James March-April 2024 online - Flipbook - Page 44
Also, there will be the acquisition
of Brighton Gardens of Buckhead from
Sunrise Senior Living. It will become the
flagship of their assisted living locations
in Atlanta. “I would say PruittHealth is on
the rise. The future looks good,” said Pruitt.
“Things were humming pre-Covid. But we
went from an 89 percent occupancy rate to
a low of 67 percent during COVID. We are
now around 80 percent again.
“But the limiting factor for us is staffing
needs.” Pruitt continues. “That has been
a focus for us, and we have made a lot of
progress. We have experienced a 120 percent increase in hires.”
NEI L PRUI TT, JR. AT TH E OPENI NG OF PRUI TTPLACE I N BUCKH EAD.
B RA N D IN G & M AR K ET IN G
According to Pruitt, they have spent a lot of time
on branding and marketing. “We are extremely proud
of what we do and we have been getting the word out.
We have also automated a lot with technology using
AI to communicate with applicants while recruiting
for positions. There are currently 40,000 open positions
in healthcare, and that number is expected to grow to
100,000 by 2030. We have been confronting this head
on, and we expect the situation to improve. We have
recruited 1,000 nurses from overseas, and we continue
to address this issue. Hopefully, we will have the continued support of the Governor and lawmakers as we
move forward.”
Pruitt says the COVID-19 era changed the way
the organization did business— especially concerning
transparency. “Prior to the pandemic, we took a handsoff approach with the media and governmental affairs.
But with the pandemic, we had a transformation within
our organization. We were the first company in the
nation to publish our statistics online and we took every
media inquiry to discuss response. We also developed
MyPruittHealth that allows us to give out real time
information to families, staff and stakeholders.”
E XPE R IE N CE & E XPE RT ISE
The PruittHealth CEO, who graduated with a
Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of
the South and was awarded both a Master of Business
Administration and a Master of Health Administration from Georgia State University, brings a wealth of
credentials to the healthcare table. He is a past chair of
the Board of Governors for the American Health Care
Association, which represents nearly 12,000 non-profit,
proprietary and government health facilities. As shown
by his February 2013 Congressional appointment to the
Commission for Long Term Care, Pruitt has become a
recognized leader in the health care profession.
Pruitt serves or has previously served in numerous
prestigious positions, including 2023 chairman of the
Georgia Chamber of Commerce, past chairman of the
Board of Regents for the University System of Georgia,
Board of Directors, Augusta University Health System,
Chairman, University System of Georgia Foundation
and so many other leadership roles. An active member
of Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Neil and
his wife, Mebane, have three children.
Cindy Morley is a staff writer for James and James Magazine Online.
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M ARCH/ A PR I L 2024
