Join us to hear from Rick Shrum, MBA, MHA, Vice President & Chief Strategy Officer at WakeMed on Behavioral Health.

WakeMed Mental Health and Well-Being

Across the nation and in our community, we are experiencing a mental health crisis of unprecedented proportions – exacerbated by the aftermath of a pandemic, the lack of accessible care, and our region’s soaring population. Before the pandemic, WakeMed and many community providers recognized a need for a coordinated system of care specifically for those suffering from mental health issues and their families. Rick Shrum, WakeMed’s Chief Strategy Officer, led the initiatives and innovations that spurred the creation of the WakeMed Behavioral Health Network and WakeMed’s plan to build a 150-bed Mental Health & Well-Being Hospital in addition to a new acute care hospital that will create a Whole Health Campus in Garner.

More about Rick:

Rick Shrum is a member of WakeMed’s executive leadership team, serving as Chief Strategy Officer. In this role, Rick is responsible for identifying, evaluating, and executing market opportunities and strategic initiatives to help WakeMed achieve its mission and aspirational goals. He also has operational responsibility for the WakeMed Behavioral Health Network, WakeMed Innovations, and Corporate Planning divisions.

During his tenure at WakeMed, Shrum has led efforts to expand and form the WakeMed Behavioral Health Network (WMBHN)– a collaboration to connect the community and better address mental health and substance use issues. He also played a key role in developing WakeMed Innovations and their inaugural pilot project, a collaboration with UPS, FAA, and NCDOT to use drones to transport medical packaging specimens across WakeMed’s market, as well as WakeMed’s new novel Walk-in Primary Care service, MyCare 365, along with many other strategically important innovations.

Rick Shrum has more than 30 years of progressive leadership experience in both acute and behavioral health care. Prior to coming to WakeMed, he was the chief operating officer of Diamond Healthcare Corporation in Richmond, Va. Rick holds master’s degrees in health administration and business administration from Xavier University.

Sponsored by First Bank and Monument Property Group