Here are the winners in the 2013 Health Care Heroes Innovation in Health Care category.

INNOVATION IN HEALTH CARE-Honors an individual or team behind a new scientific discovery, procedure, treatment or device that can save lives or improve the quality of life for a large number of people.

Phillip Brown Jr.
TITLE: Vascular surgeon
ORGANIZATION: Wilmington Health
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID: “Philip Brown Jr., MD, FACS, of Wilmington Health surgery is a true innovator in the field of vascular surgery. Just this year he was the first surgeon in the nation to complete a successful Endurant Aorto-Uni-illiac Stent Graft System (Endurant AUI) surgery.
The FDA-approved device uses a fabric-covered stent to seal off the aneurysm and restore normal flow through the aorta, thus preventing a life-threatening rupture.
… In addition to being a surgical innovator, Dr. Brown is a founding member of the first office-based Endovascular Intervention Center
in the southeastern region of North Carolina. Over the last decade, the center has expanded to include the complete spectrum of minimally invasive outpatient vascular procedures.
… He provides leadership that promotes the quality of our providers in Wilmington locally and across the state.
Dr. Brown was formerly the president of state and local medical societies; he is a founding member of New Hanover Regional Medical Center’s Asclepian Society; and he’s a speaker at CME By the Sea.”
– Kelly Schaudt, Wilmington Health senior director of Lean Operations

Yvonne Hughes
TITLE: CEO
ORGANIZATION: Coastal Connect Health Information Exchange (CCHIE)
WHAT THE NOMINATOR SAID: “In only 18 months and with a staff of less than 10, Yvonne Hughes, CEO of CCHIE, has paved the way for health information technology, connecting five unaffiliated hospitals as well as 220 unaffiliated practices, representing 720 providers in 11 North Carolina counties.
… Practices throughout our regional are just now beginning to fully realize the efficiencies gained through deployment of our HIE technology.
… Yvonne brought entities to the table to collaborate in a way that had never before been achieved; as a result CCHIE’s governance structure includes representation from our regional extension center, our state Medicaid agency, a consumer representative, a community practice administrator and hospital leadership … Perhaps what is more innovative than our collaboration is the technology that resulted from this project, which allows disparate systems to communicate through bi-directional data exchange … her patient-centric approach to HIE has received national recognition to creativity, innovation and sustainability.
… CCHIE is enabling providers to meet federal initiatives, transform patient care, ensure better workflow efficiencies and ultimately improve the overall quality of patient care.
Yvonne’s efforts, expertise and ability to build trust among multiple stakeholders have improved the quality and delivery of health care in our communities.”
– Hunter Crumpton, CCHIE education and outreach