Novant Health on Wednesday released results of a survey it commissioned to ask residents what they thought about the potential deal with NHRMC.
 
In the survey, which SurveyUSA conducted earlier this month on Novant’s behalf, 67% of the respondents said they thought that NHRMC partnering with Novant Health and UNC School of Medicine would positively impact the community. Another 18% answered “neutral” about the impact, and 12% thought it would be negative. The rest reported being unsure.

Novant officials said that SurveyUSA drafted the initial questionnaire, which Novant reviewed and provided feedback.

One thousand adults from New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, Bladen and Columbus counties answered the 16-question survey.
 
Winston-Salem-based Novant Health has been negotiating with NHRMC and New Hanover County on a $1.5 billion purchase of the county-owned hospital. On Friday, county and hospital officials released documents about the agreement that hospital trustees and county commissioners are expected to vote on next month.
 
In other questions on the community sentiment survey, 74% of area respondents said they have a favorable opinion of NHRMC. It also showed that 47% have a favorable opinion of Novant Health, though 33% said they were neutral and another 12% said they were not familiar with Novant.
 
UNC School of Medicine, which already has a presence at NHRMC, showed a favorable response among 69% of the survey takers.
 
The survey showed there is a high level of interaction among residents in the region with NHRMC, which is not surprising since the health system holds the largest patient share. Seventy-five percent of respondents said they have been a patient at NHRMC or have a household member who has been a patient.

One in 10 reported that either they or a household member works for NHRMC.
 
Respondents said the most important areas that influence their views on the potential partnership were health care quality, health equity, innovative and cutting-edge treatment and health care cost.
 
More information about the survey and other responses can be found here.

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that the survey did not use the word "sale," but a question does mention that county commissioners will vote whether to approve the sale.