Standing before friends and family, 48 USF Doctor of Physical Therapy students promised to put their patients first, be responsible and accountable, and to collaborate with their health care team members as part of the Commitment to Professionalism Ceremony, held Oct. 20 in the USF School of Music Concert Hall.

The Class of 2019 took the oath and received their first white coats as part of the annual ceremony for incoming students to the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

Setting the tone of an interprofessional approach to the educational experience the students will have at USF Health, as well as in their careers, was William S. Quillen, PT, PhD, SCS, FACSM, professor and director of the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences and senior associate dean for the Morsani College of Medicine.

“Physical therapy is everywhere across the lifespan,” Dr. Quillen said. “From pediatrics to geriatrics, from the intensive care units to outpatient ambulatory musculoskeletal orthopaedic care, we are part of the team with our medicine, pharmacy, athletic training, public health, and nursing colleagues. We believe team care is the best care. When USF Health came together some 10 years ago, we said together we would make life better. USF Health is where people come together in an IPE (interprofessional education) model for the future of health care.”

Dr. William S. Quillen

This year’s freshmen students were an exceptional bunch, representing the most selective class to date. Chosen from nearly 1,400 applicants, the acceptance rate equates to about a 3 percent chance of getting into the School. In addition, the average GPA for the Class of 2019 is above the national average for other DPT programs.

“So we have started out with an intelligent, highly talented class,” said Bryan A. Bognar, MD, MPH, FACP, professor of medicine and vice dean for MCOM Office of Educational Affairs.

“I am confident they will excel in this next stage of their own professional development at the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences. The future of health care belongs to the providers who put their patients first and who make every day an opportunity to deliver care that is personalized, effective, and efficient. Enjoy this year and embrace the collaborative learning opportunities that the next few years will bring. They will be cherished moments. Welcome to the USF Health family, where we are making life better!”

Dr. Bryan Bognar

In addition to faculty based in the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, leaders from other areas of USF Health congratulated the Class of 2019 and offered them words of advice:

Deborah Dewaay, MD, FACP, associate dean for Undergraduate Medical Education for USF Health Morsani College of Medicine: Noted the meaning of ceremonies such as this, and how they offer a public display of our intentions and an opportunity to reflect on who we inspire to be. Intention without action is worthless, she told the students.

Amy Schwartz, PharmD, associate dean of Academic and Clinical Affairs for the USF College of Pharmacy: Spoke of her anticipation of working with physical therapy students as part of the interprofessional learning opportunities USF Health offers, including working at the BRIDGE Clinic, among others.

Joann Strobbe, MsEd, senior associate vice president for Administration, Finance and Technology and chief financial officer for USF Health, and vice dean for Administration, Finance and Technology for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine: Reflected on the code of ethics that is the foundation for the financial profession, saying that the medical profession offered the same opportunity through oaths of commitment, such as the one these DPT students would be taking that night.

Jay Wolfson, DrPH, JD, associate vice president of Health Law, Policy and Safety, and Distinguished Service Professor of Public Health, Medicine and Pharmacy: Reminded the students of their obligation to the community they serve, asking them to remember that their work is not just about health, but about the health of the community. Don’t lose that trust.

Keynote speaker Nancy R. Kirsch, PT, DPT, PhD, FAPTA, professor and director of the Physical Therapy Program at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, shared her approached to staying on track in her profession by using the acronym PIE – passion, integrity and excellence – that represent pillars of professionalism.

Dr. Nancy Kirsch

“Passion is most likely what drove you to begin with,” Dr. Kirsch said. “That passion doesn’t waive – it increases, gets stronger, and keep growing. Integrity is the bedrock and we owe it to our patients, to each other and to ourselves. Excellence is how we assess and determine what our outcomes; are we competent. Be competent and excel beyond the minimum. We improve the skills we have and we develop the skills we lack.

“In PT, each of us has the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of our patients, in the growth and maturation of our institutions, and in our society. I invite each of you to claim your piece of the PIE. Keep your focus on the patient as central to all that you do. Commit to strengthening the profession you are inheriting. Pledge to leave those who follow you a profession well-rounded in passion, built on integrity, and maintained and grown with excellence. Aspire to make tonight the beginning of an invigorating, productive, and exciting career. There is no better than the one you have chosen.”

Perspective on the symbolism of the ceremony taking place was given by Laure Lee “Dolly” Swisher, PT, MDiv, PhD, FAPTA, professor and coordinator of professional education and assistant dean for Interprofessional Education for the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

Dr. Dolly Swisher

“When we started this ceremony, there was a shared interest among the faculty, staff and students all of whom wanted to develop something to promote excellence in professionalism in our community,” Dr. Swisher said. “The originators of the event really wanted to emphasize that is was an event about professionalism. So they chose not call there ceremony a ‘white coat’ ceremony, but to call it a Commitment to Professionalism Ceremony because it’s not really only about the white coat. It’s about an interchange the white coat may signify, and about professionalism and, most of all, about commitment.”

In addition to presenting white coats, the Commitment to Professionalism Ceremony announced the recipients to several of the School’s scholarships and awards. These included:

Spirit of Interprofessionalism Award: Lucy Guerra, MD MPH FACP FHM, associate professor of medicine, associate director of the internal medicine residency program for USF Health, and director of the Division of General Internal Medicine, as well as a faculty director for the student-directed USF Health BRIDGE Clinic.

Gregory R. Nicolosi Commitment to Professionalism Award: Kelsey Ulliman (DPT Class of 2018)

Johnene M. Vorholy Memorial Scholarship: Shoshanna Rahming (DPT Class of 2017)

Kurtzman Scholarship: Rachel Harrington (DPT Class of 2018)

Future Professional Scholarship: Kyle Proctor (DPT Class of 2017) and Ciara Hall (DPT Class of 2018)

Tiedemann Circle of Motion Scholarship: Zachary Alfonso (DPT Class of 2017) and Sarah Norris (DPT Class of 2018)

CORA Scholarship: Erica Larson (DPT class of 2019)

The USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences Class of 2019

Katherine Perkins; Aliya Scalamogna; Evan Renaud; Kyle Schindler; Exor Serrano Arce; Rasa Staniulyte; Alise DuBay; Alisha Espinosa; Katie Essick; Sarah Flanagan; Lindsey Foreman; Jordan Lindblom; April Mansfield; Marian Becker; Karri Chestnut; Ryan Delsignore; Garrett Dietz; Casey Chiarello; Brittany Denny; Barrett Barnes; Sierra Bahr; Noela Lalime; Erica Larson; Marc Leggett; Angeline León; Lauren Perrotta; Emily Franco; Roland Gaddy; Christopher Gai; Devina Gilmore; Dayna Hernreich; MaKenzie Judy; Kelly Jutras; Brandi Koehler; Karissa Kortum; David Kroger; Chloe Moreno; Nicholas Rietveld; Dennis Rinaldi III; Alyssa Santos; Matthew Sarver; Justin Pittman; Eric Schindler; Paul McEuen, Jr.; Sara Stannard; Brendan White; Elizabeth Winsor; Lauren Zilke.

Pain is personal, but many times the root cause of pain can be treated through physical therapy.

October is National Physical Therapy Month and this year’s campaign focuses on using physical therapy as a safe alternative to prescription opioids for pain management.

National statics show that opioid addiction is at an all-time high and typically include painkillers like Vicodin, OxyContin, Opana, and methodone, and combination drugs like Percocet.

Therapists at the USF Physical Therapy Center target treatment to alleviate pain.

While opioid use may be appropriate for intense post-surgical or cancer-related pain, the risks of opioid use outweigh the benefits when it comes to common musculoskeletal injuries, especially in the case of chronic musculoskeletal pain, said Kenneth Taylor, PT, DPT, assistant professor in the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

“Chronic pain drives many to turn to opioids for relief,” said Dr. Taylor, who is a board-certified clinical specialist in orthopaedic physical therapy. “The brain is a powerful thing and many times we think pain means continued injury. But pain is not always a good indicator of the true health status of tissue, and pain killers only mask pain, not address the real issue causing that pain.”

Physical Therapists are the movement specialists of the world, he said, and they are trained to target treatment, help alleviate pain and, as a result, help prevent opioid addiction. At the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, students are given the tools to target physical therapy and to recognize opioid addiction.

Dr. Kenneth Taylor

“We train our graduates to have a better understanding of pain, to educate their own patients not to fear pain, and to offer them the best approaches for getting their patients moving again,” Dr. Taylor said. “Pain while in physical therapy doesn’t mean damage – hurt does not equal harm.”

The key, Dr. Taylor said, is to talk with your health care provider about your pain, your options for pain management, and the related risks for taking opioids.

Statistics:

According to the CDC, in 2012 health care providers wrote 259 million prescriptions for opioid pain medication, enough for every American adult to have their own bottle of pills

According to the CDC, every day, over 1,000 people are treated in emergency departments for misusing prescription opioids.

According to the CDC, as many as 1 in 4 people who receive prescription opioids long-term for noncancer pain in primary care settings struggles with addiction.

USF Health welcomed more than 1,400 incoming students to its colleges and programs, a total that reflects record-setting up-tics in several areas. As these new students get their bearings on their first day, here’s a glimpse of their Class stats.

College of Public Health

The USF College of Public Health welcomed more new graduate students this year than last year, and its largest incoming class for its DrPH program in its history.

The COPH lobby is filled with new faces as classes for Fall 2016 begins. Photo by Natalie Preston-Washington. 

College of Pharmacy

As the USF College of Pharmacy welcomed it sixth group of freshman in its short history, its reputation among applicants is growing strong. The College maintained its number of applications this year, while the national trend has seen a decrease in applications to the PharmD programs. In addition, students applying to the USF College of Pharmacy are a more robust pool of applicants, with average PCAT scores and GPAs have increased for this incoming class. Topping of this College’s firsts is the fact that, for the first time, more females were admitted than males; previous years were evenly split.

Total new students: 97 students

Age: Average age is 23, age range is 20 to 44

Gender: 70% Women 30% Men

Dean Kevin Sneed gives a Go Bulls! with the new students in Pharmacy’s Class of 2020. Photo by Katy Hennig.

Morsani College of Medicine

MD Program

The Class of 2020 for MCOM’s MD program is the largest class in the school’s history and the strongest group academically to enter the college, averaging a record 34 on the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) exam, the highest of all Florida public universities and a score that places MCOM above the 90th percentile for all students taking the exam nationwide. In addition, this group represents the 183 students who were culled from more than 6,100 applications and successfully admitted to MCOM, also a record number.

Total new students: 183

Gender: 45% Women 55% Men

The MCOM MD Program Class of 2020 had its reception at the Tampa Museum of Art. Photo by Eric Younghans.

Biomedical Sciences Graduate and Postdoctoral Programs

In total, there are 377 new students to the Biomedical Sciences Graduate and Postdoctoral Programs who were chosen among 1,433 interested applications.

MCOM PhD Program

The PhD program welcomed 16 new students this fall, five of whom are international.

Gender: 50% Women 50% Men

Dr. Eric Bennett welcomes the 16 new MCOM PhD Program students. Photo by Eric Younghans.

16 PhD students include: Mariana Burgos Angulo, Cory Diemler, Andie Dodge (not pictured), Eric Haas, Alexandra Jenkins, Nicholas Johnson, Michael Kemp, Roukiah Khalil, Andrew McGill, Zeinab Motawe (not pictured), Austin Nenninger, Courtney Penn, Michael Sacco, Meena Subhashini Subbarayan, Jianxiang Xue,and Jiajia Yang.

MCOM Master’s Program

The MCOM Master’s in Medical Sciences program offers two tracks: a research track for those who want to pursue a career in research or enter into a biomedical sciences PhD program, and a pre-professional track for those seeking admission in a health professional school.

This year, there are 361 incoming master’s students.

In the pre-professional track, there are 209 new students, the largest group in the program’s history. Their average GPA was 3.35 and their average MCAT score was a 27 on the old scale and 501 on the new scale.

In the research track, there are 152 new students. Their average GPA was 3.29 and their average MCAT was a 23 (old scale) and 495 (new scale).

Dr. Michael Barber greets incoming Master’s student Juanita Patterson-Price to the Pre-Professional Master’s Program. Photo by Eric Younghans.

School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences

The School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences welcomed its Class of 2019 to its Doctor of Physical Therapy program, a group chosen from among a record number 1,493 applicants for 48 positions. With a 3% chance of getting in to the USF DPT program, this group is the School’s most selective class ever. This group also beats national averages for GPA for those entering into DPT programs.

Total new students: 48

Gender: 66.7% Women          33.3% Men

Average Overall GPA: 3.70 (national avg. is 3.5)

Dean Sandy Quillen greets new DPT students at the School of Physical Therapy Orientation. Photo by Eric Younghans.

College of Nursing

The College of Nursing is having a strong start: This new academic year, the nursing school had more than 1,400 undergraduate applicants, with about 600 of those applying for the upper division sequence, the highest number in years. This semester, the College of Nursing also admitted the highest number of CRNA students since the program opened in 2006, admitting a total of 50 applicants. In addition, the College has seen an increase in graduate degree admissions, totaling 250 graduate students – with 60 of those pursuing doctoral degrees.

College of Nursing’s orientation for its CRNA program. Photo by Ryan Noone.

More photos from the College of Nursing orientations: Graduate program, CRNA Program, RN to BSN Program, and Pre-licensure, Upper Division, Second Degree and VCARE.

The 13-month trial assessing targeted exercises to reduce the risk of low back injury begins with Tampa Fire Rescue and will expand to fire departments in St. Petersburg and Hillsborough County

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=de-dRW4IZRg

Tampa, FL (April 11, 2016) — USF Health and Tampa Fire Rescue have launched a randomized controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of a worksite exercise regimen targeted to reduce the risk of low back injury and disability in firefighters — a physically demanding occupation particularly prone to back problems that can lead to chronic pain and early retirement.

If this pivotal trial proves successful, the exercise training program could be implemented across the country to improve the health, safety and preparedness of the nation’s firefighters.

At the recent press conference, Dr. John Mayer of the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, shares details about the new $1.3 million back injury prevention study enrolling local firefighters. Behind Dr. Mayer, all with Tampa Fire Rescue, from l to r, are Chief Tom Forward, Tiffany Kline, RN, COHN, occupational health nurse supervisor, and Edward Ortiz and John Cannon, both firefighters.

The full-scale prevention study is supported by a $1.3-million Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant, including a 5-percent extramural funding match from the Florida Chiropractic Foundation for Education and Research. It marks the third and most comprehensive project of ongoing FEMA-funded research by John Mayer, DC, PhD, Lincoln Endowed Chair of Biomechanical and Chiropractic Research at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine’s School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

Tampa Fire Rescue Chief Tom Forward and study lead investigator Dr. Mayer stood with firefighters April 11 in the City of Tampa Fire Station #1 in downtown Tampa to announce the study and demonstrate the exercises for local news media.

“This study is the largest that’s ever been funded by FEMA looking directly at back injury prevention in firefighters,” Dr. Mayer told reporters and videographers. “Back injuries don’t kill people but it’s the #1 cause of opioid use in the population of firefighters, and we’ve all heard the horror stories about opioid use. We hope this study helps prevent things like that.”

From a frontline perspective, firefighter John Cannon summed it up another way for reporters.

“A healthy back is a healthy firefighter,” Cannon said.

Firefighter John Cannon demonstrates the heavy protective clothing and gear that must to donned  to fight fires, including an air tank weighing 35 pounds.

Starting next week with participants recruited from Tampa Fire Rescue, the study will roll out to St. Petersburg Fire Rescue and Hillsborough County Fire Rescue over the next four months.  More than 300 firefighters from these three fire departments – the Tampa Bay region’s largest – will join the 13-month trial. Results of the study are expected in Fall 2017.

“Assuming positive results,” Dr. Mayer said, “this study will deliver the first evidence-based exercise intervention to prevent low back injury in firefighters, so that they can more effectively and safely carry out their duties to protect the community.”

“Career preservation is our goal. The current study provides an excellent platform to achieve this and serves as an impetus to expand our firefighter wellness initiatives,” said Charity L. Lane, MS, project manager, USF Health.

Back injuries are the leading cause of permanent disability and early retirement among firefighters, who often carry more than 50 pounds of protective gear in their jobs, haul heavy fire hoses and lift and maneuver stretchers around tight corners or contort themselves to extract accident victims from cars.

“We are pleased to partner with USF on this study, which aims to improve the quality of life for our firefighters and enhance their readiness to serve our citizens as first responders,” said Tampa Fire Rescue Chief Thomas Forward.

The standardized exercise protocol being tested was specifically designed to strengthen back and core muscles, including training on a specialized machine that isolates lower back muscles.

Tampa Fire Rescue Captain Jeremy Finney demonstrates the exercise routine designed to strengthen back and core muscles, while firefighter John Cannon counts the prescribed pacing.

Cameras surround an explanation of the exercises by USF study project manager Charity Lane, MS, CPT.

The USF researchers will compare the clinical outcomes in three groups of randomly assigned firefighters — one receiving a directly supervised exercise regimen at the fire station two times a week for one year, another guided through the same worksite exercise regimen, but as a remote, web-based interaction (a telehealth system that encourages exercise adherence), and a control group given brief instruction on general exercise principles. All study participants, whether undergoing the exercise intervention or not, will continue their usual physical fitness routines.

To assess the exercise program’s effectiveness, the researchers will measure such factors as low back injury incidences and illness data, validated physical fitness tests, lost work days and costs.

The new study builds upon Dr. Mayer’s earlier FEMA-funded studies, demonstrating:

– A link between weak back muscle endurance and increased prevalence of low back pain in firefighters.

– Supervised worksite exercise training targeting back and core muscle endurance in firefighters was safe and appeared to work, indicating the intervention could protect against future low back pain. The preliminary study was reported in the American Journal of Health Promotion.

If this new study confirms the investigational exercise protocol’s benefit in Tampa Bay firefighters, the findings could also have implications for countering substantial adverse consequences of chronic back pain and injury in the general population, including health care and work-related costs, Dr. Mayer noted.

Lead study investigator Dr. John Mayer is interviewed by Fox 13 News health reporter Dr. Joette Giovinco.

Firefighter John Cannon demonstrates the loads and weight of their required gear.

In addition to more than 50 pounds of gear, firefighters might also need to lift heavy equipment, like this Jaws of Life hydraulic apparatus used to pry apart the wreckage of crashed vehicles to free people.

Fire Chief Tom Forward is interviewed by Bay News 9.

Jeremy Finney answers reporters’ questions about the risk of lower-back injury for firefighters.

                                                                      -USF Health-
USF Health’s mission is to envision and implement the future of health. It is the partnership of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the College of Nursing, the College of Public Health, the College of Pharmacy, the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, and the USF Physician’s Group. The University of South Florida is a Top 50 research university in total research expenditures among both public and private institutions nationwide, according to the National Science Foundation.  For more information, visit www.health.usf.edu

                                                           -About Tampa Fire Rescue-
Tampa Fire Rescue’s 647 sworn firefighters and paramedics provide fire protection, fire suppression, and emergency medical services throughout the City of Tampa. Tampa Fire Rescue operates out of 22 fire stations providing aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) services at Tampa International Airport, hazardous materials response, marine firefighting, and fire and life safety education to the public. The Fire Marshal’s office, a division of Tampa Fire Rescue, investigates causes of fire, conducts building code reviews and enforces fire and life safety codes.

Video by Sandra C. Roa and photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications
Sarah Worth contributed to this story.

After spending a morning in courtrooms at the George Edgecomb Courthouse in downtown Tampa, USF Health faculty, administrators and students saw firsthand the similarities of the medical and legal professions.

USF Health faculty, administrators and students were invited to experience the judicial process first hand.

About two dozen people from USF Health who attended this year’s Black Robe Day, a morning-long event that partners lawyers and judges with faculty and administrators from the USF Colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Public Health, and Pharmacy, and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, as well as medical students.

The event is organized by Jay Wolfson, JD, DrPH, USF Distinguished Service Professor and associate vice president for Health Law, Policy and Safety at USF Health and Senior Associate Dean Morsani College of Medicine, and Hillsborough County Circuit Judge Gregory Holder, and coordinated by Dionne Ferguson, JD, PhD, director of Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness, and Laura M. Daniels, judicial assistant to Judge Holder.

The Honorable Judge Gregory Holder.

The lunch for event attendees was hosted by the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), a group of litigators that promotes issues that support the courts and provide a better understanding of the court system.

The main goal of the Black Robe Day is to give a glimpse of our legal system so USF Health students and faculty gain better perspectives of the commonalities of law and medicine. The program is also linked to the Law and Medicine Scholarly Concentration, one of several programs offered by the Scholarly Concentration Program in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

This year, the group from USF Health met with judges for part of the morning of Oct. 20 and then split into smaller groups to shadow individual judges and access many of the court cases taking place that day. Guests of the court heard details about drug possession, domestic violence, theft, and battery, among other types of cases, as they watched the proceedings.

Reflections from the students and faculty about their day in court included gratitude for the inside look at the court system and a newfound appreciation for the legal process. Some of the quotes from the morning included:

“There are similar competency and skill sets in both professions. The ability to listen, the ability to have compassion and the ability to dissect a lot of information in a short period of time. People were at odds with family and children in the courtroom, but they came together to help,”said Joe Ford, assistant vice president of the USF Health Shared Student Services.

“I teach domestic violence and human trafficking and today, seeing it from the real world, was very impressive. I love this,” said Anthonia Imudia, DNP, FNP-BC, assistant professor in the USF College of Nursing.

“We have a lot of patients with substance abuse problems so it was really good to see the follow up of that,” said Sharon Aroda, MD, assistant professor in the Morsani College of Medicine.

“It impressed me how you helped people make informed decisions. Many times they had to make tough decisions and what was best for them was laid it out very clearly,” said Douglas Holt, MD, professor of medicine and director of the Hillsborough County Health Department.

In Judge Richard Weis’ courtroom “I learned some inside baseball lawyering. We had a number of young attorneys in his courtroom and he told me afterwards how he tried to give them hints to get them back to the middle of the road when they were going off into the weeds. Because he operated his courtroom with amazing discipline and efficiency,” said William S. Quillen, PT, PhD, SCS, FACSM, professor and director of the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences and associate dean for the Morsani College of Medicine.

“The disparities we see in health care mimics what you see in the courtroom. And being open to more students would be good because we could be studying these issues from a systems point of view. We need to get more people involved and passionate about this,” said Jacqueline Wiltshire, PhD, MPH, associate professor of Health Policy and Management at USF College of Public Health.

“I was struck by the co-morbidity of substance abuse with almost every story we heard today. No matter their angle or what their drug of choice was, it was amazing how much substance abuse there is and you wonder what direction the causality is. But it’s still shocking and has grim statistics,” said Sean Gregory, PhD, MBA, assistant professor of Health Policy and Management at the USF College of Public Health.

“As a health economist, it’s amazing to me the lost resources that are coming through this building. I can’t believe the challenges you all face on a day-to-day basis and it’s really nice to learn your perspective on it,” said Troy Quast, PhD, associate professor of Health Policy and Management at the USF College of Public Health.

In juvenile court “I saw just how much you judges are trying help them turn their lives around. Even though your hands are tied with that point system, you all really care about the citizens and try to help them,” said Chelsea Frost, fourth-year medical student.

“The thing that got me throughout this experience is the sheer volume of cases that there are. It was quite eye opening. When you say you’re running through 300 cases in a morning that to me blows my mind. So hats off to all of you. What you do on your end is amazing to me and I appreciate the time here,” said Amanda Davis, NP, instructor in the USF College of Nursing.

“For me it was really about solidifying the parallels between law and medicine. It’s not unlike walking through a hospital – the future hung in the balance for these people and their families. Compassion played a big part in the outcomes,” said Luis Espinosa, first-year medical student.

Judges of the Thirteenth District Court.

Judge Greg Holder and USF Health’s Jay Wolfson.

Story by Sarah Worth, photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications.

Experts in rehabilitation and neuromusculoskeletal sciences from Florida’s universities gathered for the Inaugural Summit of the USF Center for Neuromusculoskeletal Research, held January 16, 2015 at CAMLS in downtown Tampa, FL.

From left, Dr. John Mayer, Lt. Gen. Martin Steele, and Dr. William Quillen.

Hosted by the USF School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences, the day-long Summit set out to identify and discuss priorities for rehabilitation sciences research and address the burden of neuromusculoskeletal disease on Florida’s population. In addition to USF, the scientists attending represented faculty from Florida A&M University, Florida Gulf Coast University, National University of Health Sciences. Nova Southeastern University, Palmer College of Chiropractic, and University of North Florida.

Musculoskeletal conditions, which can include arthritis, lupus, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, adult and pediatric injuries, spinal pain and disabilities, and brain and spinal cord injuries, are among the most disabling and costly conditions affecting Americans, said. William S. Quillen, PT, DPT, PhD, FACSM, associate dean and director of the USF School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences.

“One thing that will surely stop economic growth is neuromusculoskeletal injuries,” Dr. Quillen told the group.

“The burden of cost for these conditions is felt throughout the health care system – both in-patient and out-patient, and long-term services – and causing loss of productivity and a huge negative impact on quality of life.”

“Well-designed and impactful research is needed to combat the negative effects of neuromusculoskeletal conditions throughout the State of Florida, United States, and the world,” said John M. Mayer, DC, PhD, Lincoln Endowed Chair and Associate Professor the USF School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences.

The event featured remarks by Lt. Gen. Martin Steele, (U.S. Marine Corps retired), who urged the group to reach beyond the boundaries of their own universities to collaborate with each other and to keep patients in mind as they build their research.

“First, I thank you for what you do and for your commitment to the quality of life for Americans and the people around the world,” said Lt. Gen. Steele, who came to USF five years ago as associate vice president for Veterans Research and chairs the Veterans Reintegration Program and executive director of USF Military Partnerships.

“This is a great effort here, focuses on collaboration, not competition. This is the first summit, and you will be the plank holders. This moment, this opportunity, is a window we have to jump through.”

Lt. Gen. Steele pointed out that USF is affiliated with the James A. Haley VA Hospital, the busiest VA hospital in the country, and the Bill Young VA Hospital, providing ample opportunities for strong collaboration. And as more and more veterans return home, he said, the number of injuries will need to be addressed.

“It is critical what you’re doing, even at the cellular level, because it’s only getting worse. The sustained injuries, the load-bearing equipment they wear, the helmets and neck injuries, the pelvic stress. Low back pain is the biggest issue we have in the military today, particularly in the Marines and the Army. And the demands for what they need to carry are only getting higher.”

And he urged them to continue with their work for all “soldiers, airmen and women, Marines, coast Guard and anyone else who is injured to give them all a chance, an opportunity, to live their lives larger than they’re living them right now.”

Following Lt. Gen. Steele’s keynote address, the group set out to create an asset map of research already taking place and facilities available around the state, which will provide a baseline of the current state of neuromusculoskeletal research initiatives, collaborations, and priorities in Florida.

Dr. Quillen provided a launching point for discussion.

“We were fortunate to acquire of the past few years about a million-dollars-worth of equipment that can quantifiably measure every part of the neuromuscular functional performance,” Dr. Quillen said. “So why can’t our work be inter-institutional. It’s collaboration, not competition.”

Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications.

Patients are likely to benefit the most from the added expertise of USF Health College of Pharmacy students to the USF Health BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic staff.

Pharmacy students recently joined the clinical team at the BRIDGE Clinic, a student-run free clinic in the USF Health Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare, and will provide prescription medication counseling, side effect and drug and food interaction counseling, patient education on disease states, as well as various pharmaceutical consultation services.

The BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic provides a health facility for underserved patients living near USF.  BRIDGE stands for Building Relationships and Initiatives Dedicated to Gaining Equality, and is staffed by USF students from medicine, physical therapy, social work, public health, and now pharmacy, alongside faculty mentors and advisors.

Pharmacy’s connection to BRIDGE is a natural fit, said Kevin B. Sneed, PharmD, dean of the USF Health College of Pharmacy.

“BRIDGE is the epitome of a shared-values organization that benefits the community and the students while reinforcing the teaching efforts of the faculty,” Dr. Sneed said. “This has resulted in a nationally-recognized interprofessional model of care the emphasizes USF Health’s commitment to creating health communities. BRIDGE is a great investment of time and resources for everyone involved, and is an enormous source of pride for USF and the entire  Tampa community.”

In addition to improving the care for patients, including pharmacy students helps better mirror the team settings all students will likely work in once they graduate, said Grace Tidwell, a fourth-year medical student and a co-director of the BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic.

“We are so excited to now have pharmacy students as part of our interdisciplinary team at the student-run BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic,” Tidwell said. “As the newest addition to our clinic, the pharmacy team furthers our goal of preparing students for collaboration in their future careers by exposing them to what each discipline can offer and providing them with the opportunity to work side by side to provide comprehensive patient care. Pharmacy provides invaluable services to the BRIDGE patients, who have no other means to access health services.”

There has always been a pharmacy director on hand during clinic hours, but the addition of pharmacy students to the clinical team helps provide a more realistic clinical environment and a chance for the students to use what they are learning in the classroom, said Shafaat Pirani, a third-year pharmacy student.

“It’s a great way to integrate what we’re learning in class and to apply our knowledge,” Pirani said. “It’s the first true clinical opportunity for pharmacy students to interact with patients and to start practicing the skills we’ve learned. And we all work under licensed pharmacists from the VA, the community, and our very own College of Pharmacy faculty, who are volunteering their time at BRIDGE, as well, so we have additional mentoring opportunities.”

Pirani helped establish the Pharmacy’s role at BRIDGE, and is a founding co-director for the College of Pharmacy students at BRIDGE, along with Kayla Mackanin and Theresa Trindade.

Pirani said the experience will mean that, when he graduates in 2015 from the USF College of Pharmacy, he will be better prepared for the changing healthcare landscape.

“Healthcare is rapidly changing from a fee for service system to a value based system, where patient outcomes are closely scrutinized,” Pirani said. “This means that pharmacists will have more clinical interaction with the patient and work alongside other healthcare providers to improve patient outcomes. The future of medicine will model that of a patient-centered medical home, where at the least, a physician, a nurse, a physical therapist and a pharmacist, all there to collaborate to care for one patient, ensuring continuity of care.”

Story by Sarah A. Worth, photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications

USF Health has been at the forefront for training healthcare professionals to work in teams – from its ground-breaking coursework that combines students from medical, nursing and physical therapy programs to the newly opened Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation that is training professionals from around the world.

A new program at USF Health is honing those skills further by providing case-based sessions across time, an approach that offers a more realistic view of how healthcare teams care for patients requiring multiple visits and whose care needs to be reassessed as their conditions change.

“We have worked as a collaborative Interprofessional team to develop a really robust small group case-based session,” said Dawn M. Schocken, director of the Center for Advanced Clinical Learning for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, which hosted the program.

“The small-group facilitation makes this a successful and terrific learning activity and a wonderful experience for our learners to learn to work as a team, before they enter the workforce.”

The IPE Educational program, which features small group sessions focused on a patient scenario, is training students from multiple educational tracts –USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, College of Nursing, College of Pharmacy, and the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences – to work together. Student learners included fifth-semester nursing students (from the Leadership Course); doctoral students (year 2) from the School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; second-year medical students; and doctoral student (year 2) pharmacy students. In addition, 16 faculty members from across USF Health volunteered to participate, including five faculty from College of Nursing, four faculty from College of Pharmacy, two faculty from School of Physical Therapy, and five faculty from Morsani College of Medicine.

Sessions for the program started last week and included 260 student learners. Spanning two days, students met with faculty members who facilitated discussions surrounding the care of a 65-year-old female patient recovering from a stroke and currently in a skilled nursing facility. Each student had already learned about the patient’s care from admission to the hospital with a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis through a stroke in the intensive care unit and discharge from the hospital to a skilled nursing facility.

The goal of this program was to have the students work together to develop a plan of care for the patient as she recovers from her illness, and address any concerns either she or her family have regarding her care. During the small group sessions, a standardized patient, representing the real patient’s family member, met with the student teams to discuss their concerns for their family member’s care.

The scenario will continue for the student/faculty teams in February when they will meet again to learn a new portion of the case, and then carry on their discussion to assess new needs for our ‘patient’.

Response to the team-building experience is positive, said Gail H. Schinka RN MS, clinical instructor of nursing and coordinator for the VA Nursing Academy, a partnership of the USF College of Nursing and the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital to expand education for nursing students and health care for veteran.

“This exercise gave all of the students some good insight into the roles of other disciplines and allowed them to explore how best to communicate with each other to drive positive patient outcomes,” Schinka said.

Student learners gain a decided advantage by training in teams, said Chiara Stetson, a fifth-semester student from the College of Nursing.

“Fostering an interdisciplinary team approach early on in healthcare education will hopefully transition to a multidisciplinary approach in treatment across the health care field,” Stetson said. “Utilizing the knowledge, skill, and expertise from multiple disciplines, with the common goal of patient-centered care, has been shown to improve patient outcomes.  Hopefully this approach can be integrated into the healthcare system in the years to come leading to increased satisfaction of both the patients and their providers. (The IPE session) was a great learning experience one that I would love to see being continued in the future.”