Duke Endowment awards $4M to Atrium, funding first rural NC virtual nursing facility
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- Atrium Health received $4M from The Duke Endowment to expand rural care access.
- A $1.45M grant will fund North Carolina's first virtual nursing facility in Albemarle.
- Additional grants support AI translation tools, school health tech, and job training.
The Duke Endowment has awarded more than $4 million to Atrium Health’s charitable foundation for several grants, one of which will establish rural North Carolina’s first virtual nursing facility.
The Charlotte-based hospital system announced Friday that the funding for rural communities represents its largest gift from The Duke Endowment. Atrium’s hospital in Albemarle in Stanly County is receiving the largest of the grants, $1.45 million, according to an Atrium news release. The funds will be used for digital technology to provide care to patients in the first all-wired nursing facility. The project is expected to create 50 jobs.
“Having cameras in every room will enable our bedside nurses to focus on direct patient care while virtual nurses provide continuous monitoring and timely interventions, helping to reduce hospital readmissions and improve outcomes,” said Marietta Abernathy, facility executive for Atrium Health Stanly.
The project will build on the success of the Atrium Health Cabarrus Family Medicine Residency Program, which provides access to maternity and primary care, according to Dr. Erika Steinbacher, designated institutional official of Atrium Health Cabarrus. The program will also be used to recruit, train, and retain physicians.
Supporting physician-patient communication
The Duke Endowment also provided close to $600,000 to help Atrium physicians study the impact of the Dragon Ambient eXperience Copilot. This tool translates conversations into Spanish, and the initiative aims to assess its effectiveness in assisting doctors. The broader objective is to leverage the AI translation tool to improve workflow and interactions between patients and health care providers.
Improving communication and school health access
Atrium is also receiving a $775,000 grant from The Duke Endowment to develop a user-friendly app and web-based platform designed to improve workflow and communication between schools and Atrium Health. Atrium has already established virtual clinics in more than 200 schools across 10 N.C. counties, providing enhanced care access for students.
An additional $755,000 grant will support the Health Sciences Academy at Atrium Health Union. This academy was formed through a partnership between Union County Public Schools and Atrium Health to provide students with hands-on experiences in health sciences. The money will be used to build a headquarters at Atrium Health Union, offering participants learning opportunities and access to a simulation lab. Funds will also go toward apprenticeship positions.
The Duke Endowment and Atrium Health
The Duke Endowment, a private foundation, was founded in 1924 by industrialist and philanthropist James B. Duke with an initial gift of $40 million. He later donated an additional $67 million.
This Charlotte-based endowment is one of the largest private foundations in the U.S., having awarded more than $5 billion in grants since its inception, including over $1.9 billion to Duke University. Over more than three decades, The Duke Endowment has provided more than $50 million in grants to the Atrium Health Foundation.
“We share Atrium Health’s commitment to ensuring access to care in communities where people live and work,” said Lin Hollowell, director of health care at The Duke Endowment, in a news release. “Whether through supporting emerging technologies or enhancing existing programs, together we can make a profound impact on our communities for generations to come.”
Atrium’s charitable foundation, founded in 1959, is one of the largest of its kind in Charlotte. These funds are used to improve educational programs, research and facilities.
Atrium Health is part of Charlotte-based Advocate Health. This hospital system is the third-largest nonprofit health system in the U.S., serving approximately 6 million patients. More than 155,000 employees work across its 68 hospitals and more than 1,000 health care locations.
