Students that want to voice their opinions about health issues can do so today at the second session of the Institute for Emerging Issues forum at the Raleigh Convention Center.
The IEI is an organization that promotes collaboration between companies, organizations and universities to face daily challenges in the fields of health, economy, education and the environment.
The IEI kicked off its 26th annual forum with a Monday meeting to discuss health and healthcare issues in North Carolina. Today, forum attendees will meet again to hear several speakers, such as Gov. Beverly Perdue and Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s medical correspondent.
Key speakers from yesterday’s session included Chancellor Randy Woodson, former Governor James B. Hunt Jr. and Ronald A. Paulus, CEO of Mission Health System. Each orator addressed healthcare and gave their ideas for improving the overall health of the nation.
Paul Cunningham, dean of the East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine, praised local health provider Community Care of North Carolina as an ideal framework for future healthcare advancements.
According to its website, CCNC, formerly known as Access II and III, “is building community health networks organized and operated by community physicians, hospitals, health departments and departments of social services. By establishing regional networks, the program is establishing the local systems that are needed to achieve long-term quality, cost, access and utilization objectives.”
Allen Dobson, president and CEO of CCNC, also delivered a speech at the forum touting the program’s effectiveness in building sustainable local health networks.
IEI held 11 breakout sessions during the forum; each session discussed how innovations in healthcare can be replicated in order to deliver better care, lower costs and create more jobs across the state.
Today’s forum will be from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m., with a lunch break. Today’s speakers include Andrew Witty, CEO of GlaxoSmithKline; Mick Cornett, Oklahoma City’s mayor; James R. Gavin III, the Chairman of Partnership for a Healthier America and J. Bradley Wilson, president and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina.
The topics that will be covered include developing and expanding new treatment options, empowering patients to their own healthcare, preventing chronic diseases through weight management, using technology to expand access and reducing healthcare costs.
The forum is open to the public, and students are encouraged to attend and bring ideas and suggestions with them.
