Celebration Medical Company Gets Stimulus Money
April 9, 2010 by Jim Siegel
Filed under Around Town
Located in Celebration, Florida, the Nicholson Center for Surgical Advancement (NCSA) was recently awarded $4.2 million by the federal government as part of the 2009 federal stimulus program. The project was one of two earmarks requested by Congressman Allan Grayson that would have directly affected Celebration. The House Appropriations Committee rejected the other, $750,000 requested to upgrade the planned Celebration library.
The Nicholson Center for Surgical Advancement, located at Florida Hospital Celebration Health, develops and disseminates cutting edge surgical knowledge and techniques through state-of-the-art teleconferencing technology. Participants perform minimally invasive surgical procedures at one of nine state-of-the-art endoscopically equipped stations, mastering invasive surgical skills.
The money will pay for the training of doctors and the development of robotic surgery techniques. The money will create dozens of new high-paying jobs. A primary goal of the project is to save the lives of U.S. troops in the field. The directed spending (earmark) will come from the Department of Defense and is the largest single award in the 8th Congressional District for 2010.
Doctors will eventually be able to use the technology to perform life-saving operations on troops in the field, long before they can get to a hospital, performed remotely by surgeons that might be located anywhere in the world. The funding will lead to the direct creation of at least 50 high-tech jobs over a five-year period here. The workers will make an average of $55,000 a year.
The award will help establish a new “Global Center of Excellence in Medical Robotics and Simulation,” which will be housed at the NCSA.
“It is our vision to expand the reach of the Nicholson Center and this grant will help us make this goal a reality,” said Lars Houmann, president and CEO of Florida Hospital. “The support of the local community and lawmakers has provided us with assistance that allows Orlando to continue on its path of becoming a medical destination.”
“It is so important that physicians have access to a training facility that advances the understanding of robotic and simulation technologies,” said Dr. Monica Reed, administrator of Florida Hospital Celebration Health. “Florida Hospital Celebration Health is so fortunate to house this outstanding facility where physicians from all over the world will have the opportunity to further improve their skills in robotic surgery.”
In a press conference following the announcement of the award, Congressman Grayson admitted that the award was an earmark that apparently did not have to pass much Congressional scrutiny, but defended it on the basis of 1) earmarks are such a relatively small percentage of congressional spending, 2) because it represented defense department spending that would ordinarily go to traditional defense contractors located outside the district, and 3) because it will be used to save lives of combat soldiers in the field.
Celebration News- Florida Hospital – Dr. McCarus
- Celebration Florida's Fun Station Closes
- Florida Hospital Celebration Health - Dr. Redan
- Best Restaurants in Celebration Florida
- Celebration Town Tavern - Celebration, Florida
[...] rest is here: Celebration Medical Company Gets Stimulus Money | Celebration … Share and [...]