopal Pardasani and Dr. Gordon Prescott.

After the program, singer/musician James Hart provided entertainment and everyone joined Hart in singing "Take Me Home, Country Roads."

Dignitaries then went outside for a ribbon-cutting and raising of the WVU Medicine PCH flag in front of the hospital.

In 2019, PCH acquired Bluefield Regional Medical Center after that former for-profit hospital had been struggling financially for years.

But after the pandemic hit, in-patient services were closed at BRMC along with many departments in the summer of 2020.

However, the emergency department remains and is now part of WVU Medicine as well.

— Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com

Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com