New hospital leader for Harnett Healthcare

Cape Fear Valley Health has named Brian Pearce president of Cape Fear Valley Harnett Healthcare, giving a longtime system executive responsibility for its hospitals in Lillington and Dunn. Pearce succeeds Michael Tart, who moved into the role of interim chief operating officer for the broader Cape Fear Valley Health system. The appointment was reported in late May by regional business and healthcare publications. Pearce has worked for Cape Fear Valley since 1998 and most recently served as vice president of operations and development. ### Which facilities will Brian Pearce run? Cape Fear Valley Harnett Healthcare includes Cape Fear Valley Central Harnett Hospital in Lillington and Cape Fear Valley Betsy Johnson Hospital in Dunn, according to Becker’s Hospital Review and local reporting. Those two hospitals anchor the system’s presence in Harnett County and nearby communities. (bizfayetteville.com) Michael Tart had been president of Cape Fear Valley Harnett Healthcare before moving into the system chief operating officer role, Cape Fear Valley Health’s administration page says. That leadership shift opened the Harnett post for Pearce. ### What has Pearce done inside Cape Fear Valley before this move? Brian Pearce has been with Cape Fear Valley Health for about 25 years, according to local reports on his appointment. (beckershospitalreview.com) Cape Fear Valley’s administration page says his prior portfolio included radiology, oncology, laboratory, engineering, construction, support services, security, emergency medical services, safety and patient relations. (capefearvalley.com) Cape Fear Valley said Pearce began working with the system in 1998. That tenure made him one of the more established executives inside the organization before the Harnett promotion. ### What growth projects is Harnett Healthcare already in the middle of? Lillington has already been the site of a major Cape Fear Valley expansion. In October 2024, the system cut the ribbon on the Health Pavilion–Lillington, a three-story, 66,000-square-foot building near Central Harnett Hospital. (newsbreak.com) The facility is anchored by the Cape Fear Valley Cancer Center–Lillington and also houses specialty clinics including heart and vascular, neurology, orthopedics and rheumatology. (capefearvalley.com) Radiation oncology was one of the most concrete additions tied to that project. Cape Fear Valley said in 2024 that Harnett County previously offered cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy, but not radiation treatment locally. Dr. Madhuri Vithala said at the ribbon-cutting that patients had been traveling to Fayetteville for radiation care before the Lillington center opened. (capefearvalley.com) ### How does the new appointment line up with current healthcare needs in Harnett County? Lillington is also preparing for the opening of Cape Fear Valley Dorothea Dix Adolescent Care, a new inpatient behavioral health unit on the Central Harnett Hospital campus. ABC11 reported on June 1 that the facility is expected to open in the coming weeks and is meant to reduce long waits for adolescent psychiatric placement. (capefearvalley.com) The reporting on that project shows the kind of service expansion Pearce will inherit. ABC11 described the unit as a nearly $10 million facility, while HCO News reported that the building has 21 inpatient beds and is designed for patients ages 12 to 17. John Bigger, Cape Fear Valley Health’s corporate director of psychiatric services, said the unit is intended to give families closer access to care and help keep children out of the emergency department while waiting for placement. (abc11.com) ### What does Pearce’s appointment change now? Pearce’s appointment puts an executive with systemwide operational experience in charge of Cape Fear Valley’s Harnett hospitals at a time when the organization is adding services in oncology, specialty care and behavioral health. That description is based on the facilities and service lines already under development or recently opened in Lillington and Dunn. (abc11.com) In the near term, the next public milestone in Harnett County is the opening of Dorothea Dix Adolescent Care in Lillington, which ABC11 reported is expected in the coming weeks. Pearce will take over leadership of the Harnett division as Cape Fear Valley continues operating Betsy Johnson Hospital in Dunn and Central Harnett Hospital in Lillington. (abc11.com) (capefearvalley.com)