ECU, PCMH open outpatient endoscopy center

GREENVILLE, N.C. —   A new medical practice site has opened offering more convenient access to certain types of medical procedures.At the East Carolina Endoscopy Center, physicians will perform endoscopic procedures to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal conditions such as colon cancer. The center is on the third floor of Moye Medical Center at 521 Moye Blvd.

Moye Medical Center

The center is a joint venture between East Carolina University’s medical practice, ECU Physicians, and Pitt County Memorial Hospital. PCMH will provide staffing and management oversight, while ECU will provide doctors for the center. The center opened in January.

“The East Carolina Endoscopy Center will play a critical role in the early detection of colon cancer and other GI-related illness for our community,” said Todd Hickey, vice president of cancer and clinical services at PCMH. “This service is provided with the latest technology by the most qualified personnel to provide an effective yet comfortable patient-care experience.”

Endoscopies are procedures that allow physicians to look inside the body using a tiny camera housed in a small flexible tube and inserted through the mouth or rectum. At the new center, physicians will perform procedures such as upper endoscopies, colonoscopies and flexible sigmoidoscopies on patients who have low risk factors.

“The new facility is more convenient for patient access” with better parking and shorter walks, said Dr. Dennis Sinar, a gastroenterologist, professor at the Brody School of Medicine at ECU and medical director of the endoscopy center. “The anesthesia we will be using is more rapid and effective than any we’ve used in the past. This anesthesia has a rapid recovery and should allow patients to resume normal activity quicker than with standard types of anesthesia.”

Certified registered nurse anesthetists specially trained to administer appropriate levels of anesthesia to patients provide these services at the center.

The 11,000-square-foot center has three procedure rooms and a dozen preparatory/recovery rooms. The two gastroenterologists and five surgeons perform 12 to 15 procedures daily, and the center has space for a fourth procedure room.

The East Carolina Endoscopy Center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Patients must be referred by their primary care physician.