In the pursuit and attainment of excellence, the USF Health Taneja College of Pharmacy (TCOP) is guided by the mission to revolutionize health as it becomes the pacesetter for pharmacy education in an ever-changing healthcare field. Personalized medicine is a key part of the future of healthcare, and that’s where pharmaceutical compounding plays a role.

USF TCOP has a non-sterile compounding lab that provides the setting for the education and training to current and future pharmacists and pharmacy technicians through an in-depth, hands-on continuing education (CE) program. “We are the only college in Florida and one of the few across the Nation that provides a CE program in compounding,” Vijaykumar Sutariya, MPharm, PhD, RPh, associate professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at USF TCOP, said. “The open lab has all the equipment required, from the laminar flow hood for sterile preparations, mortars and pestles, balances, mixers, ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopy, dissolution testers, disintegration testers and density testers.”

Trainees also benefit from regular collaboration with the USF Clinical Investigational Research Pharmacy (CIRP) and their sterile clean room located on the sixth floor of the Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare. The primary function of CIRP is to conduct double blinded studies and appropriate procurement, storage, documentation, control, sterile preparation, distribution and disposal of investigational products for clinical trial patients.

Currently, the non-sterile lab is located on the University of South Florida’s Tampa Campus, but it will soon be moving downtown to Water Street Tampa and into the new USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, Taneja College of Pharmacy and Heart Institute. The new space will provide room for a modern, state-of-the-art pharmaceutical compounding lab with mobile workstations.

The U.S. Pharmacopeia Convention (USP) formally defines compounding as, “the preparation, mixing, assembling, altering, packaging, and labeling of a drug, drug-delivery device, or device in accordance with a licensed practitioner’s prescription, medication order, or initiative based on the practitioner/patient/pharmacist/compounder relationship in the course of professional practice.”

Traditionally, patients are prescribed manufactured or mass-produced drug products approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in order to treat their illnesses. According to the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), pharmaceutical compounding comes in when patients have special needs that prevents them from being able to take medications already on the commercial market. A few examples of customized medications include changing the strength or dosage; adding flavor to make the drug more appealing to a child or pet; reformulating the drug to exclude an unwanted, nonessential ingredient, such as lactose, gluten, or a dye to which a patient is allergic; changing the form of the drug, such as from oral to suppository for a patient who has difficulty swallowing; and providing access to a drug that was discontinued from the commercial market. The practice of compounding is regulated by state boards of pharmacy and does not include making copies of commercially available drug products, as this is not allowed by law. There are currently 7,500 pharmacies in the United States that specialize in compounding services. USF Health Pharmacy Plus on the first floor of the Morsani Center offers compounding services for medications that can be customized in a non-sterile environment such as topical pain creams for a USF athlete or an Orthopedic and Sports Medicine patient.

In addition to a brand-new lab, USF TCOP is developing a unique certificate program in pharmaceutical compounding. “The certificate program will be great for undergraduate students who are interested in going into pharmacy, so they can see what compounding is before they make the decision to come to the pharmacy program,” Dr. Sutariya said. USF TCOP PharmD students can also pursue the certificate for more exposure into the practice of compounding beyond the three courses already built into the PharmD program. “If a student would like to open their own compounding pharmacy or work for one, the USF Health Taneja College of Pharmacy is the best place to start their career.”

USF Health Senior Vice President and MCOM Dean Charles J Lockwood, MD, MHCM, and Bryan Bognar, MD, MCOM chief academic officer, get a demonstration from Eric Pergola, director of USF IT Service Management during the Tech-IT Out event at the Shimberg Library.

One of the many challenges medical students face is managing opportunities for collaboration among students and with professors.  As the new USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute in downtown Tampa nears completion, USF Health leaders are addressing that challenge by providing students and faculty with innovative software that offers a digital hub for collaboration and teamwork.

In the new building, students will make use of Microsoft Teams to more effectively and efficiently communicate through online chat and meetings, calling and web conferencing. The goal is for medical students to never miss a day of their medical school education because their access to team learning is always available, said MCOM associate dean of Undergraduate Medical Education Deborah DeWaay, MD, FACP.

“One of the things we’ve struggled with is building community and better collaboration opportunities for students, while making sure we allow enough flexibility to avoid burnout,” said Deborah DeWaay, MD, MCOM vice dean of Undergraduate Medical Education. “This will allow us to do things that are exciting enough for students when they are on-site, while giving them the ability to participate remotely when they need to.”

Joe Ford, JD, associate vice president of USF Health Shared Student Services, and Carol Post, JD, associate vice president and chief administrative officer for USF Health, get a demonstration from Ryan Candler, Microsoft community development specialist during the Tech-IT Out event at the Shimberg Library.

Morsani College of Medicine leaders recently got a chance to test drive some of the Microsoft technology the students will have access to in the new building at a special demonstration in the new Tech-IT Out lab located in the Shimberg Library. As medical knowledge rapidly accrues so does the need to have access to it along with the technology needed to make it happen, according to Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, senior vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine.

“This begins to address the biggest challenge we have in medical education, which is the acceleration of medical knowledge,” Dr. Lockwood said.  “We have the opportunity to leverage technology and incorporate medical data into our talks, but also allow for a more interactive and engaging experience for the learners.”

The Microsoft devices on display include:

– Surface Book

– Surface Laptop

– Surface Pro

– Surface Go

– Surface Hub

– Surface Studio

These devices will be on display for demonstration in the library until the end of 2019.  USF Health leadership plans to organize small group visits, including first and second year medical students, to help them get acquainted with the new technology before moving into the new building.

Events and demonstrations are coordinated through Kristy Andre, USF IT’s Relationship Manager to MCOM at kandre@health.usf.edu.

USF System President Judy Genshaft and her husband, Steven Greenbaum, have furthered their philanthropic tradition at the University of South Florida, giving $1 million to support the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute building now under construction in Water Street Tampa. To honor the gift made this spring, the USF Board of Trustees has approved the naming of the Genshaft Greenbaum Student Center on the second floor of the new facility.

Conceptual rendering of the student center named in honor of USF System President Judy Genshaft and her husband Steven Greenbaum. The center is located on the second floor of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute building now under construction in Water Street Tampa.

The Genshaft Greenbaum Student Center encompasses the public concourse of the building, welcoming visitors and connecting a 400-seat auditorium, 100-seat café, the Florida Blue Health Knowledge Exchange, and a USF Health bookstore.

“Co-locating our medical school and heart institute in the vibrant urban area of Tampa is attracting more top-tier students,” said Genshaft. “This world-class learning, research and training environment will better prepare our future doctors, power new discoveries, and have a lasting impact on our community.”

The new 13-story building will allow approximately 1,800 students, faculty and staff to work and study along the downtown waterfront as a key anchor of Water Street Tampa. The move brings the medical school closer to its primary clinical sites Tampa General Hospital, CAMLS and the USF Health South Tampa Center.

“On behalf of the board, I want to thank President Genshaft and her husband Steve, who – through their consistent giving – have changed the trajectory of student success, the brand, faculty, and the standard of excellence at the University of South Florida,” said Board of Trustees Chair Brian Lamb upon the board’s approval of the naming of the student center in the couple’s honor on June 12.

Steve Greenbaum and USF System President Judy Genshaft

“Their tremendous generosity and leadership is so inspirational to all of us at USF Health, and ensures that our students will have the best resources and facilities,” said Dr. Charles Lockwood, senior vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “I am truly grateful for President Genshaft and Mr. Greenbaum’s gift.”

Genshaft and Greenbaum also gave $1 million to support the USF Football Center, where the Genshaft Greenbaum Plaza will be named in their honor. Over the past 18 years Genshaft has served as president of the University of South Florida, the couple has become one of the System’s top donors, making major gifts to a number of areas including scholarships, graduate fellowships, and study abroad.

“Once again, Judy and Steve have set an amazing example through their personal philanthropy,” said USF Foundation CEO Joel Momberg. “I can’t think of another university president anywhere who has built such an impressive legacy of leadership and giving.”

-Story by Davina Gould, USF Health Development and Alumni Relations

The new USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute, shown here under construction in June 2018, will open late 2019.

Emails are coming in about biotech start-ups, applications are pouring in from high-caliber students, powerhouse researchers are inquiring about opportunities, research funding has gone up, property values are on the upswing, and condos and apartments are rising across the urban core.

These are tangible upticks attesting that something big is happening in Tampa – even while that something is still under construction.

The USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute is building a new facility in the heart of burgeoning downtown Tampa and will be a primary anchor in the $3 billion real estate development – Water Street Tampa – by Strategic Property Partners, the joint venture between Jeff Vinik and Cascade Investment, LLC.

From left, USF System President Judy Genshaft, Frank and Carol Morsani, and Dr. Charles Lockwood, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, were among those who recently toured the construction site for USF in Water Street Tampa.

When the project kicked off several years ago, talk was hot about the potential a medical school and cardiovascular research institute in the urban core would have on the entire region. Biotechnology, pharmaceutical, biomedical engineering, translational research, biomanufacturing – these are among the forward-thinking buzzwords that painted the vision.

But today, talk has shifted from potential to more tangible, offering stronger hints of the true ripple effect expected.

University and community leaders shared their insights on some early indicators of success, giving us all a glimpse of the economic impact ahead.

“What they’re saying …

Craig J. Richard, president and CEO, Tampa Hillsborough
Economic Development Corporation:

“I’m happy to say that, with the announcement that USF is building a medical school in downtown, it has certainly helped us in promoting Tampa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. When I arrived on the scene a couple of years ago, there was already some buzz. Now the buzz has accelerated. It makes it easier for us as an organization and for our employers to attract top talent. Spin offs that could result from entrepreneurial collaborations at the medical school would have a beneficial effect on our life sciences, health care and technology industries.”

Judy Genshaft, USF System president:

“We are creating a world-class learning, research and training environment. We already know how much this exciting future appeals to the best and the brightest. Since this project was first announced in 2014, applications to our College of Medicine are up by 60 percent. And our incoming students have achieved the highest MCAT scores of all Florida universities. And our Heart Institute is attracting world-class experts. In addition to the outstanding research that will take place there, the Heart Institute is going to have a major economic impact – we expect it to drive between $66 and $73 million in local economic activity annually.”

Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM, senior vice president of
USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine:

“We’ve almost doubled the total research grant dollars that the medical school received since I arrived four years ago. Our national rankings have dramatically improved. I also get a sense of the excitement just from the emails I’ve been getting from folks who are very interested in this project, interested in relocating here … It’s really drawing attention nationally … The payoff of this project probably won’t be fully realized for a decade, but the immediate impact is significant. Every $1 of National Institutes of Health funding we can bring to the Heart Institute will generate about $2.60 in local economic activity. That will happen almost immediately. We’re talking about $72 million a year within the next five years being generated in the Tampa Bay area just from the research brought into the heart institute. But that doesn’t begin to measure the impact when we think about the creation of patents, licensing fees, biotech companies, whether we start them or they come in to be part of this project. With that, we’re talking about hopefully hundreds of millions of dollars of economic impact.”

Samuel Wickline, MD, director, USF Health Heart Institute:

“We are already attracting very qualified individuals who are doing very exciting things in many different areas in cardiac research … I’ve been talking to a number of individuals who are interested in getting ideas out of the bench and into clinical practice. It’s fairly early in the game right now.  Tampa hasn’t had those sorts of investment opportunities … I’ve been talking to a large swath of individuals who might be interested in providing those types of funds for biotech start-ups. The heart institute was meant to be that kind of an attractor.”

Bob Buckhorn, mayor, City of Tampa:

“I don’t have to sell often and hard because people now are talking about us. Tampa has become that place that everyone is talking about. Inevitably, when I go tell the story, they come to me and say ‘Hey, what’s going on down there?’ … People are like, ‘What in the heck are you people doing there, because all we hear about is Tampa?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, we are good. Come on down and see it.’ ”

Carol and Frank Morsani, for whom the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine is named, ride a golf cart en route to a construction site tour of USF in Water Street Tampa.

The new state-of-the-art facility housing the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute is rising out of the ground at the corner of Meridian Avenue and Channelside Drive in downtown Tampa.

Frank Morsani in the emerging building, with downtown Tampa’s skyline in the background.

The new USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute will be a primary anchor for Strategic Property Partners’ $3 billion Water Street Tampa development.

Learn more about USF in Water Street Tampa by visiting usf.edu/waterstreet.

-Drone aerial photo by Sandra C. Roa and Ryan Noone, USF Communications and Marketing
-Construction site photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Communications and Marketing