For people diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the journey can be overwhelming. The progressive neurological disease, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, affects the nerve cells that control voluntary muscle movement, gradually impacting mobility, speech, swallowing and breathing. While there is currently no cure, patients in eastern North Carolina have had access to comprehensive, compassionate care close to home through the Jim “Catfish” Hunter ALS Clinic at ECU Health Medical Center for 18 years.
Established in 2008, the multidisciplinary clinic is the only ALS clinic in eastern North Carolina and serves patients from across the region. The clinic was founded with support from Helen Hunter, wife of eastern North Carolina baseball legend Jim “Catfish” Hunter, a Hertford native whose own experience with ALS inspired efforts to improve access to care for local patients and families.
“For patients living with ALS, traveling becomes very difficult as the disease progresses,” said Dr. Robert Frere, neurologist and medical director of the clinic. “Having a multidisciplinary clinic here in eastern North Carolina allows patients to receive specialized care closer to home and reduces the burden of traveling several hours for appointments.”
Bringing specialists together under one roof
The clinic brings together a team of specialists including physicians, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, respiratory therapists, nutritionists, social workers and ALS United North Carolina. By seeing multiple providers during a single visit, patients can receive coordinated care tailored to their changing needs.
“One of the most important concepts in ALS care is the multidisciplinary clinic model,” Dr. Frere said. “Rather than asking patients to travel to multiple appointments at different locations, we bring the team together in one place to provide comprehensive care.”
ALS affects everyone differently. While the average life expectancy following diagnosis is typically three to five years, some patients live significantly longer. Symptoms often begin with weakness in the arms or legs, though some people first experience changes in speech or swallowing.
Although researchers continue to study the disease, the exact cause of ALS remains unknown. According to Dr. Frere, approximately 10% of cases are linked to inherited genetic mutations, while the remaining 90% of sporadic cases occur without exact know cause.
Helping patients live with ALS
For Blanks Walker, ALS clinic manager and program manager for outpatient rehabilitation services at ECU Health, the work is deeply personal. Walker’s mother passed away from ALS in 1999, giving him firsthand understanding of the challenges families face. In addition to overseeing the clinic, Walker is an occupational therapist who regularly helps ALS patients continue to live joyful, fulfilling lives.
“Our goal is to help people learn how to live with ALS, not die with it,” Walker said. “We focus on quality of life and helping patients continue doing the things that matter most to them, whether that’s spending time with grandchildren, attending community events or remaining as independent as possible.”
Occupational therapists like Walker help patients adapt everyday activities and conserve energy by recommending home modifications and equipment such as shower benches, grab bars and mobility devices. Their work focuses on helping patients maintain independence and safely navigate daily life as the disease progresses.
Preserving communication and independence
For many patients, communication becomes one of the most significant challenges as ALS progresses. Through a partnership with the ECU Speech-Language and Hearing Clinic, patients have access to specialized evaluations and communication tools designed to help them stay connected with family, friends and caregivers.
Rhiannon Phillips, a speech-language pathologist and clinical assistant professor at East Carolina University, works with ALS patients whose speech has begun to deteriorate. She evaluates each patient’s communication needs and helps identify the most effective solution, whether that’s a speech-generating device, a smartphone application or an advanced eye-gaze system that allows patients to control a device using only their eye movements.
“Every patient is different,” Phillips said. “We look at how they communicate with family members, whether they still work, what activities are important to them and what they want to be able to do. Then we help match them with technology that best supports those goals.”
Voice banking, which allows patients to record their speech early in the disease process, has transformed ALS care. The recordings can later be used to give patients a personalized synthetic voice.
“If we can identify patients early enough, they can bank their voice,” Walker said. “When they’re using a communication device later, it’s their own voice speaking the words back rather than a computerized voice. It’s amazing to see how far technology has come.”
While the technology itself is impressive, Phillips said the true impact comes from helping patients regain a sense of independence. Shortly after helping set up a communication device for a patient with ALS, the patient’s wife sent a text message to Phillips saying she had heard music playing from another room. Her husband had figured out how to navigate the device on his own, find YouTube and begin playing music independently.
“For most people, being able to turn on music is a simple everyday task,” Phillips said. “But for someone who has lost the ability to speak or move independently, being able to do something like that on their own can be incredibly meaningful to them and to their support system. Seeing patients regain those moments of independence is one of the most rewarding parts of this work.”
Phillips said helping patients maintain their ability to communicate, express their needs and stay connected to loved ones remains at the heart of what she does.
“If you can provide someone with a positive moment during a very difficult time, that’s rewarding,” she said. “Even something as simple as giving someone a way to express how they’re feeling can make a tremendous difference.”
Meeting patients where they are
The clinic has continued to expand services to meet patients where they are. In late 2025, the team launched a multidisciplinary telemedicine clinic to support patients who have difficulty traveling due to disease progression. Patients can join the appointments virtually from home.
“Many patients eventually reach a point where travel becomes extremely challenging,” said Dr. Minji Kim, neurologist, ECU Health. “The telemedicine clinic allows patients to continue receiving care from multiple specialists, including speech therapy, nutrition and occupational therapy, from their homes. It helps ensure they can stay connected to the care and support they need.”
Support beyond medical care
Beyond medical care, many patients benefit from support provided by ALS United North Carolina, a nonprofit organization that partners closely with the clinic. The organization offers equipment loans, financial assistance, support groups and education for patients and caregivers.
“Our goal is to make sure no one goes through the ALS journey alone,” said Hillary Moore, care services coordinator with ALS United North Carolina. “We work closely with patients and families to connect them with resources that can make a meaningful difference in their daily lives.”
That support can include everything from providing power wheelchairs and communication devices to helping families navigate financial challenges and caregiving responsibilities.
Respiratory care is another critical component of ALS management. Respiratory therapists monitor patients’ lung function throughout the disease and help identify when supportive devices such as non-invasive ventilation or cough-assist equipment may be needed.
“The goal is to help patients maintain their breathing and clear secretions effectively so we can reduce complications and hospitalizations,” said respiratory therapist LaCaria Starkie.
A lasting impact
Today, the clinic follows approximately 60 patients and welcomes new referrals from across the region. Care teams meet monthly to provide coordinated evaluations and ongoing support.
For Walker, the clinic’s success comes down to the people behind it.
“I’m grateful for our team and their commitment to helping patients and families,” he said. “Everyone here is focused on providing support, improving quality of life and walking alongside people through one of the most difficult journeys they will ever face.”
To learn more about the Jim “Catfish” Hunter ALS Clinic at ECU Health Medical Center or to schedule an appointment, call 252-847-1779.
A group of 35 ECU Health team members celebrated new skills, new relationships and new pathways for quality improvement that will strengthen care across the health system during the Teachers of Quality Academy (TQA) 9.0 graduation on Oct. 21.
The graduation celebrated the hard work to identify areas of need, concoct solutions and take a data-driven approach toward new approaches to health care delivery. TQA at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and ECU Health gives health care leaders the tools they need to fundamentally change care delivery through a curriculum focused on building knowledge and skills in Health Systems Science, which explores how health care is delivered.
Over the past year, teams across the cohort developed projects that aim to address areas where quality can be improved, launching initiatives that can continue to grow and make a difference even after a TQA class graduates.
“Opportunity for improvement is everywhere, and these graduates have made the commitment to hone their skills in quality improvement and apply them to drive excellence across ECU Health” said Dr. Niti Armistead, chief quality officer at ECU Health. “Health care operations, like medicine itself, are always evolving so our team members must be willing to serve as both experts and learners as we continue to navigate the shifting landscape.
“This graduation is a capstone moment that builds our learning community so, together, we can continue to work to improve the health and well-being of eastern North Carolina.”
Emily Elks, MPH, an administrative fellow at ECU Health Medical Center, and Taylor Lewis, manager of patient care services at ECU Health Chowan Hospital’s operating room, collaborated to improve colonoscopy referral workflows at the community hospital in Edenton. Elks said the initiative laid a strong foundation with the potential to improve how referrals are handled in the future. Above all, TQA gave her an opportunity to build her leadership skills, confidence and connections across ECU Health.
“I love quality improvement and love professional development, so this has been, by far, my favorite part of my fellowship,” Elks said. “This experience was different from any other professional development I have done, getting to work with my peers and among clinicians of all levels.
“You would not normally get this diversity of skills and fields in a professional development setting — we get to bounce ideas off of physicians, advance practice providers, all of these team members from across the health system I might not have had a chance to work with, to improve these outcomes.”
Two groups of Rural Family Medicine resident physicians devoted their time to improving cancer screening rates for patients. Drs. Tobi Okafor, Joy Onyeanuna and Tanweer Hoosen work saw a 10 percent uptick in colon cancer screenings for patients at Rural Health Group Halifax Medical Specialists and ECU Health North Hospital. The physicians credited that impressive increase to educational initiatives that helped clear up misconceptions and brought information directly to patients.
“I think the most important part was education,” Dr. Okafor said. “Patients tend to think of a colon cancer screening as only a colonoscopy, and I think that’s something that deters them from being seen. We had a chance to explain the different, less invasive methods and that really helped.”
The other team of Drs. Jaya Purathur, Shelley Matthews and Andre Mancheno identified a need for more lung cancer screenings in Duplin County, where Dr. Purathur said tobacco users and agriculture workers could benefit. Their project served to address the best methods to establish a reliable process to identify which patients who would be eligible for CT scans that can detect lung cancer.
“Data collection was very important for this project,” said Dr. Mancheno. “We are continuing to work to see how we can apply data to address the project, which was very challenging throughout this process.”
Dr. Jennifer Sutter, chief of division of pediatric endocrinology and physician director of TQA, said she and other organizers are proud of the 35 team members who finished the cohort, and excited to see how they make a difference in healthcare moving forward.
“Their work has touched all aspects of healthcare across eastern North Carolina,” said Dr. Sutter. “I want to thank these 35 scholars for their dedication and hard work, as well as the coaches who provided them with director mentorship throughout the year. The path forward is one we walk together, and TQA is an important program to provide that kind of interoperative understanding and appreciation for the work we accomplish.”
Every fall, patients at the James and Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital at ECU Health Medical Center participate in a Halloween trick-or-treat event that makes their stay a bit less scary, and provides a much needed sense of community.
Team members from across ECU Health gathered to put on their Halloween best, giving kids a chance to peruse through booths depicting the books of Dr. Seuss, a box of crayons, or Shrek’s swamp. Games and goodies were on tap to give patients and their families a boost of Halloween cheer, and a different component of care than the kind they find in their hospital rooms.
Kenzie Hornsby, a Child Life intern at Maynard Children’s Hospital, said her team has been planning the event for months. A big part of making it happen is meeting patients where they are.
“We always want to make sure patients have what they need, whether that’s help getting down to the floor or certain accommodations they might require while they trick-or-treat,” Hornsby said. “This event happens thanks to collaboration and communication across so many different groups who want to make it fun for our patients.”
Child Life Specialists visit patients and families individually to see if they are interested in attending the trick-or-treat event. Patients who want to dress up can pick from a variety of costumes donated by the community.
Leo-Elijah Lampla, 10, has been a patient at Maynard Children’s Hospital for about two weeks. His mother, Daphlie Lampla, said he was admitted after he experienced breathing issues and felt generally unwell. She said since being admitted, Child Life team members have gone above and beyond to make their inpatient stay less stressful.
“They have decorated his room and it looks beautiful,” Daphlie Lampla said. “He loves basketball, and the (East Carolina University) basketball team came and signed a basketball for him.
“The care here has made a big difference. He loves using the tablet to listen to music. Everything makes the experience less anxious or stressful.”
She said seeing her son have the chance to enjoy trick-or-treating, like he would outside the hospital’s walls, was a welcomed moment of relief.
“We’ve been through a lot, so this is a really good change of pace,” Daphlie Lampla said. “It raises his spirit and mine too. It feels like we have been through the storm and we are almost there. There’s a light in the distance. That lifts us up.
The event is also fun for team members, who booked open slots to participate within two hours of their being posted. For team members in patient-facing roles like Taylor White, an ECU Health case management team leader masquerading as beloved Muppet Elmo from Sesame Street, the trick-or-treat event is an opportunity to interact with the community in a different way.
“I love events like this,” White said. “This is a way for us to give back to our patients, so it means the world to be able to see these kids and families who are going through so much be able to come in and do something fun, to take their minds off their hardships.”
Mindy Wallace, a human resources service consultant at ECU Health, dressed as Velma from Scooby-Doo with her team filling in the rest of the Mystery Inc. gang, agreed having a chance to meet patients where they are is exciting and important for team members across the system and reinforces the sense of duty to serve one another and the wider community of eastern North Carolina.
“We serve our team members, but to be able to see them interact with patients really makes me happy,” Wallace said. “In HR we empathize with our team members and really extend to them that mission to improve the health and wellbeing of eastern North Carolina. If we’re doing that for our teams, then they’re able to do that for our patients. This lets us see that happening firsthand.”
Margaret Ann Alligood has been a physical therapist assistant (PTA) with ECU Health since 1996, and she is very familiar with helping patients return home safely and supporting their families during that process. Still, when her father, Frayle Woolard, fell at home and broke his femur, she got to see first-hand the compassion and comprehensive care ECU Health provides, from surgery to rehabilitation.
Woolard was admitted to ECU Health Beaufort Hospital after his fall, and over the next two weeks he was in and out of the hospital and a short-term nursing home. He ended up at ECU Health Medical Center, where he stayed for an extended period.
“He was extremely weak and had decreased endurance,” Alligood said. “But he had a strong desire to return home, and the acute therapists assigned to him recognized his recovery potential.”
The therapists’ skilled interventions made it so Woolard could transition to inpatient rehabilitation and he continued to work on his recovery.
“Your perspective changes when you’re on the family side of things,” Alligood said. “My mother is on hospice with end-stage Alzheimer’s, and my brother and family and I manage the hospice team and caregivers to be sure she has supervision all day. With my father in the hospital, it was a very stressful time, but the rehab therapists who worked with my father were incredible. They motivated him to keep going, celebrated his successes and helped reduce so much of the stress I felt. Knowing he was receiving excellent care meant everything to us, and they helped our family achieve the goal of getting my father back home.”
Woolard is now able to get up and around with some support and he is doing many of the things he enjoys, including going to church and spending time with his wife.
“Every morning he was able to kneel and pray,” Alligood shared. “The therapists in rehab individualized his care so he could get back to doing that.”
Alligood celebrated the coordinated care provided by everyone at the hospital, noting the skill, compassion and individualized care they provided. The experience provided a powerful reminder of the impact rehabilitation professionals have on the lives of patients and their loved ones.
“From the housekeeping staff who cleaned my father’s room, to the care partners who met his basic needs, to the nurses who administered his medications, to the hospitalists and physicians who ordered tests and performed his surgery, to the admissions staff and the therapists who saw his potential to regain his quality of life, to the case managers who coordinated his needs for a safe discharge—they eased my stress because I knew he was getting the best care possible,” she said. “After 30 years of caring for others, it means so much to know that when my family needed support, ECU Health was there for us. I sincerely appreciate all of the efforts made to care not only for my father, but for our entire family.”
Share your story with us at go.ecuhealth.org/grateful. Stories like these show the lasting impact of ECU Health.
“I’ve had cancer more than five times, and I’m still standing,” Maleiyah Perez said. “My job now is to tell people about my journey and help them believe they can do it too.”
When Perez was 17, her mother noticed a lump on her thigh. They went to the doctor immediately, and the nurse confirmed there was a mass.
“Things went fast from there,” she said. “They said they were admitting me that very day, and I had a biopsy the next week.”
The biopsy showed the mass was alveolar soft parts sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that originates in soft tissue such as muscle, fat or nerves. Only about 80 cases are diagnosed per year in the United States.
Holding on to hope
“Before they could remove the tumor, I needed 38 rounds of radiation to shrink it down from the size of a softball,” she said. The surgery left her missing parts of her muscle in that leg.
Almost one year later, Perez prepared to celebrate a year of being cancer-free. A friend’s aunt needed a kidney transplant, and Perez decided to get tested to see if she could be a donor, but the test came back with an unexpected result: her cancer had returned.
“The doctor took us in a room and showed me an x-ray. I had 10-12 nodules in both lungs.”
Perez underwent treatment again, this time a robotic, non-invasive radiation therapy called CyberKnife coupled with oral chemotherapy.
“It was pretty intense, but those treatments together had success, and I was cleared of that cancer.”
Two years later, however, the cancer returned in her lungs. Two years after that, she went back to the doctor with a persistent headache and her doctors discovered a small spot on her brain.
Perez underwent a Gamma Knife treatment, which is a non-invasive stereotactic radiosurgery instrument that doesn’t require an incision. Two months after that surgery, she needed it again for two more spots on her brain, and recently, cancer was discovered in her pelvis.
“Through all of this, I never felt any fear,” Perez shared. “I have faith I’m going to make it through, and I have people who support me, including the great team at the cancer center. Dr. Musharraf Navaid, my doctor through much of this journey, said I was very lucky and that people with this type of cancer have a 20-40% chance of surviving five years because it’s often discovered too late. I’m grateful I advocated for myself and have doctors checking on me every month.”
“Maleiyah’s ability to endure the shock of her diagnosis, major surgeries, radiation and chemotherapy shows her strength,” Dr. Navaid said. “Hers is a story of resilience, courage and hope, and she hasn’t let this disease define her.”
After two pelvic fractures, a hip replacement and pelvis reconstruction in November 2025, Perez is working on healing both physically and mentally.
Not going through it alone
“I’ve had a lot of challenges because I’m not as independent as I’d like to be,” she said. “I can’t walk or help my kids, and a lot of cancer patients feel like no one understands. I expressed my feelings to my oncology nurse navigator, Katie Elliott. She listened to me and sat with me, and she gave me information on how to find a therapist to talk to. Both she and Dr. Navaid’s nurse, Charman Baker, go above and beyond. I’m very grateful for that team and everyone at the cancer center because they helped me out of a dark place.”
“I’ve known Maleiyah for a while now,” Elliott said. “It’s been an honor to walk alongside her. We want people to know they’re not going through their journey alone. We have various resources, but sometimes the hardest part is asking for help. We serve many rural communities, and we’ll help patients get access to the care and resources they need.”
“Her smile is infectious, and even on a bad day, you’re going to see that smile,” said Baker, a nurse in the medical oncology clinic. “She hasn’t allowed this experience to deflate her goals, and she’s an inspiration to us.”
Perez said the care she received—from Dr. Navaid’s compassion to the nurses’ efforts to follow up regularly, and the support she received from her mother, who passed away from cancer, and her husband, Jason—helped her through the experience.
“My husband and I had been together only three months when I was first diagnosed with cancer,” she said. “The nurse said, ‘Wow, your boyfriend really cares about you because he asked me what he could do to help.’ Since then, he’s been there for me and our family, and he’s shown he’ll be there through sickness and health. And my mother was my number one cheerleader from the beginning; she was with me for every treatment.”
Perez is 29 now, and her focus is on recovery.
“I won’t say I’m in ‘remission,’ because to me that means the cancer is completely gone. Dr. Navaid wants me to heal more before we do anything else, but for now, I’m in a place where I don’t need treatment,” she said. “My end goal is to be completely healed and live a long life. I know that will happen someday soon. Having a positive mindset will get you further in life.”
In 2025, Caroliena McCoy was a junior in ROTC teaching marksmanship to a few kids in her group when another student accidentally stepped on Caroliena’s right leg. A week later, she experienced a medical emergency.
“My right leg hurt but after four days it improved and we thought everything was okay,” Caroliena said. “By the following Tuesday, I was limping.”
“I picked her up from school and she was pale and looked tired,” added Caroliena’s aunt, Connie. “Before I could get out of the parking lot, her eyes rolled back and she started sucking air like she couldn’t breathe. I thought she was having a seizure.”
The assistant principal of Ayden-Grifton High School directed Connie to pull over and brought out two teachers: Ms. Alphin and Ms. James. Sylvia James was the health science teacher and she and Ms. Alphin were both first responders; before joining the school system, Sylvia worked at James and Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital for 33 years as a nurse.
“I had started to come out of it by then, but Ms. James recommended we call 911,” Caroliena said. The EMTs could only determine Caroliena had high blood sugar, but Ms. James recommended she still go to the emergency department at Maynard Children’s Hospital.
“Ms. James saved me because she thought I was showing signs of respiratory distress,” Caroliena said.
“I was called out because they said someone had a seizure, but then I saw how dusky blue Caroliena was, and her oxygen saturation wasn’t good,” Sylvia said. “I had seen her just the day before and knew about her leg pain, and it sounded like she had complications from an injury that caused the respiratory distress. I called the rescue squad right away.”
At the hospital, the emergency department team acted quickly by running tests, including x-rays, a CT scan and ultrasounds, to figure out what was going on with the 17-year-old. It turns out Ms. James was right.
“I had blood clots in both lungs and my right leg,” Caroliena said. “My episode in the car was the result of me not getting oxygen to my brain.”
Dr. M. Umer Tariq
That’s where Dr. M. Umer Tariq stepped in.
“We recommended she have a mechanical thrombectomy for pulmonary embolism immediately,” Dr. Tariq said. “It’s a minimally invasive, percutaneous treatment—meaning you aspirate the clots out with a catheter. It’s done while the patient is awake and it’s a life-saving procedure. Pulmonary embolism is the third leading cause of cardiovascular deaths behind stroke and heart attack.”
This was an unusual situation, as 17-year-olds don’t often present with blood clots, but Dr. Tariq felt confident about the treatment plan.
“Our program has been doing this for at least six years now and it’s performed by cardiology and vascular surgery. The novelty in this case was working with the pediatric ICU and cardiology teams,” Dr. Tariq said. “We told Caroliena that when the clot in the lungs are large and another breaks off from the leg, it can be fatal.”
“Dr. Tariq explained everything very well and answered all our questions. I’m glad he was her doctor,” Connie said.
Caroliena looks back on her experience with gratitude for the care she received—both at the school and the hospital.
“Ms. James recognized the urgency of the situation,” she said. “Dr. Tariq was very straight forward and talked to us about the procedure, and during the procedure a nurse—I don’t remember her name—stayed with me and held my hand.”
Her favorite part was getting a visit from Sam, Maynard Children’s Hospital’s facility dog.
“That was really special,” Caroliena said. “She made me think of my dog at home that I was missing, and that made me feel a lot better.”
Caroliena is doing well now. Her care team determined she has a Factor V Leiden mutation of one of the clotting factors in blood, which raises the risk for developing harmful blood clots; that means she has to be on a low-dose blood thinner from now on.
“I still have some limitations,” she said. “If I am in one position for too long my leg hurts, and my plan to join the military after college had to change. Now I plan to attend Pitt Community College and then transfer to East Carolina University to study geology.”
“I’m so thankful I was at school that day,” Sylvia said. “I knew Caroliena was in trouble the minute I saw her. Those nurse instincts just kicked in. I’m so thankful the emergency department providers acted quickly and they got her into surgery. Caroliena was incredibly brave through the whole thing. She showed resilience and bounced back quickly.”
ECU Health Beaufort Hospital leadership presented a $137,177.34 donation to Williamston Fire-Rescue-EMS on Tuesday, Oct. 12 for brand new, state-of-the-art emergency medical equipment.
The donation will support the purchase of an MTS Power-LOAD system, which is a powered stretcher-loading device that enhances provider safety and patient stability, and a LIFEPAK 15 monitor/defibrillator, used to assess, monitor and treat patients in critical condition. The donation was attended by ECU Health Beaufort Hospital President Dennis Campbell, II, Williamston Fire-Rescue-EMS Chief Michael Peaks, Williamston Mayor Dean McCall and other community supporters.
“In the EMS world, every second counts,” said McCall. “We thank the ECU Health organization, Chief Peaks and everyone who helped secure this funding for the protection of our community and EMS professionals.”
ECU Health Beaufort Hospital provided the donation directly through operational funds. Campbell said that local first responders are a vital part of the healthcare services communities depend on. Reducing the risks of provider injury, as well as having the cutting-edge technology to assess patients on the scene, are essential to supporting the health needs in rural communities like Martin County, he said.
“In rural communities every link in the emergency care network matters,” Campbell said. “Equipping local EMS teams strengthens access to timely, high-quality care that helps connect patients with the next level of care.”
Funding for the equipment comes amid ECU Health’s ongoing efforts to restore access to essential healthcare in Martin County after Martin General Hospital closed in 2023. In July 2026, the North Carolina General Assembly approved a State Budget that included critical funding to help re-establish essential healthcare in Martin County and initial planning funds to support expanding bed capacity at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital in Washington.
Additional investments necessary to expand bed capacity at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital continue to be key for implementing a sustainable regional system of care model needed to improve sustainability and expand inpatient capacity for surrounding communities, including Martin County.
Peaks said the effects of the local hospital closure immediately impacted emergency personnel, who must now travel farther to transport patients in need of care. He said before the closure a patient’s average transport time by ambulance was five minutes and 38 seconds. The average time now is 20 minutes. He thanked ECU Health leadership for recognizing the critical role first responders play in community healthcare.
“Having equipment such as this available to our members is going to make a difference for the people we serve,” Peaks said. “ECU Health has recognized that healthcare needs in Martin County do not stop at the doors of a hospital. Healthcare is a network of people and services working together.
“ECU Health’s investment in Williamston Fire-Rescue-EMS is a direct investment in strengthening the network of care in which ECU Health has shown time and again, and more recently within the last year, their commitment to Martin County.”
Campbell emphasized that supporting Williamston, Martin County and surrounding communities is central to the health system’s mission.
“Our mission at ECU Health is to improve the health and well-being of eastern North Carolina,” Campbell said. “We’ve been honored to support Williamston and the surrounding communities to help maintain access to care during extremely difficult circumstances following the local hospital’s abrupt closure in 2023. Strong partnerships among hospitals, EMS agencies and other community organizations are essential to providing high-quality healthcare in rural eastern North Carolina. This moment reflects those partnerships and actions.”
When many people think about careers in health care, the roles of nurse or doctor often come to mind. Yet delivering exceptional care depends on a network of professionals whose work supports daily operations, enhances the patient experience, and helps advance ECU Health’s mission to improve the health and well-being of eastern North Carolina.
To help students explore those opportunities, ECU Health‘s Talent Acquisition team launched the new non-clinical internship program this past summer.
The pilot program provided college students with hands-on experience across a variety of departments while introducing them to career opportunities in health care that extend beyond direct patient care.
“This was really about building awareness that there are many career paths within a hospital beyond what most people traditionally think about,” said Tavis Richardson, who led the development of the program. “There are opportunities in business, human resources, food and nutrition and many other areas that support our Mission every day.”
The program ran from May through August and welcomed East Carolina University students pursuing non-clinical fields of study. Interns were placed in departments including Food and Nutrition Services, Graduate Medical Education, Onboarding, Patient Experience and Engagement, Community Health, and other support areas across the organization.
Throughout the summer, participants gained practical experience, completed impactful projects and built relationships with team members.
One of those students was Bridgette Dingee, who interned with Food and Nutrition Services. During her internship, she worked alongside patient services, culinary and retail teams while contributing to projects aimed at improving operations and the patient experience. Her work included supporting the Cambridge Menu Study, enhancing competency checklists, completing safety and departmental audits, participating in patient and nursing rounds and other projects.
Among the projects she completed, Dingee said she was most proud of helping develop the patient picture menu.
“It was rewarding to be part of a project that could improve the hospital experience for patients with literacy, language or communication barriers,” Dingee said.
The experience also helped shape Dingee’s career path. Following the internship, she joined ECU Health Food and Nutrition Services as a team member while continuing her studies in dietetics at ECU.
Building on the success of the pilot program, ECU Health plans to expand the initiative in 2027. Internship opportunities will be available at all nine hospitals across the health system, and applications will be promoted to colleges and universities across North Carolina.
On a hot July morning, Mark Brady woke up and went about his day as usual. He didn’t expect he’d be spending the next two months in the hospital.
“I walked around the block, took a shower, drank a large iced coffee and was preparing to golf with my friends when my body started to shake,” Brady said.
When he didn’t show up, Brady’s golfing buddies stopped by his house and found him on the floor in his bathroom; one of those friends had taken a first aid class and recognized Mark was having a stroke.
“He saw my drooped face and called 911 immediately. From there I went to ECU Health Duplin Hospital, they put me on a helicopter, and I ended up in Greenville,” Brady said. “I don’t remember much until a week later.”
A team effort
After Brady transitioned from the ICU to a step-down unit, he entered inpatient rehabilitation where he met a team of trained therapists who collaborated on his care.
“When Mark arrived here, he was completely flaccid in his left arm and leg – which means he had no movement,” said Mary Kathryn Hubbard, occupational therapist. “During his stay here, he’s put in such tremendous effort and he’s dedicated to his success. Now he can actively open and close his left hand and use his arm functionally.”
“Early in his stay, we had frank conversations with Mark about his progress,” Melissa DeCarlo, physical therapist, added. “We wanted him to go home safely, but he had a long road ahead of him. Due to his hard work, his family support and his therapy interventions, he started getting better and our conversation changed. I’ve updated his care plan four times because he’s made steady progress the whole time. Now he can walk with a walker and get around with supervision.”
Kelsey Hall, a speech language pathologist, noted that Brady’s cognitive status has also improved.
“His scores initially showed a moderate disorder, but now he’s doing activities of daily living like finances and medications without cues,” she said. “His recovery isn’t necessarily typical, but it shows his dedication to getting better.”
Brady attributes much of his success to the rehabilitation team’s collaborative and supportive spirit.
“Every therapist has done a great job. They pushed me to the point of success, and they are the best in North Carolina,” Brady said. “They all work together and they cheer you on when you accomplish things. It’s a close-knit group.”
“As a team, we look at a patient as the whole person. We wanted Mark to get out and stay active. We co-treat with each other and helped Mark do what was meaningful to him, and that plan evolved over time as he improved,” said Alex Kinney, recreational therapist.
One of those collaborations included an outing to the local Barnes & Noble bookstore. There, he practiced skills he developed during his rehabilitation stay. For Brady, the experience was about more than physical recovery. It was about rediscovering his independence and confidence.
“It was great to be back in the real world,” he said.
These community experiences help patients apply physical, cognitive and problem-solving skills outside the hospital setting for improved functioning at discharge. By combining evidence-based practices, advanced clinical expertise and individualized treatment plans, the rehabilitation center helps patients of all ages achieve their highest level of function and quality of life.
“We can guide the patient,” Kinney said, “But they’re the ones who have to do the work.”
The next step
Brady completed his inpatient therapy and went home with his girlfriend, Lynne, on Sept. 17. He will continue his therapy at ECU Health Duplin Hospital’s Outpatient Rehabilitation clinic, and he has big plans for the future.
“When I was first admitted, they said I might not be able to walk again,” Brady said. “But I told them my goal was to walk independently by Christmas and play golf next year.”
According to Brady, it was the personal attention and genuine care provided by the therapy team that made a lasting impact.
“The therapists make you feel like you are the most important patient on the floor, even though they have many other patients that day,” he said.
The Inpatient Rehabilitation Center at ECU Health Medical Center offers expert care and personalized therapy from a multidisciplinary team that includes physicians, nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech language pathologists, recreational therapists, case managers and other specialists.
ECU Health brought together a community of patients, families, providers and advocates on Sept. 18, for the 2026 Tate Holbrook Annual Sickle Cell Disease Update, an educational conference hosted by the ECU Health Comprehensive Sickle Cell Program and the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University.
Named in honor of Dr. Tate Holbrook, the pediatric hematologist who founded East Carolina University’s Comprehensive Sickle Cell Disease Program in 1979, the annual event provides an opportunity for the sickle cell community to learn about new treatments, discuss challenges facing patients and families, and strengthen partnerships between health care providers and those living with the disease.
“This conference is an opportunity to bring patients, families, providers and community partners together to learn from one another and continue advancing care for people with sickle cell disease,” said Charmaine Bond, social work practitioner with the ECU Health Comprehensive Sickle Cell Program.
“We hope participants leave feeling energized, supported and empowered to continue playing an active role in the sickle cell community.”
Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder that affects how red blood cells carry oxygen throughout the body. The condition can lead to episodes of severe pain, organ damage and other serious complications. While often associated with the African American community, experts say the disease can affect people of any background.
“Sickle cell disease is highly variable, meaning every patient experiences it differently,” said Dr. Julie Kanter, president of the National Alliance of Sickle Cell Centers and a featured speaker at the conference. “What’s most important is that patients receive individualized care from providers who understand the condition and recognize that each person’s experience is unique.”
Dr. Kanter said recent advancements in treatment continue to bring hope to patients and families. “There are exciting new therapies being developed for sickle cell disease,” Dr. Kanter said. “While gene therapy has received significant attention, it is only one of several promising treatment options that are expanding opportunities for patients and improving quality of life.”
For ECU Health, the annual conference reflects decades of commitment to improving care for people living with sickle cell disease across eastern North Carolina.
“ECU Health has been involved in sickle cell care and research since the beginning of our program in 1979,” said Dr. Beng Fuh, director of the ECU Health Comprehensive Sickle Cell Program and pediatric hematology and oncology, and professor at the Brody School of Medicine. “We provide comprehensive care that begins with newborn screening and continues through childhood and adulthood, supported by a multidisciplinary team that includes physicians, nurses, social workers, psychologists and other specialists.”
Dr. Fuh emphasized that treating sickle cell disease requires support from the entire community.
“It takes a village,” he said. “That village includes families, teachers, neighbors, health care providers, social workers and policymakers. Everyone has a role to play in supporting individuals with sickle cell disease and helping them achieve their full potential.”
Among those in attendance was Thor Forte, a young man living with sickle cell disease. Despite the challenges the condition has presented throughout his life, Forte said the experience has helped him appreciate the people around him and the importance of perseverance.
Forte and his family attended the conference to share their experience with the disease and connect with others who understand the journey of living with sickle cell disease.
“You have to work through the hard times,” Forte said. “It can be difficult, but you have to keep pushing forward.”
The conference featured sessions on healthy aging with sickle cell disease, mental health and trauma-informed care, emerging therapies and updates on sickle cell care in eastern North Carolina.
Organizers hope the event continues to grow in the years ahead while serving as a source of education, encouragement and connection for the region’s sickle cell community.
For patients and families navigating a sickle cell diagnosis, Dr. Fuh offered a simple message: seek care, ask questions and know that support is available.
“Knowledge is power,” he said. “We want every patient and family to know they are not alone and that there is a team here ready to help them every step of the way.”