David Russ, PT, PhD, has been appointed assistant school director for research for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine’s School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences (SPT&RS). The position was created to help strengthen the school’s research profile now that innovative curriculum changes and clinical practice improvements continue to promote a learning environment where faculty, staff and students can excel.

Dr. Russ is currently an associate professor of physical therapy and directs the Laboratory for Integrative Muscle Biology at Ohio University in Athens, OH.  He was selected following a national search and will arrive at USF Health in early January.

“His diverse academic and practical experience applying exercise and physical activity to various models of disease and mobility make Dr. Russ an exceptional fit for this new leadership position. He will help us take our school’s research enterprise to the next level,” said Laura Lee (Dolly) Swisher, PhD, PT, director of SPT&RS and associate dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “He is well suited to fostering more robust collaborations across USF Health, including departments and centers bridging basic and applied sciences.”

David Russ, PT, PhD

Dr. Russ said he was attracted to the breadth and depth of resources and expertise at USF Health and USF that can be tapped to grow physical therapy research across disciplines. SPT&RS has built a robust interdisciplinary musculoskeletal and prosthetics research program, incorporating the military and veterans.  Faculty and students work with others in the USF College of Engineering as well as in USF Health Neurology and USF’s Exercise Science Program for some projects involving SPT&RS Human Functional Performance Laboratory.

“USF is a forward-thinking university that continues to raise its research reputation,” Dr. Russ said. “I look forward to helping advance physical therapy’s research profile across USF Health and campus-wide, and also expanding grant applications and publications at the national level.”

While facilitating the overall growth and quality of SPT&RS research, Dr. Russ will also maintain his own research program, which encompasses the study of skeletal muscle function in both human and preclinical models. In particular, he focuses on muscle strength and fatigue in conditions ranging from old age to immobility to low back pain. He has investigated what factors besides muscle size, such as intra-muscular processes and nerve function, contribute to muscle strength or power.

The medical and scientific communities increasingly appreciate that muscle dysfunction (encompassing muscle weakness, poor muscle coordination, etc.) contributes to impairment in disease processes such as cancer, kidney disease and neurological disorders, Dr. Russ said.  “We know that old muscles are not the same as young muscles, so they should not be treated the same – including the way they are exercised. The exercises recommended for older adults may need to be different from those focusing primarily on building muscle mass and maximum performance.”

Dr. Russ will bring to USF Health a two-year National Institutes of Health grant to determine whether trimetazidine, a drug used to treat angina, enhances aged skeletal muscle contraction and quality. The preclinical study will use the drug to help identify intramuscular mechanisms affecting muscle strength, rather than muscle mass.

Dr. Russ received a PhD degree in biomechanics and movement sciences (applied physiology track) from the University of Delaware and completed postdoctoral training in exercise physiology at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. His master’s degree in physical therapy is also from the University of Delaware. Before joining Ohio University in 2013, he was an assistant professor at the University of Maryland’s Department of Physical Therapy.  He has practiced in hospital and outpatient settings, and completed an American Physical Therapy Association residency in Sports Physical Therapy.

Dr. Russ has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed publications, including several book chapters.  He has served on review panels for the NIH and Department of Defense and is a longstanding editorial board member for the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise.

The USF Physicians Group has a new governance structure, called USF Health Care, to better reflect a faculty practice group incorporating professionals from across health care disciplines, including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, public health professionals, physical therapists and physician assistants.

“USF Health Care recognizes the value added when all USF Health practitioners work together as one to improve the health and quality of life of our patients and the greater community,” said Charles J. Lockwood, MD, senior vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “It is another important step in the coordination of effort among all our health science colleges and schools.”

Dr. Lockwood recently approved the creation of the new clinical leadership board for the practice plan, which includes the deans of USF Health’s four colleges and the director of its School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.  This board will help advise Dr. Lockwood on issues related to USF Health’s clinical service mission.

From left, Donna Petersen, ScD, dean of the USF College of Public Health; Victoria Rich, PhD, dean of the College of Nursing, Kevin Sneed, PharmD, dean of the College of Public Health; and Laura Lee (Dolly) Swisher, PT, PhD, interim director of the USF School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences. 

The recent change in clinical governance structure is a testament to USF Health’s dedication to creating the best team-based care available, said Kevin Sneed, PharmD, dean of the USF College of Pharmacy.

“We are delighted and prepared to contribute to outstanding quality of care and health outcomes for USF Health patients,” Dr. Sneed said. “The evolution to USF Health Care confirms our collective commitment to train the most advanced health care workforce for the future, ultimately resulting in optimal health for people in our communities.”

Health care today is a team profession, with no single health professional or specialization able to meet all the complex needs of patients, said Victoria Rich, PhD, dean of the USF College of Nursing.

“USF Health Care brings together exceptional teams of clinical experts skilled at collaborating and contributing their expertise,” Dr. Rich said. “Our teams of nurses, physicians, pharmacists, physical  therapists and community and family health faculty are at the forefront of 21^st century health care.”

“The evolution of what had been an outstanding physician group to what will be an outstanding integrated health care group reflects our continued commitment to interprofessional approaches to care delivery and the promotion of health for patients and their families,” said Donna Petersen, ScD, dean of the USF College of Public Health.

“It is about being relevant, but also forward thinking.  We want all our clinical faculty to be up to date on the latest in clinical practice, so that they can share the latest advancements with our students and inform and translate their research studies for more rapid adoption.”

The new governance structure demonstrates that USF Health is serious about taking interprofessional practice to a higher level, said Laura Lee (Dolly) Swisher, PT, PhD, interim director of the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

“Transforming interprofessional education into collaborative practice can be organizationally challenging,” Dr. Swisher said. “The new structure for USF Health creates an environment to foster interprofessional teaching, research and clinical care, and a framework to facilitate interprofessional planning to promote health.”

Laura Lee (Dolly) Swisher, PT, PhD, FNAP, FAPTA, has been named interim director for the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences by Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine.

Dr. Dolly Swisher.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2017, Dr. Swisher will act as a temporary replacement for Dr. William S. “Sandy” Quillen, DPT, PhD, FACSM, who, after a long and successful career, resigned as director earlier this month and will remain at the School as a tenured faculty member beginning Spring Semester 2017.

“Dr. Swisher is eminently qualified to assume the post of interim director, is a founding faculty member for the School, and has very sound ideas about how to keep the School moving forward,” Dr. Lockwood said. “She will continue the upward path so clearly defined by Dr. Quillen in raising the profile and standing of the School and pushing to meet the state’s demand for an increasingly sophisticated health care workforce.”

Dr. Swisher, who has been with USF since 1998, is professor and assistant dean for interprofessional education for the Morsani College of Medicine, and coordinator of professional education for the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences. Her professional experience includes clinical work in the outpatient, hand therapy, subacute, and inpatient settings.

Known for her scholarship in ethics, professionalism, and interprofessional education, Dr. Swisher is the author of journal publications, books, and book chapters about ethics, professionalism, ethics education, and interprofessional education. She has chaired the Ethics and Judicial Committee of the American Physical Therapy Association and has served as co-chair of the Task Force to Revise the Core Ethics Documents.

As a member of the editorial board and a manuscript reviewer for the Journal of Humanities in Rehabilitation, she brings a commitment to developing an awareness of the human moral foundation for care and professionalism.

She currently chairs the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education.

Dr. Swisher has won a variety of teaching awards, as well as multiple national awards for her work, most recently being named a Catherine Worthingham Fellow by the American Physical Therapy Association.

A search will begin in the New Year for the School’s permanent director.