For community health worker supervisor Alicia Smith, ensuring access to preventive care is both a professional passion and a personal mission. It fuels her commitment to helping others in the Wilmington, North Carolina, region get the care they need before small concerns turn into major health battles.
One of Smith’s recent patients, Ed Hutchinson, illustrates just how powerful this support can be.
When Hutchinson learned from his primary care clinician that he was due for his routine colonoscopy to screen for colon cancer, his heart sank. It wasn’t the procedure itself that worried him — it was everything surrounding it. The last time he had one, his mother and brother were still alive, ready to drive him, sit with him and guide him through the instructions.
Now, living alone with no close friends or family nearby, he felt the weight of that absence. He needed someone to drive him to and from the procedure, a requirement for a colonoscopy because of anesthesia, but he had no one to ask.
That’s when Smith stepped in.
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Support every step of the way
Smith visited Hutchinson at home, sitting beside him to read through the colonoscopy preparation materials. She rewrote dates and times in large, easy-to-see print and made sure he understood each step.
Because Hutchinson needed to follow the standard strict low-fiber and liquid diet for five days leading up to the colonoscopy, Smith shopped for everything he needed. She organized the groceries into labeled bags — one for each day — and delivered them to his home. Each morning, she called to remind him which bag to use.
On the morning of the colonoscopy, Smith arranged transportation for Hutchinson through the SafeRide Health program. She met him at the clinic and stayed there the entire time, offering the steady presence he had once relied on from family.
After the procedure, Smith arranged Hutchinson’s ride home and followed him back to ensure he was settled safely and had everything he needed for recovery.
A calling rooted in community
Smith’s passion for community health began long before she joined Novant Health four years ago. She studied communications with a concentration in health at University of North Carolina at Charlotte, always knowing she wanted to work in the healthcare field.
“Being able to help people in the same community I grew up in is rewarding,” she said. “I have also been the patient who didn't feel heard or feel like I had been given the tools to have the best healthcare outcome. I enjoy being able to empower patients and educate them.”
For Hutchinson, the support meant far more than help with logistics. It meant having someone show up — with patience, clarity and compassion — exactly when he needed it most.
Hutchinson is one community member of hundreds Smith and her team of Coastal region community health workers help each year. Their assistance removes major barriers, allowing individuals to receive preventive care and screenings that could ultimately save their lives. And it ensures that every patient, whether surrounded by family or standing on their own, has an advocate in their corner.
