Hospice & Palliative Care CEO on Cleveland County merger, how he's keeping the not-for-profit viable

Media Mention: Charlotte Business Journal - Carolina Hudson - June 21, 2021

Late last year, Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region merged with Hospice Cleveland County. It was another play in the organization's ongoing growth strategy. "The larger the hospice, the more likely it is to remain viable without going for-profit," Brunnick said. The Cleveland County hospice now operates as an affiliated subsidiary and will keep its name.

Brunnick, who became CEO in 2010, recently sat down with the Charlotte Business Journal to discuss post-merger details, the current state of the industry and what he sees for the Charlotte hospice's future.

We define the hospice service in the purest sense of what it’s supposed to be, and we model our delivery of care after that. For us, the reward is providing great care and knowing that we have made a difference in our community, we have made a difference in the care of families and patients, and that Charlotte is a better place because we’re here. That’s what drives us. We’re a strong organization. The community has been very supportive of us, but we don’t make the kind of margins that I think would attract private equity. That’s why we wouldn’t sell to them because what they would do is unbundle what we’ve been doing. They would close our hospice houses. They would curtail services. That’s something we’re just not willing to have happen. - Peter A. Brunnick, President & CEO, Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region

Click here to read the full article from the Charlotte Business Journal.