The Tribune

The new owners of a Freeport-based stem cell therapy clinic have named Vincent R. Burton as its president.

Black Beret Life Sciences, the life sciences investment and management arm of the Houston-based Bosarge Family Office, named Dr Burton to head the Okyanos Center for Regenerative Medicine.

The centre is licensed by the Bahamas' National Stem Cell Ethics Committee (NSCEC). Dr Burton received his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree (MBBS) from the University of the West Indies, and has served as chief anesthesiologist at Okyanos since it opened in 2014.

Prior to joining Okyanos, Dr Burton served as house officer at the Rand Memorial and Princess Margaret hospitals in the Bahamas. He later became senior house officer at the Rand Memorial Hospital in Freeport, and presently maintains his role as consultant anesthesiologist.

Dr Burton is a director of anesthesia and intensive care for the Grand Bahama Public Hospitals' Authority, and is vice-president of the Grand Bahama Medical and Dental Association.

"Okyanos differentiates itself with world class clinicians, exemplary staff and a culture of teamwork," said Dr. Burton. "I am very proud to step into this leadership role and help the team continue to deliver safe, superior therapies.

"I am also excited to lead the collaboration with a third-party contract research organisation to obtain clinically meaningful data to further validate the improved outcomes of our patients."

Okyanos also announced that Marc Penn will join the Okyanos team as the director of research and development. He is board certified in both cardiovascular and internal medicine, and is director of research at Summa Health Heart and Vascular Institute in Akron, Ohio. His research has led to several discoveriesin the field of cardiovascular medicine.

"Okyanos has been providing adult stem cell therapy in a regulated jurisdiction at a high level of safety and care," said Dr Penn. "In collaboration with the NSCEC of the Bahamas, we look forward to expanding our offering of proprietary regenerative medicine treatments at Okyanos.

"We remain committed to patient safety and transparency, as well as the collection of clinical data from the patients we treat using independent research organisations to further the development of the regenerative medicine field globally."

Okyanos performs procedures that address an array of neurologic, cardiovascular, orthopedic and urologic conditions.