Gentell CEO pitches wound care as a growth strategy for rural hospitals

By AI, Created 11:31 AM UTC, May 20, 2026, /AGP/ – Gentell CEO David Navazio is urging rural and small hospitals to treat wound care as a core business line, arguing that a structured program can improve patient care, strengthen branding and support financial stability. The proposal comes as many rural hospitals face closures, service cuts and mounting financial risk.

Why it matters: - Rural and small hospitals are under pressure nationwide, with nearly 200 rural hospitals closing or discontinuing inpatient services over the last two decades and more than 400 facing significant financial risk. - Nearly one in five Americans lives in rural areas, so hospital instability affects access to care far beyond isolated communities. - A wound care strategy is being pitched as a low-cost way to improve patient outcomes while also creating a stronger brand and new revenue opportunities.

What happened: - Gentell CEO David Navazio outlined six steps for rural and small hospitals to use wound care as a patient-care and financial advantage. - Navazio framed wound care as a service line that hospitals already provide but rarely promote as a leadership strength. - The proposal was presented as a practical solution for America’s rural and small hospitals.

The details: - The first step is to create a Wound Care Culture™ that puts wound care above basic bandaging and makes the whole staff part of the effort. - That culture is meant to focus on healing, patient comfort and better institutional results, with outcomes recorded over time and incentives tied to performance. - The second step is to make wound care training a priority through continuous learning and development for all staff who care for patients. - Some vendors offer free accredited refresher training, materials and instructors, which can make updated training easier to access. - The third step is to quantify performance with a computerized tracking program such as Gentell® FastcareTM to document individual and facility wound outcomes. - The fourth step is to brand the program as a marketing advantage by naming it, tying it to the hospital brand and featuring it in presentations, websites, publicity, social media and advertising. - The fifth step is to review vendors and align with suppliers that support service quality, delivery speed, small-order processing and training. - The sixth step is to use wound care as a gateway to more patient visits, broader care offerings and fundraising that can stabilize hospital finances. - Navazio said the strategy can be implemented with relatively small investment, limited additional training and a short timeline.

Between the lines: - The pitch is not just about wound care quality. It is also about turning a clinical capability into a visible competitive differentiator. - For smaller hospitals that cannot outspend larger systems, the argument is that a specialty focus can help them stand out in their own communities and nearby markets. - The marketing emphasis suggests Gentell sees clinical process improvement and business development as linked, not separate.

What’s next: - Navazio says hospitals that adopt a Wound Care Culture™ could build stronger patient loyalty, improve staff engagement and deepen community ties. - Gentell is positioning its products and software tools as part of that transition, including wound care databases and logistics systems. - Rural and small hospitals weighing service-line investments may look at whether wound care can produce measurable financial and branding returns quickly enough to matter.