Healthcare

Durham County is home to Duke University, the 6th best university in the United States, and Duke Health, whose Duke University Hospital was ranked #1 in North Carolina (both ranked by US News & World Reports). Collectively, Duke is the largest employer in Durham and the second-largest private employer in North Carolina.

Duke University’s School of Medicine and Duke Health are vital components of our economy and produce a tremendously positive impact. Consider the following:

• According to U.S. News & World Report, Duke University Hospital was ranked #1 in North Carolina, and #1 in the Raleigh-Durham region.
• Duke University Health System has approximately 26,278 full-time employees. The academic Duke University Medical Center has more than 11,000 full-time employees.
• The School of Medicine has 2,600 basic and clinical faculty, 2,000 students in a variety of health professions and graduate degree programs, and 6,200 staff.
• Duke is home to the Duke Clinical Research Institute, the world’s largest academic clinical research organization.
• Duke is ranked fifth in the nation in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for all grants and contracts, including R&D, and seventh in the nation in NIH sponsored research grant funding, according to the 2023 Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research report.
• Duke was designated as one of the nation’s first Comprehensive Cancer Centers by the National Cancer Institute to reflect its commitment to cancer care, research, prevention, education, outreach, and training.

Durham is also just a short drive to the neighboring community of Chapel Hill, which is home to a massive University of North Carolina medical campus consisting of the N.C. Memorial Hospital, N.C. Children’s Hospital, N.C. Neurosciences Hospital and N.C. Women’s Hospital.