On May 15, 2014, the Triangle/Eastern chapter of the British-American Business Council of North Carolina (BABCNC) hosted a Healthcare/Biomedical Forum at the East Carolina Heart Institute in Greenville, NC. Co-sponsors included NC East Alliance, NC Biotechnology Center (Eastern Office), East Carolina University, Pitt County Development Commission, and the City of Greenville. The speakers were impressive enough but the presentations themselves and the information behind them were truly remarkable.
The first speaker was Dr. Randolph Chitwood, Director of the East Carolina Heart Institute (ECHI). He is the first cardiothoracic surgeon to perform robotic heart valve surgery, and he has now done over 3,000 mitral valve surgeries. As a pioneer of robotic surgery, he has trained over 350 physicians all over the world. He gave an overview of the work and research being done at ECHI.
Dr. Wiley Nifong is also a pioneer of robotic surgery and has worked with Dr. Chitwood on the clinical trials for all models of the da Vinci robotics system. He discussed how the Minimally Invasive and Robotic Training Center at East Carolina University (ECU) has trained over 1,400 physicians and medical staff from all over the world on robotics surgery. Physicians and staff come to Greenville for a few days of training, return home to perform a few cases in their own hospitals, and then return to Greenville for a few days of advanced training.
Dr. Ron Mitchelson’s presentation was a series of PowerPoint slides where each one packed a “bang” describing the research and work that is being done at ECU. With every slide, my jaw dropped more and more to see the exciting things that are being done. From Telemedicine to multiple projects for the Military to Coastal Studies to new degrees in Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology, the list goes on and on and on as to what ECU is doing. Truly phenomenal. As the new interim provost to ECU, it will be exciting to see what’s next for him and for the university.
Dr. Darrell Neufer also described the exciting research and projects performed at the ECU Diabetes and Obesity Institute. A new 37,000 square-foot research facility has just opened and attracted exceptional PhD talent. They are studying the triggers that cause obese people to develop diabetes and working to reduce childhood obesity. The Human Performance Lab is bringing together all groups whose research and work touch on metabolic issues so that the collaborations can bring solutions faster. He’s also working on developing a new business model for contracted research to be performed at ECU.
John Chaffee from the NC East Alliance discussed the wide variety of industries in eastern North Carolina. Who knew that eastern North Carolina had a large workforce in Aerospace – specifically 12,000 people? And the Military accounts for over 80,000. He also talked about wages and how wages in the area average $42,000 which is higher than other parts of the state.
Melissa Flanagan from RTI Surgical gave us an example of a biotechnology company that manufactures medical products right there in Greenville, NC. She discussed the history of the company that started in Greenville (Pioneer Surgical) and the products that are made.
The Honorable Norris Tolson ended the event as keynote speaker giving lots of interesting statistics on North Carolina as a place of business. For example, there are over 600 biotech/life science companies in the state and for every biotech job, there are at least four other jobs created for support companies. The vaccine for the pandemic flu is made by Medicago from tobacco leaves here in North Carolina. The defense industry is a $38 billion industry in North Carolina, and there are more generals in this state than there are anywhere else in the country (except the Pentagon). The NC Biotechnology Center has provided funding to over 40 small businesses, and with $22 million provided in loans to startups, the return has been $2.7 billion.
The entire event was very inspirational and made me excited about my move to North Carolina!
