Pinehurst is famous for golf. Like, really famous. But if you actually live in the Sandhills or you're visiting for a tournament and something goes sideways with your health, you aren't looking for a fairway. You're looking for FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital. It’s the kind of place that looms large over Moore County, not just because of the physical size of the campus on Memorial Drive, but because it’s basically the gravitational center for specialized medical care in this part of North Carolina.
Honest talk? Walking into a massive hospital is usually a nightmare. Moore Regional is big. It’s got nearly 400 beds and feels like a maze if you enter through the wrong door. But there’s a reason people drive from Montgomery, Richmond, and Lee counties to get here instead of staying local. It’s one of those rare "regional" hospitals that actually behaves like a major academic medical center. They’ve consistently pulled in Five-Star ratings from CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services), which isn't just a Participation Trophy. It means their mortality rates and safety scores are legitimately better than the national average.
Why Moore Regional isn't your average small-town hospital
Most people expect a rural-adjacent hospital to be a "stabilize and ship" facility. You know the type. They patch you up and fly you to Duke or UNC. Moore Regional flipped that script decades ago.
They’ve leaned hard into specialty care. Take the Reid Heart Center. It’s this massive, sleek building attached to the main complex that looks more like a tech headquarters than a place for bypass surgery. But inside, they’re doing high-volume cardiac work that rivals the big university systems in the Research Triangle. We’re talking TAVR procedures (Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement), advanced electrophysiology, and robotic-assisted surgeries. If you’re having a cardiac event in Southern Pines, you aren't being sent away; you're being sent here.
👉 See also: My eye keeps twitching for days: When to ignore it and when to actually worry
And then there's the neurosurgery wing. It’s a bit of a local secret how robust their brain and spine program is. They’ve recruited heavily from top-tier programs, and they have the hardware—like the O-arm surgical imaging system—that allows for ridiculous precision during spinal fusions. It’s heavy-duty medicine in a town better known for its rocking chairs and longleaf pines.
The Emergency Room reality check
Let’s be real for a second. The ER at Moore Regional is busy. Really busy.
If you show up on a Tuesday night with a broken toe, you’re going to wait. That’s just the math of a Level III Trauma Center that serves a multi-county radius. They triage based on severity, obviously. If a trauma case comes in from a wreck on US-1, they get the bay. You get the waiting room chair.
✨ Don't miss: Ingestion of hydrogen peroxide: Why a common household hack is actually dangerous
One thing that helps? FirstHealth has been aggressive about building "Convenient Care" clinics all over Pinehurst, Southern Pines, and Whispering Pines. If you don't have a literal life-or-death emergency, those clinics are almost always a faster bet. But for the big stuff—strokes, chest pain, major orthopedic injuries—the Moore Regional ER is the only place in the area with the 24/7 imaging and specialist backup to handle it.
Navigating the campus without losing your mind
If you have an appointment, give yourself twenty minutes just for the parking and the walking. The campus is sprawling.
- The Main Entrance is usually for general admissions and visiting patients.
- The Reid Heart Center has its own dedicated entrance and valet. Use it. It saves you a half-mile trek through the hallways.
- The Outpatient Suites are scattered. Check your paperwork twice. If it says "Physician's Office Center," that's a separate building near the main hospital but not in it.
The "Pinehurst" factor in patient care
There is a specific vibe to Moore Regional that you don't get in Charlotte or Raleigh. It feels... polite? That might sound weird for a hospital, but the "Sandhills hospitality" is baked into the staff. A lot of the nurses and techs have been there for twenty or thirty years. There’s a level of institutional memory that keeps the place from feeling like a cold, corporate machine.
🔗 Read more: Why the EMS 20/20 Podcast is the Best Training You’re Not Getting in School
They also have a weirdly good cafeteria. No, seriously. People who aren't even sick sometimes stop in for the food. It’s a small thing, but when you’re stuck in a hospital for three days with a family member, having edible coffee and a decent meal matters more than you’d think.
What they get right (and where it's tough)
Their oncology department, through the FirstHealth Cancer Center, is another heavy hitter. They recently opened a massive new comprehensive center that brings everything—radiation, chemo, support services—under one roof. It’s about 120,000 square feet of "we’re taking this seriously." They partner with Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center (UNC), so you’re getting the research-grade protocols without the two-hour drive to Chapel Hill.
Where's the friction? Integration. Like any massive system, sometimes the left hand doesn't talk to the right hand as fast as patients want. If you’re seeing a specialist in the hospital and your primary care is outside the FirstHealth network, you have to be your own advocate. You’ve got to push for those records to move. Don't assume the computers "talk" perfectly—they often don't.
Practical steps for your visit
If you’re headed to Moore Regional, don't just wing it.
- Download the MyChart app. FirstHealth uses the Epic records system. If you have your labs and doctor messages on your phone, your life becomes 100% easier.
- Check the Valet status. If you’re heading to the Heart Center or the main surgical areas, the valet is often free or very low cost. It beats hunting for a spot in the deck when you’re stressed.
- Ask for a Navigator. Especially in the Cancer Center. They have dedicated people whose whole job is to help you coordinate appointments. Use them. They are the "cheat code" to the system.
- The Quiet Hours. They take "Quiet Hospitals, Help Healing" seriously. Usually, between 8:00 PM and 6:00 AM, the lights dim and noise is strictly controlled. If you're a visitor, plan to be out by then.
FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital isn't perfect—no hospital is—but for a "community" facility, it punches way above its weight class. It’s the backbone of the region's infrastructure. Whether it’s a planned knee replacement or a middle-of-the-night scare, it’s the place you’ll likely end up. Knowing the layout and the specialty strengths ahead of time just makes the whole ordeal a lot less intimidating.