Building a meaningful healthcare career while raising a family can feel out of reach in many places. For Kaitlan Money, the Carolina Core offered the rare chance to do both.
Kaitlan Money is a certified nurse midwife with Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, part of Advocate Health, where she works within the region’s growing maternal health system. She lives just outside Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and serves patients across the greater Carolina Core.
Known for her dedication to patient-centered care and her commitment to expanding birth options within the medical system, Kaitlan represents a new generation of healthcare professionals shaping how care is delivered in the region. Her journey reflects how the Carolina Core supports both professional growth and quality of life for healthcare workers.
Relocation for Community & Opportunity
Kaitlan was born and raised in Amelia Island, Florida, where her early career path looked very different from where she is today. As she and her husband began growing their family, they reached a point where change felt necessary. Family ties in North Carolina and new career opportunities made the move a natural next step.
Relocating to the Carolina Core allowed both Kaitlan and her husband to reimagine their professional futures.
“We came here and there were a lot of good opportunities for education for us to change our career paths.”
The region provided access to education, career mobility and community support during a pivotal season of life. What began as a practical move soon became the “perfect fit” thanks to their improved quality of life and career opportunities.
A Career Rooted in Calling
Healthcare always felt like a calling for Kaitlan. Her interest in birth work began early, shaped by personal experiences that stayed with her over time.
“I attended my sibling’s birth and that kind of lit the spark. And since then, it’s been a weaving web of different paths that have always led me back here.”
After moving to North Carolina, she pursued nursing education locally, earning her Bachelor of Science in Nursing before completing her midwifery training through a distance learning program, and Atrium Health made it possible for her to work full time while advancing her career and raising a growing family. The support she received from colleagues and leadership helped remove barriers that often make career advancement in healthcare difficult, especially for working mothers.
After graduating, she soon discovered that the Carolina Core offers something that is increasingly rare. It provides access to advanced medical systems, multiple educational institutions and professional opportunities while still being able to have a short commute and the time to live your life.
Life in the Carolina Core
Outside of work, she and her family are deeply connected to the land and outdoor spaces around the Carolina Core.
Living on a small hobby farm, they spend much of their time hiking, fishing, foraging and exploring parks throughout the region. Places like Stone Mountain State Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway offer easy access to nature while remaining close to healthcare facilities, cultural amenities and educational resources.
“You get to be in both scenes at once. You have access to all of the things that a city could want, and at the same time can have the outdoor space.”
The region’s mix of rural living and urban access has made it an ideal place for her family.
Advice and Insights for Future Core Healthcare Workers
Kaitlan believes it is necessary for healthcare professionals to understand their own values before stepping into demanding roles. In her experience, maternal healthcare requires a strong personal foundation, especially when the emotional, mental and physical demands of the work are high.
Kaitlan encourages healthcare professionals looking for a place to grow professionally while maintaining the philosophies that drew them to the field, to consider the Carolina Core. Kaitlan appreciates that working at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist allows her to practice within a large medical system without losing sight of patient-centered care, and she is sure other healthcare professionals will experience this as well.
Kaitlan also believes the Carolina Core is a region that supports long-term sustainability, not just career advancement. Access to strong medical systems, collaboration among institutions and ongoing education has allowed her to continue developing in her role. At the same time, the lifestyle offered by the region makes it easier to maintain balance and avoid burnout.
These experiences are what make her love working in the Carolina Core as a Nurse Midwife, and she is confident other healthcare professionals will find meaningful experiences of their own.
Learn more about what makes the Carolina Core the best place to live and work as a healthcare professional.