Winston-Salem, NC, is a Medical Magnet
Biotech, regenerative medicine fields experience soaring growth in Greater Winston-Salem.
Greater Winston-Salem, NC, is the epicenter of a preeminent, internationally recognized, growing health care community and home to one of the nation’s leading medical schools.
The Wake Forest University School of Medicine’s Bowman Gray Center for Medical Education plays a key role in educating and attracting exceptional medical minds to the region. Located in a former historic industrial space, the facility was thoughtfully redesigned and opened in 2016. It features classrooms designed for in-person and tele-learning, state-of-the-art simulation labs and a variety of study spaces.
An anchor in Winston-Salem’s Innovation Quarter, the school educates nearly 1,900 students and fellows, including physicians, basic scientists and allied clinical professionals.
An important hallmark of Wake Forest University School of Medicine is its commitment to groundbreaking research and innovation. In 2022, it received $319 million in external research funding.
The medical school is a recognized leader in experiential medical education and includes Wake Forest Innovations, a commercialization enterprise focused on advancing health care through the development and biomedical discoveries.
Residents of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County will soon benefit from two multimillion-dollar medical towers being built here.
Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center
Set to be completed in early 2025, a new 193,000-square-foot critical care tower at Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center will provide the latest in advanced, acute care services.
The five-story tower is phase two of an overall $400 million construction project initially launched in 2019 by Novant Health. Currently underway, phase one plans include a redesign of the women’s and children’s center, renovation of the main cafeteria and a new central energy plant. Structural completion of the tower was celebrated in May 2023.
“The new tower will allow us to continue to deliver the latest in advanced technology, surgical services and specialty care across this region for generations to come,” says Chad Setliff, senior vice president and president of Novant Health Forsyth Medical Center and the Greater Winston-Salem market.
It will be home to 59 critical care rooms and 36 medical-surgical rooms suitable for multispecialty use, feature abundant natural light, and allow for more patient privacy. The tower will feature a new surgical department, including redesigned operating rooms equipped with advanced technology, new pre- and post-operative care units, as well as a modern and spacious new waiting area. A new procedural room will also allow most critical care patients to receive care in one centralized location.
Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
A century ago, the then-North Carolina Baptist Hospital opened its doors as a place of healing and teaching. This year, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center not only celebrates its 100th birthday, but its place as a thriving part of one of America’s leading academic learning health systems. It is the region’s only Level I adult trauma center and Level I pediatric trauma center.
As Wake Forest Baptist enters the second century, construction is well underway on the $450 million care tower being built on the medical center’s campus.
The care tower will include an upgraded emergency department, state-of-the-art operating rooms and enhanced adult intensive care units. In addition, features include larger and brighter rooms with more natural light and increased privacy, along with new outdoor green space promoting health and wellness.
“As the only academic learning health system in the region, patients come to us from near and far to receive care from some of the most renowned faculty and dedicated staff in the country,” says Dr. Julie Freischlag, CEO of Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, dean of Wake Forest School of Medicine and chief academic officer of Atrium Health. “This new facility will allow us to enhance our clinical capabilities, build on our expertise, expand our educational and research opportunities, and continue to attract the best and brightest learners who are the next generation of health care professionals.”
Regenerative Medicine
Also making waves in the medical field right now is the newly launched RegeneratOR Test Bed, where resources are being fused to advance the regenerative medicine field nationally and create an economic development engine for not only the region but also the state.
The goal of regenerative medicine is to replace or reboot tissues or organs damaged because of disease, injury, age or other issues instead of treating symptoms with medication and procedures.
The RegeneratOR Test Bed is the result of two frontrunners in the regenerative medicine field joining forces: RegenMed Development Organization, or ReMDO, a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Winston-Salem, and the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, or WFIRM. The institute is the largest regenerative medicine institute in the world and was the first to engineer laboratory-grown organs that were successfully implanted into humans.
Located in the city’s Innovation Quarter — an urban center of highly innovative science and technology – the RegeneratOR Test Bed will help accelerate the growth of startups and scale mid-to-large-size companies with innovative and emerging technologies. Participants will have access to state-of-the-art biomanufacturing equipment, industry expertise and talent to support novel prototyping and commercial product development.
“Our goal is to accelerate the timeline between researching regenerative medicine treatments and integrating therapies into patient care,” says Dr. Anthony Atala, founding director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine. “It takes a collaborative approach, and the RegeneratOR is the hub that brings stakeholders together.”
Joining the RegeneratOR Test Bed undertaking are two other entities offered through the ReMDO’s RegeneratOR program. The RegeneratOR Innovation Accelerator provides access to state-of-the-art biomanufacturing equipment and industry expertise. And RegeneratOR Workforce Development is a resource connecting educational institutions with industry professionals to train a skilled workforce. Companies the RegeneratOR program have helped attract to the Innovation Quarter include Mercodia, Axiom Space and Brinter, with a focus on translating scientific discovery into clinical therapies.
Get to Know Winston-Salem, NC
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