The future of medical care in eastern North Carolina has arrived in the form of 152 new ECU Health Graduate Medical Education (GME) resident physicians and fellows, many of whom said they were excited to live, work and train in a region rich with opportunity and unique clinical experiences.
The new class of resident physicians were welcomed at GME orientation day, with fellows welcomed at an orientation of their own. The separate settings let GME team members tailor training to both groups’ specific experiences and levels of familiarity with medical practice.
“We are so excited to welcome these new physicians to ECU Health, and we’re equally excited to support their development as our future physician leaders,” said Dr. Mary Catherine Turner, associate dean for Graduate Medical Education at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and ECU Health Medical Center.
“This also feels like a celebration of how far GME has come over the past 50 years,” she said. “We recruit resident physicians and fellows who are drawn to our mission, and through their time in training they help ECU Health deliver on the mission to improve the health and wellbeing of eastern North Carolina.”
ECU Health offers 38 residency and fellowship programs that provide comprehensive training in primary care and multiple specialty and sub-specialty disciplines.
Physicians will train at ECU Health Medical Center as well as communities across eastern North Carolina. The chance to engage with rural patients was a major draw for Dr. Amarveer Malhi, a family medicine resident physician from Vancouver, British Columbia.
“I’ve seen firsthand how families can be affected by rural hospital closures and the stress people feel when they are left scrambling for care,” Dr. Malhi said. “Seeing ECU Health’s mission to provide acute care in rural areas really told me that I wanted to be here. I’m excited to work with people who have that same goal to provide excellent patient care.”
Dr. Emmanuel Kotey, also a family medicine resident physician, was grateful to match in a small town like the one he grew up in. He attended medical school at Meharry Medical College in Nashville and wanted to get back to his roots and make a difference in patients’ lives.
“Throughout the match process I could see ECU Health had one of the best family medicine programs, and that it takes care of the entire region,” Dr. Kotey said. “I’m looking forward to seeing cases I have never seen before and the chance to help the many patients I’ll care for.”
Dr. Stanton Davis, an emergency medicine resident physician from Atlanta, and Dr. Shelby Goode, an OB-GYN resident physician from Richmond, are a couple who also graduated from Meharry Medical College. The two applied for residency everywhere east of the Mississippi River and discovered ECU Health was not only a great middle ground as far as seeing family, but also the right fit for the couple’s medical philosophy.
“We knew that we wanted to work at an academic hospital,” Dr. Goode said. “The scope and volume of patients we will treat means we are going to see everything we could possibly see. Our interview days went great, and we loved the vibe and the positive energy. Everyone has been so nice and we’re looking forward to getting to know everyone, to finding familiar faces at familiar places.”
Eastern North Carolina also appealed to the couple’s desires outside of work.
“The Level I Trauma Center designation for adult and pediatric care was important to me,” Dr. Davis added. “ECU Health had everything we were looking for academically. The area itself pleasantly surprised us. I think Greenville has everything we want and we are only a few hours from the beach or other places that have what we’re looking for.”
Nine of the new resident physicians graduated from the Brody School of Medicine in May including Dr. Emily Gerlach, one of Dr. Goode’s OB-GYN peers and a native of Nash County. She was excited to get to know her new colleagues and to see familiar faces of patients she treated or even grew up with.
“It’s exciting to stay here in eastern North Carolina and continue to serve this community,” Dr. Gerlach said. “I’ve already treated a woman who I’ve known my whole life. It’s special. They knew me as a child and now they know me as a physician.
“I can’t wait to get my feet wet and be part of these deliveries, be part of care teams who are there for patients in their most vulnerable or happiest moments,” Dr. Gerlach continued. “I’m ready to get started.”
Greenville, N.C. — Martin County and ECU Health are celebrating new, historic investment included in the State Budget to support a regional system of care that will strengthen access to essential health services in eastern North Carolina, including $25 million to re-establish essential health care in Martin County and $15 million of initial support to expand bed capacity at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital in Washington.
The funding for health care in Martin County included in the state budget, along with $35 million in NC Care funds previously allocated to the project, allows ECU Health and Martin County to move forward with efforts to reach a formal agreement.
While this funding marks important progress, additional investment to meet the full $150 million for ECU Health Beaufort is required to fully implement a sustainable regional system of care model needed to improve sustainability and expand inpatient capacity for the surrounding communities.
“This budget represents meaningful progress toward a sustainable model of care for Martin County, Beaufort County and eastern North Carolina,” said Dr. Michael Waldrum, CEO of ECU Health. “Rural Americans are facing unprecedented challenges that continue to threaten the viability of health care in their communities. We are grateful for the support of our state elected leaders for infrastructure funding as we pursue rural health initiatives designed to improve the health and well-being of the most vulnerable communities in North Carolina. As the only health care partner with a viable plan, as well as a willingness to re-establish care in Martin County, we remain committed to working with county leaders and state partners to make high-quality local health care a reality on behalf of the patients, families and communities we are honored to serve.”
Leaders from Martin County and ECU Health said they will continue working toward a formal agreement that will define the structure, responsibilities and commitments needed to re-establish essential services in Martin County and advance this regional vision. Importantly, this process will take time as there are contingencies noted in the letter of intent that must be resolved to make this vision a reality. They emphasized that sustained partnership and careful planning will be critical to moving the work forward.
“This investment helps move an important vision forward for Martin County and the surrounding region,” said Drew Batts, County Manager for Martin County. “The effort to acquire this funding has been long and hard fought with Martin County’s team and ECU Health’s team working hand in hand every step of the way. This would not be possible without the efforts of multiple residents and business leaders from Martin County. We appreciate the partnership with ECU Health and the support from state leaders as we continue working toward a long-term solution that restores access to care and serves our residents well into the future.”
Additional details will be shared as planning progresses.
About 100 kids saddled up on June 18 for a bike rodeo at Hillcrest Park in Winterville, where ECU Health Injury Prevention Program team members, Safe Kids Pitt County, Winterville Safe Routes to School, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NDCOT) and HBCU Coalition of Pitt County teamed up to teach them essential bicycle safety skills and provide protective equipment.
Cycle and Serve, an all-ages bike rodeo, equipment giveaway and service event provided kids with free helmets, reflective gear and other safety equipment. Kids also had the chance to hone their critical cycling safety skills. Courses were set up to teach them braking, turn signaling, how to react to traffic signage and how to safely navigate obstacles like ramps or debris.
“Wearing a properly fitted helmet is one of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of serious head injury during a crash,” said Ellen Walston, injury prevention program coordinator and Safe Kids Pitt County coordinator at ECU Health. “We are so grateful for the opportunity to educate kids of all ages about cycling and connect them with local partners and resources who put safety first. Keeping our roads safe is everyone’s responsibility, and the skills our participants learned today will play an important role in keeping them safe and healthy on their bicycles.”
Learning bicycle safety is a key step to prevent injury. According to NCDOT data, there were 1,011 crashes involving bicyclists in 2025, the second year in a row with over 1,000 such crashes statewide. About 40% of the 2025 crashes resulted in suspected minor injuries and three percent were fatal.
Along with properly fitted helmets and reflective gear, Walston recommend bicyclists wear bright colored clothing and ride in the same direction as the flow of traffic. She said kids should ride their bikes on sidewalks when possible and that cyclists should always remain aware of their surroundings.
Greenville, N.C. – The 2026 ECU Health Board Quality Leadership Award winners were recognized at the ECU Health Board of Directors meeting held on Tuesday, June 23. These winning teams exemplify ECU Health’s system-wide commitment to achieving zero harm, delivering exceptional experiences and advancing patient outcomes through high-quality, compassionate care.
“These projects exemplify the talent and passion that team members have for addressing complex health care challenges in our rural region,” said Dr. Andy Tewari, chair, ECU Health Board of Directors. “The wide range of teams recognized today shows the scope of their commitment to innovation and serving our patients in eastern North Carolina.”
Projects demonstrating excellence reflected two or more of the following traits:
- Sustained Quality and Safety Improvement: Quantifiable improvement in an organizational priority that advances the goal of zero harm and demonstrates reliability over time.
- Compassion in Action for Safety: Demonstrated teamwork and commitment to protecting patients and team members from harm through consistent application of safety behaviors, communication and a fair and just culture.
- Innovation and Continuous Learning: Implementation of innovative, evidence-based solutions that enhance clinical quality, safety and operational reliability.
- Reduce Variations in Quality Outcomes: Meaningful work that identifies and reduces barriers and promotes quality and safety for all populations served.
Four teams earned awards this year, chosen from a competitive pool of nominations and thoughtfully reviewed by the selection committee.
The winning teams are as follows:
A team from ECU Health Medical Center submitted “Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP) Review of Restricted Antimicrobial Use and Compliance.” The project improved ECU Health Medical Center’s electronic health record and antimicrobial stewardship program workflows. It yielded $270,000 in cost savings and reduced unnecessary antimicrobial use, supported safer patient care and helped fight antimicrobial resistance.
The project leaders were Nicole Nicolsen, PharmD, BCPS, BCIDP, ASP/Infectious Diseases (ID) pharmacist manager, and Melissa George, PharmD, BCIDP, ADP/ID pharmacist. Team members were David Laurent, PharmD, BCPS, BCIDP, ASP/ID pharmacist, Emily Perez, PharmD, ASP/ID pharmacist, and Allison Field, PharmD, VCID, AAHIVP, ASP/ID pharmacist.
A team from ECU Health North submitted their project “Two-Year Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infection (CLABSI) Free Initiative: Driving Interdisciplinary Excellence Through Daily Nurse Quality Huddles and Rounding.” Efforts from the project led to zero hospital-acquired CLABSI cases.
The Project Leaders were Aparesh Balla, MPH, QS III, Maryland Hicks, BSN, RN, WCC, QNS II, and Chelsey Shearin, BSN, RN, IP II. The team members were Dr. Jude Ojie, hospitalist medical director, Dr. Rudo Gwanzura, chief of staff, Wanda Neathery, manager of patient care services, Jennifer Pilgreen, manager of patient care services, Karen Liles, RN, vascular access team, and Ann Strickland, RN, vascular access team.
A team from ECU Health Physicians submitted “Improving Hypertension Control in Ambulatory Care.” The project used a data-driven approach to improve blood pressure test accuracy, repeat measurement and home monitoring documentation by standardizing how blood pressure tests are conducted.
Project leaders were Crystal Ashley, RN, BSN, and Dr. Samuel Moskowitz. Team members were Marsha Becker, RN MSN, Dr. Dean Miner, Jessica Walker, MSHIIM, BSPH, Jason Monroe, MBA, Wendy VanLandingham, RN, BSN, Jennifer Jones, RN, and Drillious Gay, RN, MSN.
A team from ECU Health Ambulatory Quality Services submitted “Improving Outcomes: A Patient-Centered Approach to Hypertension Management.” The project used a community-funded initiative in July 2025, to improve home monitoring for blood pressure with blood pressure cuffs, patient education and integrated patient-entered readings through MyChart.
The project leader was Gail Scheller, RN, AMB-BC, AE-C, Ambulatory Quality Nurse Specialist. Team members were Barbara Adams, manager, Outer Banks Health Family Medicine – Avon, Stephanie Huband, manager, Outer Banks Health Family Medicine – Kitty Hawk, Cynthia O’Neal, manager, Outer Banks Health Family Medicine – Manteo, Sean Dunigan, manager, Outer Banks Health Family Medicine – Nags Head East and Kristen Daniels, manager, Outer Banks Health Internal Medicine – Nags Head.
“These teams worked with purpose to build the tools, dataflow and support that empower our care teams to do their best work for patients in service to ECU Health’s mission and enterprise goal of clinical excellence,” said Dr. Niti Armistead, Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Quality Officer, ECU Health. “Their efforts remind us that quality improvement is one of the most powerful ways to bring meaning and joy into the work of caring for patients.”
Greenville, N.C. – ECU Health Beaufort Hospital – a campus of ECU Health Medical Center now offers the MISHA Knee System for patients suffering from medial knee osteoarthritis. The MISHA Knee System is designed to reduce the daily physical toll on the knee joint, offer rapid pain relief and preserve patients’ natural anatomy.
“The MISHA Knee System fundamentally changes how we can support patients living with medial knee osteoarthritis by giving them a joint preserving option that delivers real, measurable relief,” said Dr. Dimitri M. Thomas, orthopedic surgeon, ECU Health Beaufort Hospital. “For many people who want to stay active but aren’t ready for a knee replacement, this approach fills a longstanding gap in treatment options. It’s exciting to bring this level of innovation to our community and help patients regain comfort, confidence and mobility.”
Knee osteoarthritis affects more than 15 million Americans and can make everyday activities painful and difficult. Non-surgical treatments such as medications, injections or physical therapy sometimes do not provide relief, and they are often left with ongoing pain and limited mobility. The MISHA Knee System is a less-invasive approach designed to reduce knee pain and help patients return to the activities they enjoy by reducing the peak forces on painful knee joints while walking, running or simply standing. No removal of bone, cartilage or ligament is required.
“ECU Health Beaufort Hospital is committed to ensuring that patients in our region can access advanced, patient centered solutions close to home, and the MISHA Knee System is a powerful example of that commitment,” said Dennis Campbell II, DHA, RN, president, ECU Health Beaufort Hospital. “By offering this innovative treatment locally, patients do not have to travel long distances to receive cutting edge orthopedic care or to find relief earlier in their treatment journey. We are proud to expand access to high quality options that help people stay active, remain in their communities and maintain their quality of life.”
The procedure is covered by Medicare. For those interested in learning more, please contact ECU Health Orthopedics – Washington at 252-946-6513.
Greenville, N.C. – ECU Health’s Office of Community Health is expanding its summer meals program in partnership with Food Lion Feeds, Sodexo and the ECU Health Foundation, adding three new locations to bring nutritious meals to kids while school is out. The summer meal program will be offered in six eastern North Carolina communities — Ahoskie, Greenville, Tarboro, with new locations in Edenton, Roanoke Rapids and Windsor.
“We are excited to continue offering healthy meals during the summer months, and our expansion to Edenton, Roanoke Rapids and Windsor reflects ECU Health’s commitment to nutrition and overall health,” said KaSheta Jackson, vice president of Community Health at ECU Health. “For many children, school is where they receive their most consistent meals and many parents struggle to provide meals when school is out. ECU Health’s Summer Meal Program helps fill that gap, ensuring kids and teens are nourished and healthy during months when school is not in session.”
Meals will be available Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. with the following dates and locations:
- Ahoskie: The Gathering Place, 701 Church St., June 8-Aug. 20
- Edenton: Shepard-Pruden Library, 106 W. Water St., June 8-Aug. 20
- Greenville: York Memorial AME Zion Church, 201 Tyson St., June 15-Aug. 20
- Roanoke Rapids: East 10th Street Christian Church, 1207 E. 10th St., June 8-Aug. 20
- Tarboro: Braswell Community Center, 1501 Western Boulevard, June 8-Aug. 20
- Windsor: Bertie Cooperative Extension, 104 Lancaster Avenue, June 8-Aug. 20
Since 2021, ECU Health and its partners have provided free meals over the summer. In 2025 alone, the program served more than 4,500 meals.
Dr. Michael Waldrum
Across rural America, healthcare is under attack. Pressure is mounting from looming federal cuts, including those to Medicaid, and increasingly aggressive behavior by large, for profit insurance companies. In eastern North Carolina, we are on the defensive, fighting every day to preserve even the most basic access to care, whether that means delivering a baby close to home or seeing a primary care provider.
Rural health systems are already stretched to the limit. We serve older, sicker, and poorer populations. We provide more uncompensated care with thinner margins and fewer alternatives than our urban counterparts. As proposals to reduce federal healthcare funding advance, pressure on rural hospitals continues to grow.
I recently shared these realities during my testimony before the U.S. House Committee on Ways & Means.
The hearing focused on affordability and access — two issues that will determine the future of rural healthcare. I shared ECU Health’s uniquely rural story, made possible only through the commitment of 15,000 team members who lead with purpose to deliver high quality care across our region.
I also shared a sobering truth: our organization faces a potential compounded loss of more than $1 billion over the next 10 years from Medicaid reductions included in H.R. 1.
Against this backdrop, we recently made the difficult decision to go out of network with UnitedHealthcare. This was not a tactic or a shortcut, but a last resort taken after years of imbalance and grounded in our responsibility to sustain access to care for communities that rely on us.
Rural hospitals operate on razor thin margins. We do not have billion dollar surpluses or large markets to subsidize rural care. Every dollar we earn supports patient care, our workforce, and maintaining access across a vast, rural region. When a health system with a large mix of Medicare and Medicaid patients is forced to accept an unsustainable contract by a dominant, for profit insurer, the consequences fall on patients: fewer clinicians, longer wait times, delayed services, and, in some cases, the real possibility of losing care altogether. This is the result if we allow healthcare to be treated as a profit-making tool by UnitedHealthcare, extracting value from our region and our state at the expense of rural communities.
Our approach to UnitedHealthcare has been in good faith, intended to reach an agreement that would preserve in-network access for our patients. Throughout this process, we have made every attempt to engage constructively and move negotiations forward. However, those efforts have been met with delays, limited responsiveness, and proposals that do not reflect the realities of providing care in our region.
When our attempts over the past year to reach a partnership with UnitedHealthcare proved unattainable, we faced a choice: accept a status quo that steadily erodes rural access or take a stand for our patients and communities. We chose to stand.
Our priority is supporting impacted patients and care teams through this transition. We continue to reach out directly to those affected to ensure they know what options are available to support the care they need.
At ECU Health, our obligation is clear. We exist to serve patients, families, and communities — not shareholders. Standing up for rural healthcare is not easy, and it sometimes requires saying no to powerful interests. Protecting access, supporting our workforce, and preserving the future of care in eastern North Carolina is not optional. It is our mission and it is worth fighting for.
When an emergency unfolds in eastern North Carolina, citizens can rest assured help is on the way thanks to the Eastern Healthcare Preparedness Coalition (EHPC) at ECU Health and the many community groups that support it.
The preparedness coalition serves as the region’s State Medical Assistance Team, or SMAT, comprised of multidisciplinary medical and nonmedical volunteers. SMAT has operated in eastern North Carolina for decades and serves the area from its Regional Operations Center at ECU Health Medical Center in Greenville.
One of SMAT’s most vital capabilities is its 50-bed field medical station, which can be set up in the event of hurricanes, natural disasters or mass casualty events. The field medical station allows providers to deliver on-scene treatment during emergencies, allowing for earlier intervention and reducing the need to transport patients longer distances. In special circumstances, the group can turn large sites like gymnasiums or arenas into alternate care sites for patient treatment.
These capabilities are particularly important in the vast rural parts of the state, where ECU Health serves 1.4 million people in a 29-county region. Unlike urban and suburban parts of the state where multiple hospitals operate within the same county, many residents rely on SMAT’s ability to bring care to them rather than displace residents across multiple counties.
Should medical transport be necessary, the unit also boasts one of 11 medical ambulance buses in the state, capable of carrying 20 stretchers or 30 patients in seats and is equipped with basic life support capabilities. The bus’s capabilities were leveraged in March when SMAT was called to assist Pitt County Emergency Management with medical transport capabilities during a gas leak at a Greenville solar panel manufacturing plant. Staff were forced to evacuate the building while first responders from Pitt and Martin counties investigated. Some employees showed signs of general illness and required treatment on the scene. A handful of patients were transported to ECU Health Medical Center for further evaluation.
According to Chris Starbuck, director of emergency management for ECU Health, doctors were already triaging patients when the ambulance arrived and transport was seamless. Starbuck said SMAT’s ability is strengthened by longstanding relationships among SMAT members, ECU Health clinicians and local emergency responders.
“I’ve been in this role for years. I’ve seen people come and go, but for the most part we have a lot of retention and a lot of longstanding relationships,” Starbuck said. “You have everybody’s cell phone number, you’ve already met, you’ve already developed plans, you’ve conducted exercises, people know each other. If something happens, you’re a call away. That interconnectedness is a huge benefit to our region.”
Jim McArthur, deputy director of Pitt County Emergency Management, has been in Greenville since 2016. In all that time, from his roles as a firefighter and paramedic to now, he said SMAT has offered friendly faces and a deep well of institutional knowledge that bolsters emergency response. Many team members have roots in local responder organizations, too, which means longstanding relationships continue to flourish even in the most trying circumstances.
“SMAT’s communications capabilities and their knowledge of the team, their knowledge of emergency communications and the emergency response system are assets to our community,” McArthur said. “All of the folks there are local and have experience either in the hospital here or in the field – in fire and EMS or both. All those people that function within that disaster services area know the folks here that they’re going into the street with, so we can get things done quickly and well. They do an excellent job of maintaining their equipment and making sure it’s ready for service.”
Even though many SMAT assets are not needed every day, McArthur said their presence provides reassurance – not just for responders, but for the community.
“Our community should be comforted in knowing we have very specialized emergency response resources of all kinds that can respond to problems,” McArthur said.
“SMAT is so much more than a couple of people that respond to a car accident. These are folks who go out into the region to make sure that health care facilities, doctors, offices, nursing homes and whatever other critical pieces of daily life can continue to provide what they need,” McArthur continued. “The fastest road to recovery is to get people back to whatever their normal daily life is. The whole mission of the SMAT crew is to do that. Knowing SMAT has all that equipment in their warehouse and knowing that they can leverage those resources to help get the local response on track and get us where we need to be, is really comforting.”
A program at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University that prepares high achieving medical students to make a tangible impact on health care in eastern North Carolina and beyond will expand thanks to the generosity of the family that has championed medical education across the region for nearly 50 years. It coincides with the looming completion of the newly named Brody Center for Medical Education, which is expected to open in the 2027-28 academic year.
The family’s gift was announced in March by East Carolina University and ECU Health Foundation. The family’s name will now grace the upcoming Brody Center for Medical Education in honor of their generosity.
Over 10 percent of ECU Health’s 443 residents and fellows are graduates of the Brody School of Medicine. Recent data also shows about 40 Brody Scholars continue to practice medicine in eastern North Carolina. They are among the 90 scholars who practice across North Carolina.
“The Brody family’s gift is an investment in the future of health care in eastern North Carolina and the state as a whole,” said Dr. Michael Waldrum, ECU Health CEO and dean of the Brody School of Medicine. “The Brody School of Medicine produces more doctors that stay in the state than any other medical school in North Carolina, and the more students we can give the opportunity to pursue their passion for medicine the better.
“The Brody family understands the value that we bring to our state and local communities,” Waldrum continued. “They were so gracious to continue to support our students in their career development.”
The Brody Scholars Program completely covers academic costs for medical students, who are selected through an objective process coordinated by the Brody Scholars Steering Committee, who seek to award the scholarship to the ‘best of the best’ of the incoming class. The school’s commitment to the scholars totals approximately $133,000 annually, or about $500,000 a year per class to cover the financial cost of attendance.
Abby Ulffers is a third-year medical student and Brody Scholar who is eastern North Carolina to the core. Born at then-Pitt County Memorial Hospital, now ECU Health Medical Center, the Greenville native plans to pursue a career in obstetrics and gynecology. The Brody Scholars Program does more than alleviate the financial pressure of medical school, she said.
“I never thought the Brody Scholars Program was a possibility for me,” Ulffers said. “The financial relief in being able to attend medical school does a lot for me. However, it is more than a scholarship. We do professional development exercises and a book club where you are interacting with people who have such unique perspectives on life. I’ve made so many friends and gained mentors. It’s a great networking experience that shapes the way you behave in a clinical environment and how you engage with your peers, colleagues and professors.”
Dr. Mary Windham Lenfestey, a fellow Greenville native, was one of two students in the Brody Scholars Program’s 2012 class. She said the tight-knit community of scholars transcends academic years. That is something she wants to pass on, as she now splits her time between practicing general pediatrics in Greenville and teaching at the Brody School of Medicine, where she also serves as a house dean. The newly implemented house dean program is a learning community to provide students support in the course of their studies.
“As a community, the Brody School of Medicine is certainly growing but remains a close-knit place,” Lenfestey said. “As a student, I really felt like my mentors and professors cared about me as a person. I was incredibly fortunate to have that experience, and I think it impacted my desire to come back and be involved in the medical education side of things.
“Being from Greenville, I love eastern North Carolina so I’m excited that I can practice medicine here and help guide future generations of students. Everything from the endowment to the new Center for Medical Education is a fantastic opportunity to grow what we can offer our students and, in turn, our patients.”
The Brody Center for Medical Education will expand the Brody School of Medicine’s class size to 120 students. The facility consists of simulation spaces, outdoor gathering areas, and a new anatomy lab where students can develop their skills. The new $265 million facility is funded by the state of North Carolina.
Hyman Brody said that the $10 million donation continues his family’s decades-long legacy of supporting health care in eastern North Carolina. In the late 1960s and 1970s his father and uncles began to help then-ECU chancellor Leo Jenkins successfully advocate for a medical school at the university. The school opened in 1977 and was renamed for the Brody family in 1999.
Hyman Brody shared those thoughts in front of “Hands of Hope,” the sculpture that adorns the lobby of the Eastern North Carolina Heart Institute. Depicting a pair of hands holding a human heart, the statue was dedicated in 2010 to the memory of Hyman’s uncle, J.S. “Sammy” Brody.
“Uncle Sammy said we’re here to do good, but we’re also here to do good for others,” Hyman Brody said. “When we look at what these students achieve and what they can do, that’s what our gift reflects.”
Hyman Brody said he is excited to see the relationship between ECU Health, ECU and his family continue to grow in the future.
“I think ECU Health has done a great job integrating the hospital and the medical school,” Brody said. “At this point, I think the sky is the limit. There are challenges faced in all medical areas, but the leadership team understands and is working to address them. We are glad to be a small part of it.”
For more information about the Brody Center for Medical Education, click here.
At 80 years old, Berry Warren, a medical lab technician, has seen his fair share during his 45 years at ECU Health.
“I was working for a wholesale company but felt like I wasn’t really helping anyone in that role,” Warren said. “Then my sister-in-law and brother-in-law suggested I go to nursing school. Nursing wasn’t really for me, but I enrolled in a Medical Laboratory Technician program near Asheville and was hired to work in the lab of the local hospital before I graduated.”
After working in and near Asheville for several years, Warren joined ECU Health in 1981. Over the years, he’s worked at ECU Health Beaufort Hospital, ECU Health Chowan Hospital, ECU Health Bertie Hospital and ECU Health Medical Center.
“At smaller hospitals, you get to know the patients and talk to them,” he shared. “You also get to do a little bit of everything. But at the medical center, you learn a lot because you see more diagnoses and patients.”
His wife and his daughter have also worked at ECU Health, making it a family affair.
“I’ve been in health care for 55 years,” he said. “And between me and my wife and daughter, we probably have close to 80 years of time with ECU Health.”
Working in the lab, Warren said he has served in many roles, but one he especially enjoyed was working in the cardiac surgery unit.
“In 1984, they sent us to Duke to work in the operating room while they were doing cardiac surgery,” he explained. “Dr. [W. Randolph] Chitwood was one of the surgeons and he always took time to talk to me, even though I was a lowly lab technician. And he taught me things – like he’d show me the heart during surgery and describe the parts and how they worked.”
Warren explained that during surgery, it was his responsibility to calculate blood gases and clotting time for patients.
“You have to thin the blood to work on the heart,” he said. “And we use heparin to do that. We had to determine a baseline clotting time using an actual graph on paper, and we’d calculate how much heparin the patient needed to thin the blood to go on the heart and lung machine. Then we had to calculate how much Protamine sulfate, which counteracts heparin, to give the patient after the surgery so their blood wouldn’t be too thin in recovery.”
Now, Warren said, much of that manual work is done by computers.
“I didn’t grow up with computers, but everything is computerized now,” he said. “I used to do blood cell counts manually using a microscope, but things have changed so much and so fast. The team I work with helps me out when I need it. We’re all buddies.”
Warren was recently recognized at the ECU Health Appreciation of Excellence Gala with a plaque commemorating his 45 years of service. And while he doesn’t have a specific date in mind, Warren said he will eventually retire. When that day comes, he doesn’t plan to sit around.
“My wife and I live on a farm so there is always wood to cut or a yard to mow,” he said. “I also mow my church’s grass. I don’t want to sit around the house; I like to get out and spend time with my wife.”
To new team members joining ECU Health, Warren said it’s worthwhile to keep up with changing technology.
“Don’t let it overpower you,” he said. “Jobs evolve and you have to change with it. Always be learning.”