Foundation taps new leader

January 27, 2011

Foundation taps new leader

The Johnston Health Foundation has a new board chair.
Lucy Coats, the director of anesthesiology at Johnston Medical Centers in Smithfield and Clayton, has been a member of the foundation since 1993 and has served as treasurer for the last six years.
She succeeds Jim Jenkins of Four Oaks, who is still a member of the foundation board but is also now serving on the hospital’s Board of Commissioners. During his tenure, the foundation led a successful campaign to raise $4.5 million to build the SECU Hospice House.

"I’m so excited that Lucy is the new chair. She knows the medical community and has worked with countless families, patients and staff," Jenkins says.
Coats grew up on a tobacco farm outside Nelson, Va. She came to work at Johnston Medical Center-Smithfield in 1973 as a certified nurse anesthetist and then became director in 1976. Earlier in her career, she was a nurse anesthetist at Duke Medical Center.
Coats earned her degrees in nursing and anesthesiology from Watts School, which is part of the Duke University Health System.

Coats says she is passionate about her work with the foundation. "It’s my way of giving back to a wonderful place that has helped so many people," she says. "Through the foundation, I’ve made many friends who have helped us raise money and awareness about the value of our health care system and the work we do."

About Johnston Health:
Johnston Health is the county’s health care system. It includes Johnston Medical Center-Smithfield, a 179-bed acute care hospital, and Johnston Medical Center-Clayton, an outpatient campus that includes a freestanding emergency department, same-day surgery and diagnostic imaging departments. Johnston Health also has a primary care practice in Clayton and an urgent care in Smithfield.