CLEARWATER, Fla. (June 22, 2009) -- The new USF-Morton Plant Mease Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship will start its first fellow next month after recently receiving full accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

Fellows are doctors who are receiving specialized graduate medical education in a subspecialty. They already have completed medical school and graduate training, or residency, in a primary specialty.

“We’re delighted to be able to train more doctors for careers in sports medicine,” said Dr. Eric Coris, director of the University of South Florida’s Sports Medicine Division, co-director of the fellowship, and associate professor of family medicine. “With a population that is aging but also more active, there’s an incredible need for more physicians who can care for people with athletic injuries and help them stay healthy and active.”

The fellowship program will be based at the Turley Family Health Center in Clearwater. The health center, operated by Morton Plant Mease, provides comprehensive health care services to a diverse group of patients without regard to a patient’s ability to pay.

“The program will offer the fellows the opportunity to learn in various training environments,” said Dr. Sean Bryan, co-director of the fellowship and a USF affiliate associate professor of family medicine.

“This is a best of both worlds situation,” Dr. Bryan said. “Imagine having the resources of a strong community health system and a major academic health center at your disposal.”
Fellows will receive training from USF primary care sports medicine faculty as well as from USF and community orthopedic surgeons, cardiologists, other specialists and allied health professionals, Dr. Bryan said.

“We understand that to provide the best care for athletes, you need a multi-disciplinary team approach,” he said.

As part of their training, the fellows will help support community sports events and activities, including the St. Anthony’s Triathlon and the Morton Plant Mease Triathlon. They’ll also help care for students in USF Athletics, under the supervision of USF faculty members.

“We’re fortunate to have access to a wide range of athletes in high school, Division I college, professional baseball, football and multiple triathlons. This will provide significant depth to our training,” Dr. Bryan said.

Core faculty members for the fellowship will include: Dr. Bryan; Dr. Coris; Dr. Ted Farrar, associate director of the fellowship; and Dr. Michelle Pescasio, assistant director of the fellowship.

The USF College of Medicine created the USF Sports Medicine Institute, which is dedicated to caring for athletes of all ages and skill levels, as well as people who are physically active at home and at work. The institute’s providers offer diagnosis and treatment of all athletic injuries, as well as expert pre-sports participation exams.

Nationally recognized for health care excellence, Morton Plant Mease Health Care is dedicated to providing community owned health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. Morton Plant Mease Health Care is comprised of the following hospitals – Morton Plant, Clearwater; Mease Dunedin, Dunedin; Mease Countryside, Safety Harbor and Morton Plant North Bay, New Port Richey.

About USF Health
USF Health is dedicated to creating a model of health care based on understanding the full spectrum of health. It includes the University of South Florida’s colleges of medicine, nursing, and public health; the schools of biomedical sciences as well as physical therapy & rehabilitation sciences; and the USF Physicians Group. With more than $360 million in research grants and contracts last year, USF is one of the nation’s top 63 public research universities and one of 39 community-engaged, four-year public universities designated by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

About Morton Plant Mease
Nationally recognized for health care excellence, Morton Plant Mease Health Care is dedicated to providing community owned health care services that set the standard for high-quality, compassionate care. Morton Plant Mease Health Care is comprised of the following hospitals – Morton Plant, Clearwater; Mease Dunedin, Dunedin; Mease Countryside, Safety Harbor and Morton Plant North Bay, New Port Richey.

Barbara Morris, assistant director of the SMART Institute, presents Coach of the Year Award to Gaither HS Coach Thomas Payne.

The Sports Medicine and Athletic Related Trauma Institute held its first annual SMART Appreciation Event for coaches, parents, athletic trainers and their families June 2 at the USF Health Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare. Inaugural awards were presented for Coach of the Year, Parent of the Year, and Comeback Athlete of the Year to those receiving the most nominations from the SMART certified athletic trainers working in the Hillsborough County high schools.

Thomas Payne, a defensive backs football coach for Gaither High School, was recognized as 2009 Coach of the Year. This award was given to a coach who supported the school’s athletic trainer, allowed them to complete their responsibilities and accepted decisions regarding student athletes’ health.

“Coach Payne truly understood the importance of an athletic trainer in the secondary setting and supported the SMART sports safety mission,” said Barbara Morris, MS, ATC, assistant director of the SMART Institute. “He donated large amounts of athletic training supplies to Vicki Kean, the SMART ATC at Gaither. And, during the fall sports banquet, he left during the ceremony to search for a florist so that Vicki and her USF athletic training student could be presented with flowers as a token of the team’s appreciation.”

Chap Celerin, a parent from Brandon High School, was named Parent of the Year for supporting the delivery of athletic training services to the school’s student athletes. Celerin was cited for enthusiastically and quickly assisting the SMART athletic trainer at Brandon, without interfering with the athletic trainer’s job responsibilities.

Demetrice Devlin, a student at Blake High School, won the Comeback Athlete of the Year award. Devlin suffered a potentially career-ending injury during the third football game of the season, and through hard work, dedication, a positive attitude and proper rehabilitation guidance from SMART athletic trainer Sharvettye Frazier, he returned to play the last few games of the season.

Attendees had the opportunity to meet USF Health orthopedic surgeons and USF Bulls team physicians and to tour the Morsani Center.

Morris with Parent of the Year Chap Celerin (Brandon HS)

Morris with Comeback Athlete of the Year Demetrice Devlin, a student at Blake HS.

David Leffers, MD

University of South Florida orthopedic surgeon David Leffers, MD, a widely-recognized authority in sports medicine, has been appointed chair of the USF Health Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.

Dr. Leffers takes over for Robert Pedowitz, MD, who established and led the fledgling department through its pivotal growth during his two-year tenure. Dr. Pedowitz has accepted a position as Orthopaedic Surgery Chair at his alma mater, the University of California-Los Angeles, which has a nationally ranked top 10 medical school.

“There are many heroes in the story of orthopedics at USF, Dr. Leffers and Dr. Pedowitz among them,” said Stephen K. Klasko, MD, MBA, CEO for USF Health and dean of the College of Medicine. “Four years ago USF Athletics Director Doug Woolard made it clear he wanted USF doctors to be the team doctors for the USF Bulls. To make that happen Dr. Leffers joined the College of Medicine. Dr. Pedowitz arrived to build the department, and Dr. Doug Letson built the new residency program, which became an instant success. I can’t thank all of them enough.”

“USF and the Tampa Bay community are my home. I welcome the challenge of working with an excellent group of faculty to advance the department, building upon the solid foundation established by Dr. Pedowitz,” Dr. Leffers said. “Moving forward, we will further strengthen our residency program directed by Dr. Letson and our relationships with community partners.”

Dr. Leffers, who has a longstanding affiliation with the USF College of Medicine, joined the faculty full-time as an associate professor in 2006. A team physician for the USF Bulls since 1984, he has cared for professional and amateur athletes and teams across the Tampa Bay area. He is among the core group of faculty who worked with Dr. Pedowitz to create the Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.

Among the accomplishments of this faculty in building an integrated orthopaedics and sports medicine initiative:

• Accreditation of the USF Orthopaedic Surgery Residency training program, which was re-established after 15 years without an orthopedic training program in the Tampa Bay region. The program has expanded from six to 16 residents since July 2007 and attracts top applicants from across the country. Orthopaedic residents train at several facilities that had not previously hosted any USF residency programs (University Community Hospital, Lakeland Regional Hospital/Watson Clinic, St. Joseph’s Hospital) along with traditional teaching partners (Tampa General Hospital, the VA System and All Children’s Hospital). In addition to the residency, the USF Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Fellowship, one of few in the state, has been accredited.

• The USF Athletic Training and Education Program (ATEP), previously housed in the College of Education, was integrated into the Department. The undergraduate athletic training program is the first in the country housed in an orthopaedics department. The program recently underwent its accreditation site visit and passed with an exemplary review under the guidance of Program Director Micki Cuppett, EdD. All positions have been filled for the upcoming academic year from a highly-qualified candidate pool.

• The USF Sports Medicine and Athletic Related Trauma (SMART) program continues its push to improve sports safety statewide under the direction of Executive Director Jeff Konin, PhD, ATC, PT, vice chair of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. SMART has placed 10 full-time certified athletic trainers in area high schools that previously had no formal health care available for student athletes. They are collecting data for a Sports Injury Surveillance Registry that will facilitate vital studies needed to prevent injuries in young athletes.

• The department has led the way in using the Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare, for surgery and for collaborating with the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences to create a comprehensive sports health team.

• The department’s basic science core, developed under the leadership of David Birk, PhD, provides a strong pathway for interdisciplinary, high-impact musculoskeletal research at USF. This program will exploit the cutting-edge resources provided by the Lisa Muma Weitz Advanced Microscopy and Cell Imaging Core.

Dr. Leffers obtained his medical degree from the University of Tennessee and completed his residency training at the University of Southern California, followed by fellowship training in sports medicine at the Kerlan-Jobe Clinic in California. He is a member of the American Orthopedic Society of Sports Medicine, the American College of Sports Medicine, the American Orthopedics Society of Sports Medicine, the National Athletic Trainers Association and the Southern Orthopedic Association.

“Dr. Leffers will lead a department with stellar faculty and a bright future,” Dr. Klasko said. “We look forward to continuing to establish the worldwide reputation of orthopaedics and sports medicine at USF.”

Two faculty members in the USF Health Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine received annual awards at the Athletic Trainers’ Association of Florida 21st Annual Clinical Symposium, April 17 to 19, in Orlando.

Barbara Morris, MS, ATC, CSCC, ROT, assistant program director of USF Health’s Sports Medicine and Athletic Related Trauma (SMART) Institute, won the organization’s Professional Athletic Trainer of the Year award. The award is given to an athletic trainer who has displayed a high level of professionalism and whose contributions have improved the profession above and beyond their employment setting. Morris, who teaches in the USF Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine’s Athletic Training Education Program, is a certified athletic trainer, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, and a registered orthopaedic technologist. She oversees the SMART Outreach Program, which provides ATC coverage and care to Tampa Bay area high schools.

Morris is a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, the Southeastern Athletic Trainer's Association, the Florida Athletic Trainer's Association, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and the American Society of Orthopaedic Professionals. She earned a master's of science degree from the University of Central Arkansas, specializing in kinesiology, and is working on a doctorate in health sciences from Nova Southeastern University.

Gianluca Del Rossi, PhD, ATC, was selected as the ATAF’s College/University Athletic Trainer of the Year. The award is given to a college or university athletic trainer who displays a high level of professionalism and whose contributions have improved the profession and the ATAF. Dr. Del Rossi, who teaches in the Athletic Training Education Program, is an assistant professor in USF Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine and director of Sports Medicine Research.

He earned his PhD in Athletic Training and Sports Medicine from the University of Florida and has been a certified athletic trainer for more than 10 years. He chairs the Scholarship Committee of the Southeastern Athletic Trainers' Association and is the Florida representative of the National Athletic Trainers' Association Research and Education Foundation.

For a second time in two years, Associate Professor, Eric Coris, MD, has been nominated for the prestigious Humanism in Medicine Award by the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC). Students from the USF College of Medicine overwhelmingly voted for Coris and his nomination has now moved forward in the awards process earning him a spot among 45 finalists & nominees selected from across the U.S. The official announcement from the AAMC came on September 10th.

The award winner of the national 2008 Humanism in Medicine Award will be announced during the November 1, 2008 AAMC Awards Dinner of the Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas. For Coris this is the second time students have chosen him for the Humanism in Medicine Award nomination - also nominated in 2006.

USF medical students on the Organization of Student Representatives for the USF College of Medicine based their nomination of Coris on five defining characteristics:
- positive mentoring skills
- compassion and sensitivity
- collaboration
- community service activity
- observance of professional ethics

In addition to his role as an Assistant Professor in Family Medicine & Sports Medicine, Dr. Coris is the Director of Primary Care Sports Medicine for USF, the Head Medical Team Physician for USF Athletics and the Assistant Director of USF Sports Medicine Fellowship.

The data collected by Dr. Eric Coris, Director of Primary Care Sports Medicine, University of South Florida, is used to prevent potentially life-threatening heat illness in student athletes.

At left, Doug Woolard, USF Athletic Director, joins Coris and the team for a morning of practice. Woolard noting that the university is proud to be part of a research study that can benefit the entire community.

The AAMC, with the support of the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative (PMHI), honors "humanistic" physicians nationwide. The goal of the award is to advance the ideals of humanism in medicine, including compassion, understanding and partnership.

Congratulations to Dr. Eric Coris!

Other links:

Coris' Biographical Sketch

Coris' Heat Pill Study w/USF Bulls

2006 AAMC Humanism in Medicine Nominee Ceremony

2007 AAMC Humanism in Medicine Nominee Ceremony - Dr. Jose Lezama, Internal Medicine

Newsbrief by Lissette Campos, Photography by Eric Coris - USF Health Communications

Members of the USF athletic training team help to record players' core temperatures throughout the practice sessions. Each player's pill transmits a signal to the hand held data recorders.

The silicone coated 'heat pill' was developed using NASA technology.

The data collected by Dr. Eric Coris, Director of Primary Care Sports Medicine, University of South Florida, is used to prevent potentially life-threatening heat illness in student athletes.

Part of the technology involves a host of portable electronic devices that Dr. Coris and athletic staff members wear. The pill, ingested by players the night prior to practice, sends out a signal to the recording devices like the ones shown here.

The three year research study has confirmed that hydration and adequate fluid intake is a significant part of heat illness prevention.

This device is what Dr. Coris refers to as his "little weather station". The device helps record ambient heat and humidity.

From L to R: USF Health Media Center videographer Jean Rene Rinvil and Anne DeLotto Baier of the USF Health Communications Office.

At left, Doug Woolard, USF Athletic Director, joins Coris and the team for a morning of practice. Woolard noting that the university is proud to be part of a research study that can benefit the entire community.

At left, Dr. Eric Coris is the Director of Primary Care Sports Medicine for USF and Associate Professor in the USF College of Medicine - Family Medicine and Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine. See Heat Pill Study Video Below.

USF Study to Prevent Heat Illness in Student Athletes May Have Applications Beyond the Playing Field

It’s another hot and humid August morning of preseason practice for the USF Bulls football team. With the sun beating down on the field, the temperature is already 90 degrees Fahrenheit at 9 a.m., and the “feels like” temperature is a sweltering 105 degrees.

Sweat pours off the players wearing heavy pads and helmets as they run, tackle, jump, throw and catch, eager to start a new season of Big East football. On the sidelines, Dr. Eric Coris and the team’s athletic trainers move quickly among some players who have briefly left the field, touching a small data recorder to their lower backs or abdomens. The device reads the internal temperature of players who swallowed a silicone-coated pill the night before. The pill, an ingestible thermometer the size of a large multivitamin, transmits low-frequency magnetic signals from deep within the gut to the data recorder held outside the body.

For the last three years, Dr. Coris, director of Primary Care Sports Medicine at USF Health, has led a cutting-edge research study to help prevent heat illness in athletes. Besides working with football players on the practice field, he has also tested the electronic pill with athletes in the laboratory, where heat and humidity can be carefully controlled.

“Since we began using the pill, we’ve seen a dramatic decrease in the number of players we’ve had to cart off the field to treat with an IV for heat exhaustion and severe body cramps,” said Dr. Coris, a USF Bulls team physician who has received funding from the National Football League, the National Institutes of Occupational Safety and Health, and from USF Health’s Sports Medicine and Athletic-Related Trauma Institute.

The player’s core temperature can be continuously monitored from a personal digital assistant (PDA) on the sidelines. If it creeps up to 103 degrees, the player is pulled from the field, soaked in ice water and given fluids to prevent the progression to potentially life-threatening heat stroke, the most severe form of heat illness. “They usually cool down fairly quickly – within 5 or 10 minutes,” Dr. Coris said. “We don’t want them staying at higher temperatures for long periods.”

Dr. Coris and colleagues have verified some things since starting the heat pill study. They know which types of players are more prone to heat illness – those massive defensive and offensive linemen who pack on the pounds and shoulder a heavy workload are at the top of the list. And despite some earlier debate in the literature, the USF researchers have shown that dehydration is a major risk factor for rising core temperatures and replenishing fluids and electrolytes goes a long way in protecting players from heat illness.

There is more to learn. For instance, why do some high-risk players with elevated core temperatures show no typical heat illness symptoms like headaches, lightheadness, nausea or cramps? Once a higher than normal core temperature is detected, how much time does the athletic training and medical staffs have to intervene before heat illness escalates to the onset of heat stroke? That’s the point at which the body’s organs start shutting down, usually around 105 degrees.

“We’re not sure, and that’s why this research is so important… There’s likely some individual variability in risk based on differences in heat shock protein, Interleukin 6, Interleukin 10, and other factors regulating your ability to tolerate heat,” Dr. Coris said. “We’re continuing to evaluate how typical it is for athletes to get to these high core temperatures, how long they can stay there before showing symptoms, and trying to define the danger point where they go from just being very hot to getting really sick.”

With data collected from the heat pill study this preseason, Dr. Coris is working on fine-tuning a new questionnaire intended to assess heat illness in athletes. The checklist correlates symptoms of heat illness with measures of internal core temperatures. Since the heat pill costs about $40 a pop, the goal is to create a more cost-effective tool that will help identify players who might be most vulnerable.

“A lot of recreational youth sports leagues can’t afford the heat pills, so we have to come up with something to protect the teams without access to the technology,” Dr. Coris said. “We want to help youth football or Little League coaches – using some targeted questions -- to predict which kids would be at greatest risk for heat illness problems the next day and intervene before they get into trouble.”

“Over the last two years in Hillsborough County, we lost two teen athletes to heat stroke, so if we could prevent some of those deaths that would be huge.”

Dr. Coris presented the latest USF data incorporated into the heat illness symptom index at the American College of Sports Medicine 2008 Meeting this spring. Once validated, Dr. Coris said, such a checklist would have applications beyond protecting athletes on the practice and playing fields. It could benefit outdoor laborers in Florida or workers in industrial environments where heat is a concern.

USF Athletic Director Doug Woolard said the type of cutting-edge research conducted by Dr. Coris, is a critical part of the partnership bridging USF Health and Athletics as well as the university’s commitment to the well-being of its student athletes. “At first, I don’t think our players knew what to think (about the heat pill),” he said. “Now that they’ve seen their teammates from a preventative standpoint get treated and taken care, they consider it a real benefit.”

Story by Anne Baier, Photography by Eric Younghans/ USF Health Communications

HEAT PILL STUDY VIDEO

Other Links:
Photo Gallery 2008
Reporter's Notebook

-- The knee-busting injury disproportionately affects female players --

View Newschannel 8 clip on SMART's PEP Program...

Athletes at high risk for ruptured or torn ACLs include those who play basketball.

Tampa, FL (Jan. 24, 2008) -- The University of South Florida’s Sports Medicine and Athletic Related Trauma Institute (SMART) has introduced to area high schools a program to help prevent one of the most common sports-related knee injuries, which disproportionately affects female athletes. Studies show that female high school and collegiate athletes are four to 10 times more likely than their male counterparts to suffer a ruptured or torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) – a central ligament connecting the thighbone to the shinbone.

The “Prevent Injury, Enhance Performance” (PEP) program has been adopted by half of the 10 high schools in Hillsborough County where SMART, a state-sponsored sports safety outreach program, has deployed certified athletic trainers, said SMART Assistant Director Barbara Morris, an instructor in the USF Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. SMART offered the program to the coaches of all girls teams this fall and initially worked with those who implemented all or parts of the training regimen.

“Preventing ACL injuries is much easier and cost effective than treating them,” Morris said. “We want to work with coaches to help decrease the incidence of ACL injuries at the high schools where we have a presence.”

The ACL helps stabilize the knee and is often stretched or torn by a sudden twisting motion while the feet remain planted. Athletes at high risk for this frequently season-ending knee injury include those playing soccer, basketball, football and volleyball – any sport with sharp changes in direction or jumping.

The PEP program was created by the Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Foundation in Santa Monica, CA, to decrease the number of ACL injuries in female soccer players but can also be used in other high-risk sports. The strategic 15-minute exercise regimen is designed to be performed two to three times a week during the season. It helps strengthen and stretch stabilizing muscles around the knee, emphasizes proper posture and landing technique, and teaches players how to avoid vulnerable positions. The training drill has been shown to reduce ACL injuries by two to four-fold.

Jason Herring, the head coach for the Freedom High School girls varsity basketball team, worked with Michele McCoy, the SMART certified athletic trainer at Freedom, to integrate the PEP program into his team’s practices three to four times a week.

“We did static stretching before, but this program made more sense to me. I’m definitely pleased with the improvements I’ve seen so far,” said Herring, who in the past sustained an ACL tear while playing basketball with a recreational league. “It’s building on their muscle strength, endurance, agility and balance – all key elements needed to prepare players for the vigorous game of basketball. Injuries will happen in competitive sports, but you want to prevent as many as possible -- so it’s good to be involved a safety program backed by research.”

Coaches are essential role models in persuading student athletes to recognize the importance of injury prevention training, McCoy said. “The girls on Coach Herring’s team now own the PEP program, because he was an enthusiastic proponent and his players understand why the exercises benefit them.”

“ACL injuries are a huge problem – an epidemic among young women athletes,” said Robert Pedowitz, MD, PhD, professor and chair of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.

“If you look at high school students who play competitive soccer and basketball, the vast majority who suffer ACL injuries end up having reconstructive surgery. This type of knee injury requires six months to a year of postoperative rehabilitation.”

Title IX legislation, enacted in the early 1970s, required publicly-funded schools to offer girls and women equal opportunities to play sports. Since then, the number of female athletes in competitive sports has jumped – and so has their incidence of ACL injuries.

Many earlier theories for why young women are more susceptible to the knee-busting injury than men, including differences in hormones and anatomy, have not proven true, said Dr. Pedowitz, who has conducted ACL research. “Many physicians and scientists now believe that neuromuscular performance – factors like the strength and coordination of muscles that make a difference in the landing styles of girls and boys when they run and jump – are driving the higher rates of ACL injury in young women athletes.”

Whether these neuromuscular gender differences are related to sports experience and training or genetics is still debated, but Dr. Pedowitz suspects as more girls train and compete in team sports at younger ages their incidence of ACL injuries may begin to decline.

USF SMART recently began tracking the incidence ACL and other sports-related injuries in Hillsborough County high schools where its certified athletic trainers work. “The purpose of SMART is to identify areas that threaten the safety of Florida athletes and do what we can to change that,” Dr. Pedowitz said. “Through our computerized injury surveillance program, we’ll have the ability to measure the impact of preventive programs such as PEP on our student athletes.”

Coaches, parents of student athletes, or others interested in more information about the PEP program can contact Barbara Morris at (813) 396-9626 or bmorris@health.usf.edu.

- USF Health -

USF Health is dedicated to creating a model of health care based on understanding the full spectrum of health. It includes the University of South Florida’s colleges of medicine, nursing, and public health; the schools of biomedical sciences as well as physical therapy & rehabilitation sciences; and the USF Physicians Group. With $308 million in research funding last year, USF is one of the nation’s top 63 public research universities and one of Florida’s top three research universities.

Larry Collins, PA-C, ATC

Tampa, FL (Jan. 14, 2008) – Larry Collins, a physician assistant (PA) and instructor at the University of South Florida Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, has been recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA).

Only 200 out of approximately 70,000 PAs practicing in the U.S. have been earned the AAPA's distinction of Distinguished Fellow.

All Distinguished Fellows have demonstrated exceptional contributions to their communities and a commitment to all aspects of health care.

Collins has been a physician assistant in Tampa for more than 17 years and currently treats patients and educates students in the Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine at USF.

He earned the recognition for his outstanding contributions to patient care and the PA profession during his years as a physician assistant in Tampa. He has also demonstrated significant dedication and involvement within the Tampa Bay community. Collins continues to volunteer at various athletic competitions across the Tampa Bay area, as well as nationally and internationally.

Collins has worked with the Sports Medicine faculty and staff at USF since 1990 and has also volunteered at the University of Tampa and Saint Leo University. For the past two decades he has provided medical coverage at Friday night high school football games. He has also worked with the United States Olympic Training Program in Colorado Springs and was assigned to the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta and the 2007 Winter World University Games in Torino, Italy.

Collins volunteers yearly for pre-competition physicals for several youth organizations across the Tampa region and helps coordinate medical coverage for local events such as adventure races, triathlons and road races.

He is an avid runner, cyclist and triathlete, having completed several Ironman triathlons. In 2003, he was a member of the FOI/Arthritis Foundation four-man team that raised $40,000 and finished third in the Race Across America (RAAM) -- completing the San Diego to Atlantic City bicycle race in 7 days, 2 hours.

Physician assistants are licensed health professionals who practice medicine as members of a team with their supervising physicians, delivering a broad range of medical and surgical services. The AAPA is the only national organization representing physician assistants in all medical and surgical specialties and is one of the largest medical societies in the United States.

- USF Health -

USF Health is dedicated to creating a model of health care based on understanding the full spectrum of health. It includes the University of South Florida’s colleges of medicine, nursing, and public health; the schools of biomedical sciences as well as physical therapy & rehabilitation sciences; and the USF Physicians Group. With $308 million in research funding last year, USF is one of the nation’s top 63 public research universities and one of Florida’s top three research universities.

Photo of the Charter Class of the USF Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program started July 1, 2007. Six residents are (from L to R) Paul Edwards, MD; Eric Henderson, MD; Odion Binitie, MD; Stephen Wilson, MD; German Marulanda, MD, and Derek Weichel, MD.

The November 2007, Volume I, No. 9 Edition of AAOS Now has published a story on the return of the Orthopaedics Residency Training Program to the University of South Florida's College of Medicine. The article written by journal writer Jennie McKee is entitled "Orthopaedics Makes a Comeback at USF - University reopens orthopaedic training program after 17 years."

AAOS Now is produced by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons - with a membership nationwide exceeding 31,000.

Click here to view journal article.

Newsbrief by Lissette Campos, USF Health Communications
Photo by Eric Younghans, USF Health Media Center