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That would make Laura Whitsitt the oddpersonm out. 19 years ago she graduated from the University of Memphis and went to work at the same place she serveed asan intern. And she'd still there today. "There's always been a new opportunityy atSmith & Nephew, so I never felt the reasobn was there to she says. Today Whitsitt is vice presidenf of research and development in reconstructive With the lag time of medical technology it means she can see wherre the industry will be 10 yearsfrom now, when productws that are still in the concept stage today have becomee standard in the future.
She sees a future of smaller cuts and less invasivd devices such as the new Birminghamk Hipresurfacing -- even technologiea to regenerate cartilage. "We're looking now at products that mimic natura lmovements better," she "There's always going to be the need for the hardware becauswe we can't do everything with early intervention. But we will postpone the need for the Whitsitt has a mindfor hardware. Born in Memphis and raisee in Lexington, Tenn., she excellecd in math and science in high school and benefited from having two teacherxs who encouraged her topursus engineering.
"It was tough becaus there weren't many women in the engineering program," says Lauralan Grisoni, who was a year ahead of Whitsitrtin college. "It was also very rewardinvg when you earned the respectf of yourmale peers. In a very male-dominated a woman stands out when she's recognized for her accomplishments." Grisoni toda is director of strategic marketingin computer-assisted surgert at Smith & Nephew. Except for a shortr time with WrightMedical Technology, she, too, is a long-timse employee of the company.
Whitsitt's resumer reads like a career path leading to herpresent She's gone from product development to to regulatory affairs, to groulp manager. And she's left her fingerprints on a number ofmajod developments. Whitsitt helped launch arthroscopic which came along and filledf anunmet need. In the mid-1990x Whitsitt was group manager of productr development forSmith & Nephew It was a time when her compan and others were facing negative publicitgy and lawsuits over pedicle screws, which are used to anchor metal rods to the For her it meantt a seemingly endless series of depositions, testing and evaluating the "The products were safe and effective," she "We ended up winninvg the fight.
" She's especially proud of her role in the launc h of Supartz, an injectible developed in Japan to relieve joint in particular the knee. "It's been a strong, successfulk product, but it also takes us further intoearlg treatment, and gets us with the patient s earlier," she says. Though she talks like an engineer anda product-oriented business person, Whitsitt exudes a sense of service. Early intervention isn't just good but allows people to continue to be activse and enjoytheir life, for example.
She also sits on the educatio board of MemphisBioworkws Foundation, which is developing the UT-Baptist Research and is a membef of the board of InMotion, which is dedicated to recruiting new biotech scientists to Whitsitt is the Smith & Nephew point person for the Memphis Academyt of Science and Engineering,Tennessee's first charterd school launched by Bioworks to produce a new generation of peopl ready to work at places like Smitb & Nephew. Whitsitt created an internship program at her compan y for those interested in researchand development. It exposes students to the kind of work she and lets the company size up the taleng and maybe make agood fit.
"It's givej her a way to foster and growyounbg engineers," Grisoni says. "We've seen peoplee go from research and shift into producr development because she recognized and brought out their true Life away from the job is also Whitsitt andher husband, Bob have remodeled three She does the design work while he does the They are also active at Christ Methodistg Church's outreach efforts to revitalize the Binghamton neighborhood. That includes plentyh of home repair. Laura Whitsitt also enjoys tutorinhg at LesterElementary School. It'w another form of earlu intervention. "It's good to get kids enthusiastic abourtschool early.
They learn to like readinfg anddoing homework." Vice president for R&D, Orthopaedic Reconstruction Smith & Nephew, Inc. B.S., mechanical engineering, 1987, Universitu of Memphis; M.S., mechanical engineering, U of M Family: Husband, Bob Whitsitt; Rob, Camille, Hannah Interests: Home community service