LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Louisiana Economic Development (LED), LSU Health New Orleans, and the Office of the Governor of Louisiana joined forces to establish a new bariatric/metabolic surgery program, which will include an outpatient center on Pennington Biomedical’s Baton Rouge campus, in 2020.
Dr. Phil Schauer, professor of surgery at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, and director of the Cleveland Clinic Bariatric and Metabolic Institute (BMI), has been named director of the program. Schauer is renowned for being the first surgeon to perform laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery (1997). He has since performed more than 8,000 operations for severe obesity and handles many of the most difficult bariatric surgery cases in the world. Besides authoring more than 350 peer-reviewed scientific papers, he is one of the three most-cited authors in the bariatric surgery literature. He led the STAMPEDE trial, which found that bariatric surgery could reverse type 2 diabetes in up to 80 percent of patients. These findings have changed the guidelines for treating diabetes around the world.
“The recruitment of Dr. Schauer represents a new day for obesity research at Pennington Biomedical, and indeed for Baton Rouge and the State,” Pennington Biomedical Executive Director John Kirwan said. “We now have a unique opportunity to establish Pennington Biomedical as THE research institution in the world for metabolic surgery, and the opportunity to bring bariatric clinical research trials to the people of Louisiana.”
“We are thankful to all of our partners – the state of Louisiana, Our Lady of the Lake, LSU Health New Orleans and Pennington Biomedical Research Foundation – for partnering with us on this initiative,” Dr. Kirwan said. “Through their support and Pennington Biomedical’s reputation as a global leader in obesity and nutrition research, we outcompeted several large academic health centers around the country and successfully recruited Dr. Schauer and his team to Louisiana.”
“This project at Pennington Biomedical and Our Lady of the Lake will deliver great value to Louisiana by combining clinical research, advanced surgery and economic development to produce better health for our people,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said. “Currently, obesity affects over 1.6 million individuals in Louisiana, and this project’s most significant contribution will be to improve the health of individuals while reducing the collective health care burden on our state. We’re excited to welcome Dr. Phil Schauer and his program, which will further advance Pennington Biomedical’s profile as a global research leader in human health.”
The Pennington Biomedical HeadsUp study with the Louisiana State Office of Group Benefits showed that severely obese adults in Louisiana who received bariatric surgery experienced a nearly 60 percent reduction in medical and pharmacy costs over three years after surgery compared to those who did not receive the surgery. Recent statistics indicate that the average employer loses $1,685 per employee per year in health care costs and lost productivity due to obesity and diabetes.
Funding for the Bariatric/Metabolic Surgery program ramp-up will come from a public-private partnership including Pennington Biomedical, Pennington Biomedical Research Foundation, Our Lady of the Lake in Baton Rouge, LSU Health New Orleans, Louisiana Economic Development (LED), and the Office of the Governor of Louisiana. Revenue dollars are expected to flow into the state’s economy from several sources as a result, including National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant dollars that will follow Schauer’s program to Pennington Biomedical.
The new state-of-the-art metabolic disease treatment facility will complement Pennington Biomedical’s existing and highly impactful basic science and clinical research, Schauer said. The facility will also bring cutting-edge treatments for obesity and diabetes to Louisiana, which has the United States’ fourth-highest rate of obesity and diabetes.
“By integrating expert psychologists, dieticians, exercise physiologists, endocrinologists, obesity medicine specialists, and surgeons under one roof we will create a unique integrated care model for managing two of the most deadly diseases of our time, obesity and diabetes,” Schauer said.
“An essential part of LSU’s collective mission is bringing the nation’s best talent right here to Louisiana, and that is what we have done today through the efforts of Pennington Biomedical,” LSU President F. King Alexander said. “It is impossible to overestimate the importance of attracting a researcher and surgeon of Dr. Schauer’s caliber. Wins like this have a ripple effect, sending the message that LSU and Louisiana believe strongly in the power of research and are willing to invest in it.”
Our Lady of the Lake will renovate an existing inpatient area on its campus to accommodate the surgical procedures accompanying the new project, which is expected to more than triple the annual number of bariatric surgeries at the hospital. The outpatient center will be located on the Pennington Biomedical campus. Our Lady of the Lake will also hire new support personnel at both locations.
“As a nationally recognized graduate medical education and research hospital, we are honored to enhance our partnership with Pennington Biomedical and the School of Medicine at LSU Health New Orleans in the establishment of this center for bariatric and metabolic surgery, “ said Our Lady of the Lake President and CEO K. Scott Wester. “I am confident that the creation of this center will make Baton Rouge the leading location for bariatric surgery in North America.”
To secure the project, the State of Louisiana offered a competitive incentive package that includes a $600,000 marketing grant to promote the center as a medical destination for bariatric and metabolic procedures; a $1.8 million grant for professional recruitment, relocation, and retention program costs; and a $3.5 million grant for renovations, leasehold improvements and capital equipment spending for the new center. The state funds will flow directly from LED to the Pennington Biomedical Research Foundation for use in the project. The foundation will also contribute $2.5 million to support the program.
“This is a perfect example of our ability to supplement state and federal funding with private philanthropic dollars to advance groundbreaking science,” said Janet Olson, Chair of the Pennington Biomedical Research Foundation Board of Directors.
“LSU Health New Orleans has worked successfully with Pennington Biomedical and Our Lady of the Lake in the past,” said Dr. Steve Nelson, dean of the LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine. “We are excited about this new opportunity to work with one of the world’s leading bariatric surgeons, Dr. Schauer, as he establishes a center that combines his surgical and research interests in obesity.”
“Our School of Medicine is just the place where collaboration can take place among a distinguished group of scientists, outstanding health care professionals, their skilled staffs, and our motivated students,” said LSU Health New Orleans Chancellor Dr. Larry Hollier. “From medical device development to the development of new surgical procedures and training of surgical fellows, we are poised to create a global center through this project.”
The new program in Bariatric/Metabolic Surgery lays the foundation for a center of excellence that will be a key asset within the Baton Rouge Health District. Created in 2016 with support from the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, the Baton Rouge Health District encompasses major healthcare employers spanning Interstate 10 and Perkins Road to the north and south, and Bluebonnet Boulevard and Essen Lane on the east and west.