New CEO Tim Miller takes helm at Broughton Hospital in Morganton

There’s a new CEO in town, ready to recruit, retain, and improve at Broughton Hospital.

Former Cherry Hospital CEO Tim Miller stepped away from the helm of North Carolina’s eastern psychiatric facility to lead Broughton in Morganton.

Following Vivian Streater’s retirement after 30 years of service, Miller officially took up the mantle on Jan. 1.

According to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) officials, Miller voluntarily applied for the position and is “uniquely equipped to service in the Broughton CEO role.”

He has multiple decades of mental health leadership experience, with nine years in behavioral health hospital administration.

“My experience at Cherry has provided some direct exposure to many of the same operational, workforce, and clinical challenges that Broughton may face,” Miller said. “Leading a large psychiatric facility has reinforced the importance of balancing patient care and quality with fiscal operational responsibility. Lessons I’ve learned there can directly apply to here.”

PATIENT PRIORITIES

From music therapy to art therapy, Miller said the state hospitals offer programs optimized to fit patient needs, laid out like a college course catalog for them to choose from.

“Patients are always centered and first with everybody here,” Miller said. “(The) No. 1 priority is always patient safety, and then, of course, the programming for patients.”

The offerings are consistently reevaluated by hospital staff to ensure they remain beneficial to participants.

“Aside from that, we provide inside stores, online shopping, (a) library, beauty shop — a little community in itself, here, at the hospital,” Miller said.

ON THE TO-DO LIST

One of the largest hurdles state hospitals face is the struggle to fill vacant roles, limiting patient capacity and creating bottlenecks in local emergency rooms.

More than 25% of the jobs at Broughton remain vacant, costing the hospital two possible patient units that could otherwise be in operation, according to NCDHHS data.

NCDHHS officials pointed to recruitment as one of their largest obstacles, which traces back to local private hospital competition.

Among the long list of items Miller plans to tackle, he said that recruitment and retention were among the biggest priorities. According to Miller, the hospital will explore a few new avenues.

“One of the things that we’re working on as a pilot here at Broughton, along with (J. Iverson Riddle Developmental Center), is an apprenticeship program and a pre-apprenticeship program, starting in high school,” the new CEO said.

“Also, looking at retention — conduct structured interviews, strengthen frontline support, address burnout proactively, make sure that I’m visible, and communication is flowing between all teams,” he continued.

Along with developing pipelines from local college and university nursing programs to open jobs at the hospital, Miller plans to streamline the hiring process to get people in roles faster.

The main goal in retention, he said, is leadership visibility — making sure executive leadership is accessible and that the staff feels heard.

“When a person is hired, what I like to do is greet the new orientee class,” Miller said. “I talk to them, so they get to know me. (I) meet with them one time during the week. I’ll provide lunch to them and have other leadership there so they can meet them, talk to them, ask questions, (and) feel comfortable. If they see us out and about, they know that they can come talk to us if there’s an issue, or if they have an idea.”

One practice Miller plans to carry over from Cherry is hosting weekly meetings for staff over breakfast or lunch, inviting them to sign up and present ideas or discuss challenges they face.

Miller previously lived in the Hickory area for around 16 years and looks forward to touching base with old friends and making new connections as he settles into his new role.

“I’m very excited to be here,” Miller said, “To continue to lead Broughton forward in the path of excellence and provide good community care to the individuals in this county and surrounding counties.”