To the Editor,

Comprised of 95 members in the local Belhaven community, the mission of Pantego Creek LLC is to provide health care for the greater community. The overwhelming majority of our membership fought to ensure Belhaven has quality access to health care through Vidant’s new multispecialty clinic. Leaving our community with no health care was not an option for our organization.

We applaud Vidant’s efforts to ensure quality healthcare is provided in Belhaven and its surrounding communities. Vidant’s new multispecialty clinic is a state-of-the-art, urgent care center operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, bringing lab work, X-ray and ultrasound capabilities to our town at no cost. The same local doctors who we have trusted for years will continue to keep us healthy. It will provide Belhaven with the comprehensive care it needs, while, perhaps most importantly, providing both ambulance and helipad access for emergency transport. This multispecialty facility allows Belhaven to follow suit with other rural communities who are unable to operate a profitable hospital.

Our organization represents many families who have supported a hospital over the years. Belhaven is our home. No one wants a hospital to thrive in our community more than we do. When it was announced the hospital was closing, our group acted immediately to ensure Belhaven had continued access to medical care for the foreseeable future. A vote by our membership (79-23) resulted in the development of the multispecialty clinic, providing our community the certainty of healthcare through Vidant versus the risk of a hospital failing again.

As a nonprofit, none of our members or managers have or will ever profit from membership in Pantego Creek LLC. Our focus, and our legacy of stewardship, is that of providing quality healthcare to the citizens of Belhaven. Our membership no longer owns a hospital; it is simply a building on a piece of land.

During a time of transition, there are many viewpoints that surface. We will continue to provide transparency and accurate information regarding the issues at hand. We look forward to ensuring sustainable healthcare in our community now and into the future.

Sincerely,
Pantego Creek LLC managers

Darren Armstrong
Lynn Ross
Deb Sparrow
Brantley Tillman