The Post June 2013 by Mickey Cuthbertson

06•2013

THE

PAGE 12

Welcoming two new deans PAGE 6

All aboard the nanotrain PAGE 16

A graduation to remember PAGE 10

D e n t i s t ry • M e d i c i n e • N u r s i n g • P h a r m a c y • P u b l i c H e a lt h AN D H e a lt h P r o f e s s i o n s • V e t e r i n a ry M e d i c i n e

contents

On the Cover

UF&Shands is now UF Health. As the University of Florida and Shands move forward together under this new name, The POST highlights exactly what UF Health is and all the ways our academic health center benefits our patients and the community around us.

Table of Contents 3

Post it

Administration: All about UF Health

Administration: New deans

Patient Care: Minimally invasive gynecology program

Patient Care: Tot teeth

Education: Second-graders go Gators

10 Education: Congrats to the grads

Cover Story: We are UF Health

Research: All aboard the nanotrain

Research: New findings for hepatitis C

Research: Misperceptions about ‘Weed’

Jacksonville: Protecting Florida’s future

Distinctions

Profile: Judith Wingate

up front

Graduating with the stars

Photo by Maria Belen farias

Financial adviser, bestselling author and TV host Suze Orman had a few words of sage advice for graduating College of Veterinary Medicine students when she delivered the college’s commencement address May 25. Orman encouraged the graduates take advantage of compounding years and start saving money now, put needs above wants and “keep good company” with people who respect their priorities. Orman, whose niece Katie Stender, D.V.M., was among the graduates, also presented the new veterinarians with another priceless gift — a coin minted specifically for them. To read more about the coin and its meaning, visit The POST online at post.health.ufl.edu. To watch Orman’s speech, visit vetmed.ufl.edu or SuzeOrman.com.

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Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

(extra)ordinary person

Healthy at work Giving up her Swedish Fish habit has been tough, but Mary Ann Kiely knows her health is worth it. Kiely, an associate vice president for development in the Office of the Senior Vice President, Health Affairs, altered her meal choices after a bad number popped up during a health screening. “I am at a point in my life where I cannot eat the way I have before,” she said. “Moderation and smart choices have to become a lifestyle change.” To jumpstart that transformation, Kiely joined the Healthy Lifestyle Challenge, a six-week weight-loss competition for UF Health Science Center faculty and staff. This year, 130 participants from seven teams — the colleges of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health and Health Professions, Veterinary Medicine and the Office of the Senior Vice President for Health Affairs — lost a combined total of 670.2 pounds. The College of Pharmacy, with a weight-loss percentage of 3.6, won the overall team competition. Between April 18 and May 30, its 15 participants dropped 101.3 pounds. Weekly seminars were held on healthy eating and fitness beyond the challenge. Now, Sanetz sees participants talking with one another if they fall off course. Coworkers also share healthy recipes and exercising together, said organizer Erin Sanetz, an administrative assistant in the College of Public Health and Health Professions dean’s office. Besides bragging rights, the College of Pharmacy received a trophy and 35 percent of the money pool, which consisted of a $15-per-participant fee and $1 for every missed weekly weigh-in or weight gained. Each team’s male and female winners were awarded 2.5 percent of the money, and overall male and female challenge winners took 15 percent. Weekly winners received $5 gift cards to places like Trader Joes and Publix. — Nicole La Hoz

Dude, where’s my car? Parking on campus may be tricky, but students and faculty cannot park in the patient and visitor parking garages unless they have a doctor’s appointment. Faculty and student cars that have three or more citations and are found in patient and visitor parking areas will be booted. Parking attendants will be working until 8:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, and cars cannot exit the garages without a voucher or paying $10. To purchase a parking decal for campus parking lots, visit www.parking.ufl.edu or call 352-392-7275.

Volunteer for a good cause Want to help patients in need? The UF Mobile Clinic provides free primary care, sexually transmitted disease testing and family planning four days a week and two evenings a week. Volunteer physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants work in interprofessional teams with clinic staff and UF Health Science Center students to provide care to more than 4,500 uninsured members of our community each year. The clinic operates on a limited budget and relies on extensive participation of volunteers. (This means you). Volunteer shifts are approximately four hours. To learn more, call Sherice Stewart at 352-273-5329. If you can’t volunteer but would like to make a donation, please make the check payable to: UF Foundation and in the memo section, please write Outreach Programs-Fund F018557.

Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

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(extra)ordinary person

u f h e a l t h . o r g

A new name for a big future On May 20, 2010, we launched an effort to bring together the Health Science Center and Shands into a single vision, through a strategic plan called “Forward Together.” As a result of that plan, “we and they” have become “us.” Our collaboration has grown and strengthened. And we are now entering a critical new stage. In recognition of that transformation, UF&Shands has become UF Health. Our new name will have no impact on the legal status of the UF Health Science Center and Shands, which remain separate organizations. But UF Health is much more than a new name. It’s an avowal that the partnership between our organizations has reached a new stage — and it’s a symbol that will help us shape a new future together. Our effort to unify the Health Science Center and Shands under one vision has been incredibly successful. Today, our organizations are on the same single path. We’re better at everything we do. We’re not the University of Florida and Shands. We’re not “UF&Shands,” with the ampersand. We’re greater than the sum of our parts — and we need a new name to greet the world. That name should be, and is, UF Health. Remarkably, for institutions founded more than a half-century ago, “Forward Together” was the first-ever strategic plan that brought together Shands and the six colleges of the Health Science Center under a single vision. Before the plan, we often worked alongside each other rather than with each other. The idea behind the plan was that to move forward, we had to work together. It wasn’t long after we launched “Forward Together” that we began to see remarkable progress. HSC researchers and clinicians — and Shands staff members — began carving out more of their busy schedules for important collaborative projects. Today, collaborations are the norm. Shands was founded as Florida’s first teaching hospital in 1958, and it has been a beacon for high-quality health care ever since. Our health science center colleges, too, have a long and proud legacy as being among the best in the nation. Bringing them truly together these past few years, as was intended from the beginning, has been transformational. I noted Shands’ proud historic legacy earlier. We will continue to honor that legacy in Gainesville, where Shands will keep its name preceded by UF Health. Our hospital will become, simply, “UF Health Shands Hospital.” In Jacksonville, Shands has only recent ties, and our extensive consumer research confirms that that people feel good about the UF name — a very important strength in a highly competitive health care marketplace. As a result, our hospital there will be renamed UF Health Jacksonville. As our UF Health name and marketing efforts bring us more attention, the unstoppable momentum behind our partnership, as expressed in the vision statement of Forward Together, will grow and strengthen us. In an era when the University of Florida is engaged in a major new push to join the top public universities, that will mean more demand from patients, better-quality care, more life-changing research and more life-saving interventions. Our momentum as UF Health will mean a tipping point, not only for us, but most importantly for our patients.

Forward Together,

David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D. UF Senior Vice President, Health Affairs President, UF Health

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Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

More than just a name change Why UF Health? University of Florida Health — UF Health — better represents who we are today. We sought to establish a unified brand that better tells our story as the premier academic health center in the Southeast, in part because research showed consumers feel very positively about our UF connection. Our story is best told by using one name — one that sets us apart from our peers and competitors, that gives us national distinction and that more precisely identifies who we are and what we do.

What does this change mean for patients? While our name is changing, our focus remains the same: to deliver high-quality, patient-centered care resulting in outstanding outcomes. This change will not affect the patient-physician relationship.

Is this a merger or acquisition? This is not a merger or acquisition between UF and Shands and there are no plans for this to occur in the future. We are legally separate organizations and governance and leadership structures remain the same. Shands employees will not become University of Florida employees.

What can we expect to happen in the coming weeks and months? Our name will transition from UF&Shands to UF Health. We have launched a new advertising campaign to announce this change and to showcase how our research advances benefit patients.

How will you start to change to the new name and logo? The roll-out of UF Health will occur in stages over several months. We want to responsibly manage the expenses associated with this transition to the new name and logo. Some changes can occur with little or no investment. For example, we have quickly changed our website templates to reflect our new name. New advertisements will reflect the new brand. And ways in which we refer to ourselves will be adapted immediately to reflect UF Health. Other shifts will happen over time. As printed materials run out and need to be updated, we will use new names and the UF Health logo. This includes letterhead and business cards.

Name changes at a glance … In Gainesville:

In Jacksonville:

Shands at the University of Florida............... UF Health Shands Hospital

Shands Jacksonville ............... UF Health Jacksonville

Shands Cancer Hospital at UF ........................ UF Health Shands Cancer Hospital

UF&Shands Jacksonville ...... UF Health at Jacksonville

Shands Hospital for Children at UF............... UF Health Shands Children’s Hospital Shands Rehab Hospital ..................................... UF Health Shands Rehab Hospital Shands Vista ........................................................... UF Health Shands Psychiatric Hospital UF&Shands Florida Recovery Center ........... UF Health Florida Recovery Center UF Physicians.......................................................... UF Health Physicians UF Shands Cancer Center ................................. UF Health Cancer Center

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administration

The dean team

Two HSC colleges welcome new deans

James Lloyd, D.V.M., Ph.D.

fter Anna McDaniel, Ph.D., R.N., was named the fifth dean of the UF College of Nursing, she was welcomed by more than 1,500 faculty, students, families and staff at the college’s spring commencement ceremony and given a dozen “Gator” orange roses amidst applause and well wishes. She called it “one of the proudest moments” of her academic career. Hailing from Indiana University where she served as associate dean for research at the School of Nursing, McDaniel’s long journey to this moment started as an uneasy nursing student at Ball State University in Indiana. At first a social work major, she switched to nursing because it paired her love of science with her desire to help people. But she found her first clinical courses to be an uncomfortable experience. Thankfully, she stuck with it and found that nursing was an intellectual challenge she found fascinating and personally rewarding. “Once I understood the richness of the profession, I realized I was right where I should be.” Her perseverance is something that has benefited McDaniel throughout her career. At Indiana University, McDaniel led the school’s Center for Research and Scholarship to support faculty in the development and implementation of research and scholarly activities through expansion of external funding. Her own research focuses on using technology for cancer prevention and control, and she is currently the principal investigator on a $3.2 million study funded by the National Cancer Institute studying how technology can enhance telephone-based smoking cessation services. “I am so honored to be joining the outstanding faculty, staff and students at the University of Florida College of Nursing,” McDaniel said. “The college has many areas of strength, but I also see amazing opportunities to attract more expert faculty and talented students and to forge new collaborations with other colleges and units in and outside of UF.” — Tracy Brown Wright

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Anna McDaniel, Ph.D., R.N.

Photo by Maria Belen farias

rowing up in northern Lower Michigan, James Lloyd, D.V.M., Ph.D., was part of a community that depended on livestock to make a living. Friends, family and neighbors ran small farms, and although his own family didn’t raise farm animals as a primary source of income, they owned horses and cattle in addition to pets of various shapes and sizes. So when it was time for college, he says it made perfect sense to combine a fondness for those animals with a strong interest in science and medicine. Lloyd earned his doctorate in veterinary medicine from Michigan State University in 1981 and a Ph.D. in agricultural economics from MSU in 1989 — a “highly unusual” combined degree born from the realization that veterinary medicine is almost always practiced in a business environment. “Veterinary practices are often small, family-run businesses very similar to the farms that also house our livestock,” Lloyd said. “There’s a nice complement there. Studying agribusiness management helped me understand the small business environment where our veterinarians live and practice.” In July, Lloyd begins his role as dean of the UF College of Veterinary Medicine, replacing Glen Hoffsis. Lloyd most recently served as the associate dean for budget, planning and institutional research at MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine. Lloyd says he’s looking forward to collaborating with the Health Science Center and UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, engaging with practitioners in the Florida Veterinary Medical Association and working closely with Florida’s diverse animal-owning public — including pet owners, horse owners and the livestock industries. “The UF College of Veterinary Medicine has a very strong reputation across veterinary medicine,” Lloyd says. “I’m really looking forward to working with its outstanding faculty, staff and students and building on the college’s core strengths in teaching, research and service.” — Marilee Griffin

Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

patient care

Finally

pain-free

Katelyn Hinton By Nicole La Hoz

he pain in her knee was so bad last year, 22-yearold Katelyn Hinton had to take time off from work. And after three days of barely standing up, she visited the emergency room in Fort Pierce, Fla., for scans. It was a blood clot in her right leg, going from the knee into her stomach. The bad news didn’t stop there. When Hinton’s menstrual cycles became painful, her doctor informed her that she also had several ovarian cysts. That’s when Hinton was referred to Nash Moawad, M.D., M.S., director of the Center of Excellence in Minimally Invasive Gynecology and head of minimally invasive surgery in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the UF College of Medicine. “I’ll still drive there for whatever I need be-

cause Dr. Moawad is the best,” Hinton said. The department of obstetrics and gynecology received its Center of Excellence designation in October from the American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists. The center focuses on reducing complications post-surgery by using laparoscopes (thin, lighted tubes inserted below the belly button), hysteroscopes (lighted viewing instruments inserted through the cervix into the uterus) and robotic surgery with small or no incisions. “It’s a center or department that excels in a certain field,” Moawad said. “It provides more than what the average center will provide.” Minimally invasive procedures require one to two weeks of recovery time versus four to six weeks after traditional surgery. Patients are sometimes discharged the same day. Everything, from minimally invasive surgical volume to 24-hour anesthesiologist coverage, is taken into consideration for a “Center of Excellence” distinction. “The goals are to improve the safety of patients, efficiency and decrease the risk of complications,” Moawad said. Because Hinton was on blood thinners at the time, surgery was too risky. Instead, she received Depo-Provera, a birth control shot, for six months before Moawad and his team performed laparoscopic surgery in November to remove all of Hinton’s ovarian cysts and endometriosis, which occurs when tissue that normally lines the uterus grows in other parts of the body. To Moawad, endometriosis surgery is what makes the center stand out. “We can remove the endometriosis and restore pelvic anatomy without having to remove ovaries or perform a hysterectomy,” Moawad said. “Patients can retain fertility.” When Hinton saw pictures of the cysts compared to her ovaries, she was shocked. The endometriosis was so extreme, her ovaries stuck to her back. “I was completely gray, weak and in so much pain, I had to take off from work a week at a time,” she said. “Now, I’m pain-free because Dr. Moawad is the absolute best.” It’s not just the center’s skills that make it great, Hinton said. It’s also the bedside manner of its staff. “Dr. Moawad calls and checks on me every few months to make sure everything’s fine,” Hinton said. “If he can take care of it for me, I’ll go there,” Hinton said — even with a 3.5-hour drive. P

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patient care

Baby

teeth ee

Teaching new moms about oral health gives babies something to smile about Ronda Moore, a pediatric dental resident, teaches Kim Maxson how to brush her daughter’s teeth as fourth-year dental student Jimmy Lapnawan and Leda Mugayar, watch.

By Nicole La Hoz

fter learning that her 2-year-old daughter will need dental fillings, Sheena Smith grabbed a toothbrush from her dentist and nodded her head to every dietary recommendation. Serve milk at meals. And if Kelsey Toms, Smith’s daughter, wants juice, ensure that it’s from actual fruit. “With children’s teeth being smaller, they’re more susceptible to getting cavities,” Kathy Parsons, a College of Dentistry second-year resident, told Smith. The services are a part of the Treating Our Toddlers Oral Health Program, or TOTs, an initiative of the College of Dentistry’s department of pediatric dentistry that educates pregnant women and new mothers about the effects of oral health on children. “They fix her teeth for me,” Smith said. “That’s all that matters to me. I just want her to have healthy teeth.” Leda Mugayar, D.D.S., leads the early-prevention program. “It’s all about the education,” Mugayar said. TOTs teaches its clients the importance of be-

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ing cavity-free for life. The College of Dentistry department of community dentistry and behavioral science is also helping encourage oral health among children and mothers. In May, they started to provide education and intervention services, dental screenings, fluoride varnish applications and dental clinic referrals at the Park Avenue location of Women, Infants and Children, a government program that provides nutrition counseling and support for women and their children. Dental care for children under age 5 and pregnant women under 21 are provided in the TOTs clinic. “We do know that the oral health status of women and children are related,” said Jaana Gold, director of the UF WIC Oral Health Program and a professor in the College of Dentistry. Mother-to-child transmission of germs causing caries, the most common infectious disease in children, occurs through kissing and using the same spoon. “Although dental care during pregnancy is safe and can prevent long-term health problems, many women do not seek dental care during pregnancy or for their young children,” Gold said. The program will visit WIC one to two days a week in collaboration with the College of Medicine department of obstetrics and gyne-

cology. Leaders hope to expand the number of visits per week this fall. “I don’t think you can do prevention without education,” Mugayar said. “I cannot prevent accidents on the road if I do not educate you. That’s what we’re trying to do in this clinic.” TOTs dentists see babies every three months until they’re 3-and-a-half years old. Most patients are Medicaid recipients, and at that age Medicaid stops paying for fluoride varnish, a high concentration of fluoride applied to the surface of teeth. With consistent visits, dentists follow mothers through breastfeeding stages and babies’ transitions from liquid to solid foods. Habits like bottle feeding at night are the most prevalent causes of dental caries in children under 3, making diet a critical part of children’s dental care. “Brushing and cleaning is not the secret,” Mugayar said. “It’s what you eat. What you put in your mouth, not necessarily what you remove from there, matters most.” TOTs gives mothers an advantage. Mugayar said the program instills the concept of oral health in mothers early, and babies become desensitized to dental visits. It leaves them one step ahead — even before their teeth have grown in. “Coming to the dentist becomes something fun,” Mugayar said. “We grow together: mother, baby, dentist.” P

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education

Second-graders

‘Go Gators’

Arizona second-grade class adopts UF to learn about college

By Nicole La Hoz

uring reading time, Julie Allums’ second-grade students gravitate toward “The UF Basket.” It’s a container holding pamphlets and magazines from the University of Florida that sits by a bulletin board covered in Post-It notes of information regarding UF. The students’ biggest discovery: Gainesville is 1,915 miles from their school. Every classroom at Ford Elementary in Tucson, Ariz., including Allums’ students, adopted a university as part of a schoolwide college project. Before spring break, Allums paired students to send letters to seven of UF’s 16 colleges, including the Warrington College of Business Administration and the colleges of Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural and Life Sciences, Journalism and Communications, Dentistry, Engineering and Pharmacy. “Dear University of Florida, we are second-grade students at Ford Elementary in Tucson, Arizona who are learning about how important it is for us to attend college when we grow up. Our magic number is 2027; this is the year we will graduate from college!” When they returned from spring break, her second-graders found packages of Gator gear waiting for them. “The kids say, ‘Oh my God, look at this!’ Our door, hallway, everything is just covered with UF,” she said. “All the kids know their lessons on college and how important it is.” College of Pharmacy Dean William “Bill” Riffee, Ph.D., described Gator sports and UF’s colleges in his letter. “Dear Ford Elementary Students, I’m so pleased that you are thinking about your future and planning for college in 2027. At the University of Florida, we have students who come from every state, including Arizona. We also have many students who come from other countries around the world. I am the Dean of the UF College of Pharmacy, which means that I’m like your principal.”

Students in Julie Allums’ second-grade class in Arizona have spent the year learning about UF and communicating with UF colleges. The letter came with Gator Pharmacy giveaways. Allums said her students thoroughly enjoyed the letters; they’re sending “big thank you cards” with orange hearts and blue writing to each college. “They all have an idea of what they want to be with the understanding that this could change a lot before they finally go to college,” Allums said. One student is deciding between meteorology and becoming the president. “I know, and they know, a whole lot more about the school.” P

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education

Photo by Maria Belen farias Photo by Maria Belen farias

Photo by Maria Belen farias

Bright futures

06â&#x20AC;˘2013

Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

Photo by Jesse S. Jones

Congratulations are in order for the hundreds of UF Health Science Center students who graduated in May. Good luck, Gator grads!

Visit us online @ http://post.health.ufl.edu for the latest news and HSC events.

06â&#x20AC;˘2013

By April Frawley Birdwell

As the University of Florida and Shands move forward together under the new name UF Health, The POST highlights exactly what UF Health is and all the ways our academic health center benefits our patients and the community around us. In April, Sherry Behning made the hour-and-a-half long trip from her home in Orange Park to Gainesville for what she assumed

heads together if we find problems.” Finding specialists who understand Turner Syndrome is

would be a routine checkup. For 52-year-old Behning, who was

critical for patients like Behning — although more is known

born with Turner Syndrome and an accompanying congenital

about the disease today than it was when she was born. At the

heart defect, “routine” meant a heart catheterization, a

time, doctors told her mother that she would never live to be

procedure she has had about 10 times throughout her life to

20. Even when she was a college student, Behning remembers

monitor her heart’s faulty valves.

being in a genetics class where the professor told his students

However, routine quickly turned into serious when the

that patients with Turner Syndrome were profoundly mentally

catheterization revealed the beginnings of an aortic dissection,

challenged. Behning later sent him a copy of her diploma

a tear in the aorta that can quickly turn deadly if not caught

when she earned her master’s degree.

and treated before it ruptures. Patients with Turner Syndrome,

Aside from providing specialized care for patients with the

a genetic disease that occurs when a woman is born with a

disease, the Turner Syndrome Center team plans to focus on

missing or incomplete X chromosome, are particularly

conducting research that will help girls diagnosed with the

susceptible to aortic dissection.

disorder. “We plan to focus on the cardiovascular aspects of

Luckily for Behning, she had come to UF Health, home to one of the only centers for the treatment of Turner Syndrome in the Southeast and a Congenital Heart Center with

Turner Syndrome and reduction of cardiac risk in these patients,” Co-Vu says. Turner syndrome is a common disorder affecting about 1 in

cardiologists and a surgeon who knew how to handle her

2,000 females. It affects all girls and women a little differently,

complicated condition. Because she’d had other open-heart

but there are a set of common problems that affect most who

surgeries to repair her heart valves, her surgeon, Mark Bleiweis,

have it. Heart defects are the most deadly. Those diagnosed

M.D., implanted a tube graft — developed by a UF scientist

also typically have short stature and infertility.

— to fix the dissection. “If I had not gone to Gainesville, I am not sure I would still be

“The goal of creating the Turner Syndrome Center is to provide state-of-the-art, consolidated care for girls and women

here,” says Behning, who finally went home after 54 days in the

with Turner Syndrome,” Fudge says. “Having a specialized

hospital in early June. “They are that good. They are that

center will not only improve patient care, but also will allow

persistent in paying attention to symptoms and noticing things.

the development of research in this area. The center will also

It is the fact that they work together. They are a team, and they

create opportunities for social networking for families affected

have conferences where they discuss cases. I think that when

by the disorder.”

you have people as renowned as these folks to be able to put

There are specific learning disorders that can present

aside their egos and, as a group, come to a conclusion, it’s

challenges to patients with the condition, but their intelligence is

amazing. Not all physicians are willing to do that.”

often normal, Fudge says. Because Behning has persevered

Led by pediatric endocrinologist Elizabeth Fudge, M.D., and

through health struggles and her own learning challenges — she

Congenital Heart Center cardiologists Jennifer Co-Vu, M.D.,

has dyslexia — to earn both bachelor’s and master’s degrees,

and Arwa Saidi, M.D., the Turner Syndrome Center of

Fudge recruited her to start mentoring other girls and women

Excellence was established six months ago. It’s the type of

who come to UF Health to be treated for Turner Syndrome.

program only possible at an academic health center like UF

“As a kid with Turner Syndrome, and because of my stature, I

Health, combining the expertise of numerous specialists into

was picked on a lot in high school,” Behning says. “My

one center and allowing patients to meet with all of their

philosophy is twofold: You can either make the best of what you

doctors during one visit. Eventually, they also hope to include

have or you can be frustrated. I have chosen to do my best.”

nutritionists and psychologists as part of the team.

Across UF Health, on its campuses in Gainesville and

“Turner Syndrome is a disease with many organ systems

Jacksonville, dozens of programs like this exist that help our

affected: the most common are short stature, ovarian failure

patients today and are focused on finding new ways to help

and heart abnormalities,” Co-Vu says. “We have consolidated

patients in the future. In many cases, they are programs that

everything so we can provide all of their services in one clinic

could not exist without having six health colleges, five research

visit. This also allows us to immediately collaborate and put our

institutes and hundreds of experts located on the same

Continued on PAGE 14

campus and next to a renowned hospital. Below are just a small sampling of some of the unique programs that exist within and because of UF Health.

ended at the hospital doors. The same was true for patients who visited UF physicians’ practices — and the ways health care data were categorized and tracked on both sides did not match up easily. For researchers trying to track patient outcomes to find

Improving health through education

ways to improve health care, this made wading through UF and

What’s the best way to help people in rural communities become

Shands data challenging, says Gigi Lipori, the senior director of

healthier? Make sure the people charged with caring for them

operational planning and analysis for Shands.

have the best training necessary to meet their needs. That’s the

The establishment of the Integrated Data Repository — a

goal of the Rural South Public Health Training Center, a

collaboration of the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute

collaboration of the UF College of Public Health and Health

and Shands — changed that. Now UF Health data are pooled in a

Professions and the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University

secure and HIPAA-compliant environment, allowing researchers to

Institute of Public Health.

directly query an Institutional Review Board-approved tool for

Mary Peoples-Sheps, Ph.D., the UF senior associate dean for

de-identified cohort identification, feasibility analysis and other

public health, led the development of the center in order to

clinical research planning activities. After the researcher has

address what many experts foresee as a looming public health

honed in on a population for study and receives Institutional

crisis — the lack of adequately trained public health workers to

Review Board approval, an honest broker provides data for the

meet the needs of the communities they serve. Because public

researcher’s use. In research, an honest broker is an organization

health workers often cannot travel for training, the center has

charged with ensuring patient information is properly separated

focused its efforts on providing online tools and courses

from the data researchers receive.

specifically tailored for each county’s specific needs, says Shalewa Noel-Thomas, Ph.D., the program’s coordinator. “Where we live and the situations in which we live dictate our

“This way we have data over the continuum of the patient’s treatment, which affords researchers many new opportunities,” says Lipori, the principal investigator on the project. “This could

health status,” Noel-Thomas says. “In rural areas, there is limited

not have happened unless Shands, UF and the IRB were all headed

access and public health workers are not adequately trained to

in the same direction.”

provide high quality services. If workers are trained and the quality of the services are improved, then the health status of the people in those communities will improve, too.” In addition to working with specific rural counties to train their health care workers, the center also has recently begun offering UF

Raising stroke awareness Every 40 seconds, someone suffers a stroke. Every 3.1 minutes, someone dies from one. Stroke is the nation’s fourth leading cause of death, and UF

public health courses to interested workers online — for free. As

Health Jacksonville has become a leader in stroke awareness and

part of this, they also established an online forum so public health

treatment, providing comprehensive inpatient and outpatient

workers in different areas can work together.

services for the diagnosis, management and rehabilitation of

“With budget cuts and smaller county health departments, each county might just have one expert, so hopefully this will allow

stroke patients. But in addition to operating North Florida’s premier stroke

them to link up to other people,” said Mark Hart, M.A., the center’s

center — UF Health Jacksonville has received the Gold Seal of

coordinator for online learning.

Approval from the Joint Commission and was named a Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Agency for Health Care

How data can save lives The word “data” generally does not generate warm, fuzzy feelings. But when it comes to discovering ways to better treat patients or cure diseases, data may just be the biggest lifesaver of all. Separately, UF and Shands had lots of data about patients and their outcomes. The problem was the data about Shands patients

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Administration — program leaders have worked to reach out to the community to raise awareness about stroke. UF Health Jacksonville’s stroke educator Wayne Hodges has led efforts in the community, partnering with a Florida State College at Jacksonville to establish a stroke course for community health nurses and working with the Florida Association of Rural EMS

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providers to bring stroke training to Florida’s rural counties. Ensuring that health providers are properly trained in stroke care is key, because with a stroke, every second counts. “Sometimes the difference between life and death is a matter of

show the program’s impact on reducing flu burden in a community ” says Cuc Tran, M.P.H., a doctoral student and researcher in the Emerging Pathogens Institute who has worked with the program since 2009. “We have been really lucky in

seconds, and recognizing stroke symptoms is the first and most

being able to draw expert knowledge from different disciplines

important step in getting patients stabilized and treated,” says Scott

in order to tackle this complex project and we hope to share this

Silliman, M.D., a UF associate professor of neurology and medical

with other communities.”

director of UF Health Jacksonville’s Comprehensive Stroke Program.

A hand in paw collaboration Fighting flu

In dogs that develop dilated cardiomyopathy, or DCM, death often

Last fall, when flu season was in full swing, fewer people came to

comes as quickly as six months to two years after diagnosis.

local emergency rooms in Alachua County for influenza-related

Sometimes, dogs die suddenly, before their owners even realize

illnesses than anywhere else in the state, according to the

there is a problem. The disease is particularly common in

county’s Control Flu program.

Doberman pinschers, and when Amara Estrada, D.V.M., heard that

It’s a public health feat, and faculty, students and staff from across UF Health played a big role in making it happen. In 2006, UF partnered with the Alachua County Health

a gene mutation had been discovered that was linked to DCM, she wondered if gene therapy would be possible to help these dogs. After a few phone calls, a collaboration was born between

Department and Alachua County Public Schools to begin

Estrada, an associate professor of cardiology in the College of

offering free FluMist vaccinations to schoolchildren. The goal

Veterinary Medicine and Thomas Conlon, Ph.D., in the College of

was simple — vaccinate the kids, who are super-spreaders of flu,

Medicine, Powell Gene Therapy Center. Together, the researchers

to reduce flu transmission in the community.

began a gene therapy clinical trial with Dobermans recruited

“When you have a highly immunized population, what happens is you see a few cases and it dies,” says Kathleen Ryan,

from across the country. “These kinds of things would be impossible for me in a silo,”

M.D., medical director of the Control Flu program and an

Estrada says. “We are just one of six institutions with all of the

associate professor of pediatrics in the UF College of Medicine.

health colleges on one campus. Putting us all together makes for

“Fifteen years ago, we would see one sick kid and then before

really exciting things. There is so much collaboration potential.”

you know it, half the schools are out with the flu.” Developed in part by Parker Small, M.D., an influenza expert

For Conlon, who works with researchers all over campus in his role as director of the Powell Gene Therapy Center’s Toxicology

and professor emeritus from the College of Medicine, the

Core, his collaborations have allowed him to take part in studies

program brought together experts from the Emerging

that advance both human and animal health at the same time.

Pathogens Institute and students and faculty from the colleges

“Through collaboration, we are able to both help each other

of Nursing, Medicine, Pharmacy, and Public Health and Health

out. On our end, we get to find out how our therapies work

Professions to run the program and conduct research about it.

before going into people, and they get to find out about a

Last fall, Alachua County’s Control Flu program received $1.5 million from the county commission, enough money to allow them to support the program’s infrastructure for the next 15 years. Because of this, program leaders will also have more time to

potential cure for a devastating disease that our four-legged family members also have,” he says. One of his collaborations with the College of Veterinary Medicine includes conducting gene therapy on dogs born with a

improve the program through research and share their success

form of glycogen storage disease, which affects one in 100,000

with other communities.

people in the United States. Like his work with Estrada, not only are people benefiting from the research, but dogs are, too. P

“Our goal is to disseminate this program statewide and to

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research

New UF-developed DNA nanotrain chugs through cancer cells By Lindy Brounley

F researchers have developed a “DNA nanotrain” that fast-tracks its payload of cancer-fighting drugs and bioimaging agents to tumor cells deep within the body. The nanotrain’s ability to cost-effectively deliver high doses of drugs to precisely target cancers and other medical maladies without leaving behind toxic nano-clutter has been the elusive Holy Grail for scientists studying the teeny-tiny world of DNA nanotechnology. DNA holds great promise as a new way to deliver chemotherapy directly to cancer cells, but until now, scientists have not been able to direct nanotherapies to consistently differentiate cancer cells from healthy ones. Other limiting factors include high costs, too-small amounts of drugs delivered and potential toxic side effects. “Most nanotechnology relies on a nanoparticle approach, and the particles are made of inorganic materials; after they’ve been used as a carrier for the drug, they’ll be left inside the body,” said the study’s lead investigator, Weihong Tan, Ph.D., a UF distinguished professor of chemistry, a professor of physiology and functional genomics, and a member of the UF Health Cancer Center and the UF Genetics Institute. “Compared to existing nanostructures, our nanotrain is easier and cheaper to make, is

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highly specific to cancer cells, has a lot of drug-loading power and is very much biocompatible.” Described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Tan’s DNA nanotrain is a threedimensional structure composed of short strands of DNA tethered together into one long train. On the end of the nanotrain is an aptamer, a tiny piece of nucleic acid serving as the train’s “locomotive” on biochemical autopilot to home in on and bind to specific cancer cells. Trailing behind are tethered DNA structures that serve as side-by-side, high-capacity “box cars,” transporting bioimaging agents or drug cargos to their targets. “The beauty of the nanotrain is that by using different disease biomarkers you can hitch different types of DNA probes as the train’s ‘locomotive’ to recognize and target different types of cancers,” Tan said.

“We’ve precisely targeted leukemia, lung and liver cancer cells, and because the DNA probes are so precise in targeting only specific types of cancer cells we’ve seen dramatic reduction in drug toxicity in comparison to standard chemotherapies, which don’t discriminate well between cancerous and healthy cells.” Tan and his colleagues say the DNA nanotrains can be costeffectively made by mixing bits of DNA in a liquid medium. The mixture is then exposed to a compound that stimulates the pieces of DNA to seek each other out and self-assemble into the DNA nanotrains. The type of cancer cell the DNA nanotrain will seek out and destroy is determined by the specific compound added to the mixture as the trigger. The study demonstrated in human cells and in mice that the DNA nanotrains exclusively target the cancer cells for which their probes were programmed. The DNA probes go straight to the cancer cells, leading the nanotrains to dock on the cell membranes and gain entry into the cells. Once inside, the drug payloads disperse, killing the cancer cells. The biodegradable components of the DNA nanotrains decay with the dead cancer cells and are removed by the body’s normal housekeeping mechanisms. “It’s very exciting,” Tan said. “But we still have a long way to go before human trials.” P

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research

Goodbye, hepatitis C? New treatments may free infected patients from the virus By Melissa Lutz Blouin

epatitis C patients may soon have effective new drugs that can clear the liver of the viral infection.

That’s good news for the population believed to be most affected by hepatitis C: the nation’s more than 70 million baby boomers — those born between 1945 and 1965. UF professor of medicine David R. Nelson, M.D., and his colleagues reported the findings from two studies in The New England Journal of Medicine in April. “This is the opening of the floodgates to change the treatment paradigms for this disease,” Nelson said. “It’s the beginning of the end for hepatitis C.” Hepatitis C, a viral liver disease transmitted through contact with an infected person’s blood, can lead to liver problems including liver damage, cirrhosis, liver failure or liver cancer. Because a person with chronic hepatitis C can live symptom-free for years, many people do not know they are infected. Globally, the World Health Organization estimates about 150 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis C, and more than 350,000 people die each year from related liver diseases. In the United States, estimates put the number of infected people between 3 million and 5 million. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that baby boomers account for about 2 million of those in the U.S. who are chronically infected with the disease. In August, the CDC released new guidelines that urged all baby boomers to get tested for hepatitis C, citing the disease’s prevalence, boomers’ lack of awareness of the disease and recent advances in treatment. “This is a huge disease in terms of morbidity and mortality and health care costs,” Nelson said. Until now, treatment for hepatitis C consisted of injections of interferon, a general immune stimulant that turns on the body’s defense mechanisms. However, at the high doses required to treat, interferon often creates toxic side effects, and more than two-thirds of hepatitis C patients cannot use the treatment regimen. Nelson and colleagues conducted two randomized phase 3 trials, the final testing studies before a drug can be considered for approval. The studies, sponsored by Gilead, the maker of the drug sofosbuvir, were conducted with patients who had one of two types of chronic hepatitis C infection. In a trial called POSITRON, a group of 278 patients who could not take interferon took a combination of oral sofosbuvir and ribavirin or a placebo for 12 weeks. In a trial called FUSION, a group of 201 patients who had no response to prior interferon therapy took the drugs for 12 weeks or 16 weeks. Sofosbuvir and ribivarin attack the virus itself, preventing it from replicating. Because the hepatitis C virus only lives and reproduces in the liver, the combination of antiviral compounds enables the body to eventually clear itself of the virus. Viral reproduction was successfully suppressed during treatment for patients in both trials. The trials resulted in complete elimination of the virus in 78 percent of patients for whom interferon was not an option and for 50 percent to 73 percent of patients with prior treatment failure. If the FDA approves this combination of drugs, they will be the first of their kind for the treatment of this disease. P

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More hepatitis C findings In another study, a consortium led by UF and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill discovered that two other antiviral drugs used to treat hepatitis C work as well in real-world patients as they did during clinical trials. The international effort, known as HCVTARGET, followed how newly approved therapies for hepatitis C — telaprevir and boceprevir — are used and managed in routine practice. — Claire Baralt

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research

The marijuana mythbusters

UF researchers’ new book “Weed” tackles misperceptions about marijuana

By April Frawley Birdwell

ore than half of Americans now think marijuana should be legalized, according to survey results the Pew Research Center released in April. But could an inaccurate understanding about modern marijuana and the dangers it poses — particularly to adolescents — be skewing people’s opinions on the subject? Yes, according to a new book written by University of Florida addiction medicine specialists Scott Teitelbaum, M.D., and Michael Nias, J.D., L.C.S.W. The book, titled “Weed: Family Guide to Marijuana Myths and Facts,” is geared toward helping families wade through conflicting information about the drug, which is now legal for medicinal purposes in 18 states. One of the main issues people do not understand is that marijuana is a much stronger drug than it was in decades past, due to crop engineering, Teitelbaum said. In fact, the concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC — the chemical in marijuana that causes users to feel high — is five to seven times higher in the drug today than it was in the 1970s, he added. “This isn’t your father’s marijuana,” said Teitelbaum, medical director of the UF Health Florida Recovery Center and an associate professor of psychiatry in the UF College of Medicine. “The higher THC concentration is associated with more psychiatric problems and more dependence.” Because of the legalization of medical marijuana in certain states and the decriminalization of the drug in others, many people now see the drug as safe, and this perception directly affects use, Teitelbaum said.

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“We know when you look at adolescents, initiation of a drug is inversely proportional to its perceived danger,” he said. “Throughout history if a drug has been perceived as safe and benign, it’s more likely to be tried by young people. But marijuana is not a benign drug. It is associated with addiction and learning problems.” Marijuana use can be particularly risky for adolescents, whose brains are still developing, Teitelbaum added. Typically, women’s brains reach full development in their early 20s, while men’s brains reach maturity in their mid-20s. Teens who have genetic predispositions for developing certain mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, are particularly at risk. “Introducing drugs with neurotoxic effects during this time, while the brain is still developing, can be very damaging. It’s similar to a pregnant woman drinking alcohol,” he said. In addition, teens who try marijuana before age 15 face a four times greater chance of developing an addiction later in life than their peers who don’t smoke pot, according to the book. Unfortunately, Teitelbaum says studies show that about 15 percent of eighth-grade students have already been exposed to the drug. “The more you can do to stop initiation of drugs and have honest and open communication, the better chance you have of not having your child develop a drug addiction,” Teitelbaum said. “Weed: Family Guide to Marijuana Myths and Facts” is available for purchase on the University Press of Florida website as well as on amazon.com in both paperback and e-book. P

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To dose or not to dose? Aspirin not always the best treatment for patients By Melissa Lutz Blouin

n aspirin a day may not always keep heart disease away, say two UF cardiologists. But a new algorithm they have developed outlines factors physicians should weigh as they assess whether a patient would benefit from a daily dose of the drug. Approximately 50 million people in the United States pop a daily aspirin pill to treat or prevent heart disease. Of these, at least half take more than 100 milligrams of the drug — more than one baby aspirin — a day. Although aspirin has been widely used in cardiovascular medicine during the past 20 to 30 years, a review of research papers suggests that the widely used over-the-counter medicine does not benefit everyone to the same degree, reported Ki Park, M.D., and Anthony A. Bavry, M.D., M.P.H., in the May issue of Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine. “Not all patients with coronary disease are the same,” said Park, a physician in the department of medicine’s division of cardiovascular medicine. Park and Bavry’s algorithm leads physicians through a series of questions that consider the patient’s age, sex and current health status. The answers help them determine whether the course of care should include aspirin. “It’s an evolving assessment that should be repeated every few years as conditions change,” Park said. Most studies on the effects of aspirin therapy in patients who had previous heart attacks have focused on men. While examining the literature, Park and Bavry found that less is known about the effects of aspirin on women, people with diabetes, the elderly and even patients who are at risk of a heart attack but have never had one. “In this paper we highlight gaps in knowledge where we don’t fully know if aspirin should be used or not,” said Bavry, an assistant professor of cardiovascular medicine. “There’s still room to study its optimal use.” While people may see aspirin as a harmless drug, taking a daily aspirin does carry some risk of side effects such as gastrointestinal bleeding. Park and Bavry’s review contains an analysis to help physicians determine whether the risks outweigh the benefits. Their review showed that while aspirin therapy remains a good way to prevent further heart attacks, more is not better. A low-dose aspirin, such as an 81-milligram pill, gives the same amount of protection as a standard dose of 325 milligrams and lowers the risk of bleeding. P

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research

Training clinicians and scientists together Researchers and students gathered at UF March 15 to discuss the latest rehabilitation research in neuromuscular plasticity. The Annual Neuromuscular Plasticity Symposium is organized under the auspices of UF’s Neuromuscular Plasticity Training Program, funded by a T32 training grant from the National Institutes of Health’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The predoctoral training program emphasizes the joint training of rehabilitation clinicians and basic scientists who have a common interest in translational research in neuromuscular plasticity. Neuromuscular plasticity refers to the ability of the brain, nervous system and muscles to adopt new functions or reorganize existing ones in response to injury, illness or aging. The training program’s faculty mentors include researchers in the UF colleges of Public Health and Health Professions, Health and Human Performance, Medicine and Veterinary Medicine. Trainees are conducting research in areas such as spinal cord injury, stroke, traumatic brain injury, impaired respiratory function and muscle dysfunction. “The goal of the symposium is to help trainees network across campus as well as with prominent scientists across the country and I think it’s been a very effective forum for that,” said Krista Vandenborne, Ph.D., P.T., director of the Neuromuscular Plasticity Training Program and chair of the department of physical therapy at the College of Public Health and Health Professions. — Jill Pease

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jacksonville

Protecting Florida’s future

New fellowship focuses on helping abused children

tarting July 1, the department of pediatrics at the UF College of Medicine–Jacksonville will begin offering the first Child Abuse Pediatrics Fellowship Program in the state. Child abuse pediatrics is a relatively recent area of subspecialization within the pediatric field. UF’s Jacksonville campus will become only the 23rd academic health center offering this training nationally. The three-year fellowship will train pediatricians to effectively evaluate abused children; make recommendations for their care; lead community, regional and national advocacy; and function as medical experts within a collaborative child protection system that includes child welfare, law enforcement and judicial components. The fellowship will be a cooperative operation of the UF College of Medicine–Jacksonville, Wolfson Children’s Hospital and UF Health Jacksonville, and will function clinically as part of the Florida Department of Health’s Child Protection Team. From a health care perspective, child abuse is a common condition of childhood and can have major health consequences, said Randell C. Alexander, M.D., Ph.D., a UF professor and chief of the division of child protection and forensic pediatrics in Jacksonville. This includes physical and sexual abuse, factitious illness (medical child abuse), neglect and psychological or emotional abuse. “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified that adverse childhood experiences are the largest contributor to health care costs, morbidity and mortality of any health condition regardless of age,” said Alexander, who will be program director for the new fellowship. The addition of the program to the Jacksonville academic health center will help build and maintain a much-needed pool of pediatricians who specialize in child abuse in North Florida. “The Florida Child Protection Team statewide system is in need of these trained specialists, partly to replace those doing this type of work,” Alexander said.

distinctions

A Hippocratic honor When Robert Hollander, M.D., an adjunct assistant professor in the department of medicine, was announced as the winner of the College of Medicine’s coveted Hippocratic award, his first reaction was disbelief. “This was unexpected,” Hollander said standing behind the lectern adjacent to the young Hippocratic tree on May 7 at Wilmot Gardens. “The reason why I look forward to Monday mornings is because I look forward to seeing the medical students who are ready to be challenged and to make that interaction.” Originally established by the 1969 graduating class, the award is presented each year to “a faculty member who is not only an outstanding teacher but who is also a mentor, a role model and, in essence, a person our students feel like they could emulate in their career,” said Michael L. Good, M.D., dean of the UF College of Medicine. At left, Joseph Fantone, M.D., senior associate dean for educational affairs, medical student Josh Cohen and Good pose with Hollander (second from right) after the ceremony.

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distinctions

David Challoner, M.D.

Talking it out For some patients, the time it takes for a new, potentially life-saving drug or device to clear regulatory hurdles could spell the difference between life and death. But the Food and Drug Administration’s job is to make sure all drugs and devices are safe before releasing them to the public, no matter how long it takes. So what comes first, safety or speed? This is a question UF vice president for health affairs emeritus David Challoner, M.D., discussed during a national debate with other leading authorities on May 8 in New York City. The debate, titled “The FDA’S Caution Is Hazardous To Our Health,” was part of the Intelligence Squared program. Intelligence Squared has held more than 70 Oxford-style debates about topical issues such as the Middle East and the financial crisis, featuring leading experts and thinkers including David Brooks of The New York Times, Howard Dean, the late author Michael Crichton and others. The goal is to bring together experts on both sides of an issue as well as to encourage intelligent discussion and analysis free of emotion and ideological rhetoric. To view the debate or listen to the radio broadcast of it, visit intelligencesquaredus.org and search for the title of the debate.

Double the distinctions UF Health received two 2013 grants from the LIVESTRONG Foundation for the Gainesville and Jacksonville campuses following a two-week online voting campaign across the nation. The Shands Arts in Medicine program in Gainesville will receive funding to participate in The Creative Center at University Settlement, Outpatient Arts Program, while UF Health Jacksonville will receive grant money to participate in the Joint Commission’s Advanced Certification Program for Palliative Care model program. In total, more than $1 million will be distributed among 72 hospitals, cancer centers, universities and community-based organizations across the nation this year.

Coordinating coordinators The first cohort of 12 research coordinators have been selected to participate in the CTSI Academy of Research Excellence’s Research Coordinator Program for Excellence in Human Subject Research, an advanced four-month program focusing on regulatory requirements, informed consent training, and research integrity and professionalism. The coordinators include: Alice Boyette, North Florida/ South Georgia Veterans Health System Research Service; Rebekah Bush, College of Dentistry; Katie Eddleton, M.P.H., College of Medicine; Marcia Hodik, R.N., College of Medicine; Alison Ivey, R.N., UF Health Cancer Center; Janet King, R.N., UF Clinical Research Center; Stacy Merritt, M.A., UF Health Center for Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration; Leslie Pettiford, R.N., UF Health Cancer Center; Kellie Ritari, R.N., College of Medicine; Debra Robertson, R.N., College of Medicine; Corrine Ruktanonchai, M.P.H., C.P.H., Epidemiology; and Jennifer Steshyn, M.A.B.M.H., College of Medicine.

Animal accolades A University of Florida hospital administrator, a couple whose efforts have enhanced shelter medicine, a former veterinary dermatology professor, a pet-hospice entrepreneur and a small animal practitioner received the College of Veterinary Medicine’s 2013 Distinguished Awards. UF Veterinary Hospitals Chief of Staff Dana Zimmel, D.V.M., won the Alumni Achievement Award. Wife and husband Lisa Centonze, D.V.M., and Vincent Centonze, D.V.M., received the Distinguished Service Award. Gail Kunkle, D.V.M., a professor emeritus of veterinary dermatology who served on the UF faculty for almost 30 years before retiring in 2008, received the Special Service Award. There were two winners in the Young Alumni Award category — Dani McVety, D.V.M., and Destiny Prezzano, D.V.M. The awards were presented on May 25 at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts during college commencement exercises.

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distinctions

Honoring quality The UF College of Medicine Continuing Medical Education program and the UF J. Hillis Miller Health Science Center SelfInsurance Program co-sponsor an Interdisciplinary Patient Quality and Safety Award Program. This award program provides start-up support for HSC faculty and Shands staff to design and implement projects focused on clinical quality, patient safety and clinical process improvement. This grant research program supports projects that are designed to improve patient safety, reduce the likelihood of adverse events or claims, and that are directed at advancing UF Health strategic quality initiatives. Most IPQSA project grants will be in the amount of $25,000 or less over the life of the project. In special circumstances, consideration will be given to requests for larger amounts. Ten to 15 projects are expected to be funded annually. For more information, please call Rebecca Graves at 273-7006 or email gravesr@ufl.edu.

College of Dentistry Luisa Echeto, D.D.S., M.S., a clinical associate professor in the department of restorative dental sciences, was selected for 2013-14 class of the UF Leadership Luisa Echeto Academy. Echeto was one of 16 applicants selected from throughout the university as part of a competitive application process. Shannon Wallet, Ph.D., an assistant professor of periodontology, received the Excellence Award for Assistant Professors from the Provost’s Office in May 2013. Shannon Wallet Wallet’s research focuses on innate immune responses in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes with the understanding that they are similar diseases with different mechanisms leading to manifestation.

Mark S. Gold, M.D., chair of the department of psychiatry and the Donald R. Dizney eminent scholar, received the award for the Distinguished International Scientist Mark S. Gold category from the China Academy of Sciences. The award was presented at the China Academy of Sciences Laboratory for Translational Research in April.

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College of Nursing Angela White, M.S.N., A.R.N.P., a doctoral student in the college, was among a select group chosen nationally to receive a Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Angela White Society of Nursing grant to support her dissertation research. White will use the $5,000 award to fund her research studying ways nurses can connect resources to develop a model of social networks and services for the homeless in suburban communities. Public Health and Health Professions

College of Medicine

David E. Winchester, M.D., an assistant professor of medicine in the division of cardiovascular medicine,

received the Academy Health Presidential Scholarship for New Health Services Researchers. The award is only given to five candidates who have potential to contribute David E. Winchester to research regarding health services research and policy.

Sarah Bauer, a doctoral student in health services research, has received an intramural summer fellowship with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Bauer will work Sarah Bauer with senior economists at the Center for Delivery, Organization, and Markets on a project examining the spillover effects of the utilization of health care services by Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries on the utilization of health care services by Medicare Advantage enrollees.

Joel Bialosky, Ph.D., P.T., a clinical assistant professor of physical therapy, is the recipient of the American Physical Therapy Association’s 2013 Margaret Moore Outstanding New Faculty Joel Bialosky Member Award. The award recognizes scholarly activities, teaching excellence, commitment to service and distinct expertise in at least one subject area. Michael Marsiske, Ph.D., an associate professor and associate chair for research in the department of clinical and health psychology, is one of five UF faculty members to receive the Michael Marsiske UF Graduate School’s 2013 Doctoral Mentoring Award for excellence, innovation and effectiveness in mentoring. He was also named the PHHP 2012-2013 Doctoral Mentor of the Year at the college’s convocation ceremony May 3. College of Veterinary Medicine Rachel DiSesa, the administrative assistant to the dean, was recently named Citizen of the Year by a professional veterinarian association in Florida. The Florida Veterinary Medical Rachel DiSesa Association presented DiSesa with the award in April during its annual meeting in Orlando. The award is given to a non-veterinarian who has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of the association and to the veterinary profession.

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Photo by Jesse S. Jones

profile

Something to

sing about UF speech pathologist and singer helps vocalists rediscover their song By Erica A. Hernandez

ete Hennings didn’t know if he would ever be able to speak again. The outlook isn’t the brightest for someone whose esophagus has been removed due to esophageal cancer. But with the help of the College of Medicine department of emergency medicine and his speech pathologist, Judith Wingate, Ph.D., Hennings was able to sing again. “I was happy to be alive. They caught it in an early stage,” Hennings said of the cancer that left him without an esophagus and with vocal cord paralysis. Hennings, a music editor by day, plays in a bluegrass band called 2 PM with two friends. “After the surgery I could barely squeak out a note. I hated the idea that I couldn’t sing anymore,” Hennings said. That’s when he was referred to Wingate. A speech pathologist for more than 30 years with a background in music therapy, Wingate has been specializing in voice disorders for the past 15 years. “Pete is a big success story for us,” Wingate said. Hennings’ achieved this suc-

cess through monthly therapy sessions with Wingate, which included breathing exercises, vocal exercises and general care advice on things to avoid and things to enhance in his day-to-day life. He’s not the first vocalist Wingate has helped. In fact, you could almost say helping singers is sort of her speciality. In 2008, she published and authored the book “Healthy Singing.” Written to be a vocal health book for singers, Wingate said she wanted to dispel some of the myths about what’s healthy and what’s not when it comes to a person’s voice and to provide necessary information from a physiology standpoint. The book also includes exercises to maintain a healthy voice and information on how to find and access a good vocal care team. “It’s not a scientific book but if you’ve got a singer who is struggling, here is a resource that might be helpful to them,” Wingate said. Wingate, an accomplished singer herself, has been singing since she was in middle school and has performed with Florida

Gateway College at Carnegie Hall three times. She joined the UF faculty after earning her doctorate in 2004. “I love seeing the students understand how these issues of speech and language impact peoples’ lives and the ability we have to intervene and make a real difference,” Wingate said. Within a year of having his esophagus removed and less than six months after having his vocal cords operated on, Hennings was onstage singing with his band again. “For me, Dr. Wingate was a godsend. She was the perfect person because she understood where I am coming from,” Hennings said. As a singer, teacher and speech pathologist, Wingate is busy, but she has no plans of stepping away from any of her roles anytime soon. Especially not when she can use all her skills to help patients like Hennings. “The field has changed so much that I have never been bored. I have never regretted going into this profession,” she said. P

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UF leaders and the family members of late UF President J. Hillis Miller gathered in April to celebrate a historical marker dedicated to Miller. Miller’s vision during his time as UF president ultimately led to the creation of the UF Health Science Center and its teaching hospital (now UF Health Shands Hospital), which were founded in 1956, three years after Miller’s death.

UF College of Medicine students, residents, faculty and guests celebrated the annual induction of new members at the annual Chapman Chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society banquet, held April 22. The society, which recognizes those who demonstrate compassion and humanism in medicine, inducted 23 fourth-year medical students, six residents and two faculty members.

Photo by Jesse S. Jones

Photo by Maria Belen farias

see ya!

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Well-wishers say goodbye to College of Dentistry Dean Teresa Dolan, who is stepping down after 10 years as dean.

THE

Published by UF Health Communications UF Senior Vice President, Health Affairs; President, UF Health David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D. Chief Communications Officer, UF Health Melanie Fridl Ross, M.S.J., E.L.S.

Editor April Frawley Birdwell afrawley@ufl.edu Senior Editors Melissa Lutz Blouin, Karen Dooley Creative Director Mickey Cuthbertson Photo Editor Jesse S. Jones

Photographer Maria Belen Farias Staff Writers Claire Baralt, April Frawley Birdwell, Tracy Brown Wright, Sarah Carey, Karen Dooley, Nickie Doria, Marilee Griffin, Linda Homewood, Jill Pease, Czerne M. Reid, Karen Rhodenizer, Christine Velasquez Contributing Writers Rebecca Burton, Erica Hernandez, Nicole La Hoz Support Staff Cassandra Mack, Beth Powers, Kim Smith

The POST is the monthly internal newsletter for the University of Florida Health Science Center, the most comprehensive academic health center in the Southeast, with campuses in Gainesville and Jacksonville and affiliations throughout Florida. Articles feature news of interest for and about HSC faculty, staff and students and Shands employees. Content may be reprinted with appropriate credit. Ideas for stories are welcome. The deadline for submitting items to be considered for each month’s issue is the 15th of the previous month. Submit to the editor at afrawley@ufl.edu or deliver to UF Health Communications in the Communicore Building, Room C3-025.