Alumni Story

Study hard and enjoy your time with the Catawba community!”

Originally from the town of Whitsett, NC, Jon Slaughter liked Catawba College for its size and the accessibility and dedication of its faculty. “I was looking for a smaller school focused on teaching,” he says. “The professors at Catawba were great. It was great to have small class sizes with professors who loved to teach. At larger universities, you often end up in large classes with graduate teaching assistants.”

An invitation to join Catawba’s cross-country team was the factor which precipitated a campus visit by Jon. He had been interested in history in high school, as well as science, and choosing to major in biology at Catawba was not a difficult decision.  “I was always curious with how things worked within people and other living things. I knew I wanted to go to medical school and biology fit with that plan.” Jon didn’t have to give up his love of history, however. “I ended up minoring in history and history remains a hobby of mine.”

Jon’s student years were actively spent balancing not only the coursework and labs required for biology majors and running on the cross country team, but as an SGA Class Senator, a Catawba Guide for the admissions office, an Alpha for Orientation, and as a member of the Philomathean Society, The Order of The Blue and The White, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Beta Beta Beta Biological Honor Society, and Alpha Chi.

Upon graduation, Jon followed through on his medical school plans, obtaining his degree from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and completing his residency at the Medical University of South Carolina. He did a neonatal fellowship at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center prior to joining Nationwide Children’s Hospital as a neonatologist and faculty member. He is a tenured professor of pediatrics at The Ohio State University and holds a courtesy appointment in epidemiology.

Jon currently commits a majority of his time to research but remains involved in the care of his very young patients: sick and preterm infants in the NICU. He discovered his interest in pediatrics in medical school, and specifically in working with babies during a rotation in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) where he enjoyed checking in on the babies prior to going on to do rounds.

During his medical education, he noticed differences in treatment decisions in the NICU at each school. He realized that there were practice variations in treatment of infant health conditions among institutions and even among doctors at the same hospital, existing due to an absence of proven established guidelines. He wanted to address that and focused his efforts first on a condition that occurs in preterm babies called patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). Jon explains, “Prior to birth, we all have a ductus arteriosus, an open blood vessel that bypasses the lungs. At birth when we start breathing, the PDA should close in a day or so, but it often stays open in extremely preterm infants.”

Obtaining a grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH), Jon and his fellow researchers seek to determine the effectiveness of commonly used treatments for infants with PDA along with whether to intervene, when to do so, and what method is best, within variables such as days or weeks of age and contributing risk factors. Their initial research surveyed 40 hospitals nationwide. The goal is to establish evidence-based guidelines for physicians to use, which ultimately will improve patient outcomes overall. He also studies other neonatal therapies and NICU treatment variations including those for a condition known as hyperbilirubinemia, a form of infant jaundice, which untreated can lead to brain damage.

Jon is also a leader of the Nationwide Children’s/Ohio State site of a large study, the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Cohort, where mothers consent to participate during pregnancy.  He explains, “We are one of over 20 sites around the U.S. that collect surveys on many exposures such as social determinants of health, medical and vaccine history, nutrition, pollution exposure, and biological samples to measure genetic and biological exposures. Following pregnancy, we aim to follow the children until the age of 21. This large study will help us understand those things which affect child development to help children reach their full potential.”

While Jon is devoted to his life’s work, it’s not his entire life. “I enjoy traveling and have been lucky to travel to Europe, Central America, and throughout North America with my family. I enjoy gardening and growing native plants in the summer. Throughout the year, I love reading non-fiction, especially history, and am always wanting to learn.”

His advice for new and current Catawba students is easily followed: “Study hard and enjoy your time with the Catawba community!”  Doctor’s orders.