A New Era for Carteret County Pediatric Care
Families in Carteret County no longer need to travel far when their newborn or child requires specialized hospital care. Carteret Health Care, in partnership with ECU Health and the James and Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital at ECU Health Medical Center, has launched a groundbreaking collaboration that brings dedicated Newborn and Pediatric Hospitalist services directly to the Morehead City community.
This milestone partnership positions Carteret Health Care as the only hospital outside of the ECU Health system to host ECU Health Newborn and Pediatric Hospitalists on-site, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For a community that has long relied on transfers to larger regional hospitals for specialized pediatric inpatient needs, this development marks a significant turning point in local healthcare access.
What the Partnership Includes
On-Site Specialist Coverage Around the Clock
Under the new arrangement, ECU Health Newborn and Pediatric Hospitalists — including nurse practitioners and physicians — will provide dedicated inpatient care for infants and children admitted to Carteret Health Care. These specialists are available on-site at all times, ensuring that patients receive expert attention from the moment they are admitted.
Newborn Care After Delivery
One of the key benefits of this collaboration is expanded newborn care immediately following delivery. As Dr. Matthew Ledoux, Pediatrician-in-Chief at Maynard Children’s Hospital and Chair of Pediatrics at Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, explained: the program is designed to provide care for newborns after a mother delivers at Carteret Health Care, as well as pediatric care for children who require hospital admission.
Why This Partnership Is a Game-Changer
Keeping Families Close to Home
Before this partnership was established, some pediatric and newborn patients in Carteret County had to be transferred to larger hospitals — most frequently ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville — when their conditions required a higher level of inpatient care. That meant families were separated from their homes, support networks, schools, and communities during some of the most stressful moments of their lives.
Now, more children can receive the expert care they need without leaving the county. The partnership directly reduces the burden of long-distance care on Carteret County families, allowing them to remain connected to their community while their child recovers.
24/7 Access to Expert Pediatric Care
Dr. Clyde Brooks, VP of Medical Affairs and Chief Medical Officer at Carteret Health Care, underscored the importance of round-the-clock specialist access. Having these specialists on-site at all times means that local families have immediate access to high-quality inpatient pediatric care — day or night. For parents already under the emotional strain of a child’s hospitalization, knowing that expert support is available in their own community provides genuine peace of mind.
How Local Pediatricians Benefit
Seamless Division of Care
This model is designed not only to serve patients and families, but also to support the community’s existing pediatric physicians. ECU Health Pediatric Hospitalists will manage inpatient needs, freeing local pediatricians to remain focused on outpatient care and their long-term patient relationships. This seamless coordination ensures continuity of care without placing additional inpatient burdens on the county’s community-based doctors.
Dr. Brooks noted that this structure helps Carteret Health Care’s current pediatricians keep pace with the demands of a growing community — a need that has become increasingly important as Carteret County continues to expand.
Streamlined Transfers to Maynard Children’s Hospital
When Higher-Acuity Care Is Required
While the goal is to treat as many pediatric patients locally as possible, there will always be cases that require the advanced resources of a tertiary care center. In those situations, the partnership ensures that transfers to ECU Health and Maynard Children’s Hospital are streamlined and well-coordinated. Families can expect faster, more efficient access to advanced pediatric services when the situation calls for it, without delays caused by lack of pre-existing coordination between the two systems.
What Families in Carteret County Need to Know
For parents and caregivers in Carteret County, the key takeaways from this partnership are clear. Specialized inpatient pediatric care is now available locally at Carteret Health Care, around the clock. Local pediatricians can continue to provide the outpatient care families rely on. And when children require a higher level of treatment, transfers to Maynard Children’s Hospital are now faster and better coordinated than ever before.
This development places Carteret County among a select group of communities in eastern North Carolina with on-site access to ECU Health’s renowned pediatric expertise — a distinction that will benefit generations of local families.
A Shared Commitment to Eastern North Carolina
Building Healthier Communities Together
Dr. Ledoux of ECU Health and Maynard Children’s Hospital emphasized that the partnership reflects ECU Health’s broader mission to improve health and well-being across eastern North Carolina. That mission extends to supporting other health systems that serve patients across the region, and the collaboration with Carteret Health Care is a direct expression of that commitment.
Both organizations share a vision: ensuring that every child in eastern North Carolina — regardless of where they live — can access the right level of care at the right time, supported by the highest clinical standards. The Carteret Health Care and ECU Health partnership is a powerful step toward making that vision a reality.
