To Heal and to Comfort: Expanding the Borders of High-Quality Patient Care
Committed to moving medicine forward in Northeast Florida, UF Health Jacksonville and the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville have visibly expanded their borders to provide the best care possible to the diverse patient population we serve. The UF Health footprint in Jacksonville has seen significant growth in the past year, breaking ground on a second clinical bed tower at UF Health North in March 2022. The opening of UF Health East and UF Health Deerwood Park in the southeast quadrant of Jacksonville offers patients greater access to care while giving residents, fellows and postdoctoral students a variety of locations to carry out their medical education.
A $3.7 million grant from the Florida Blue Foundation will allow the Urban Health Alliance at UF Health Jacksonville to continue its goal to improve health equity. By establishing a statewide Center for Health Equity and Social Justice, we will ensure families, individuals and communities of need have both the access and opportunity to achieve positive health outcomes.
To Educate: Forging Ahead
As a college, we have made tremendous strides to continue our mission to heal, comfort, educate and discover during challenging and unprecedented times. The contributions of our faculty and staff set the pace for academic medicine in our region and improve the health of our community.
An Academic Media Room on the campus of UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville has opened new technological doors for the student and faculty experience. Modeled after the University of Florida’s Academic Media Production Room through UFIT’s Center for Instruction Technology and Training, this asset is advancing medical education on campus.
In the fall of 2021, the Jacksonville campus opened the new Office of Student Affairs. This space is now the official home and hub for medical student education. In the spring of 2023, the Leon L. Haley, Jr. MD, Medical Student Lounge will open and be a space where students can unwind and recharge.
As we stride toward excellence in education and scholarship, the Deans Office added two endowed professorships. These professorships will support faculty in medical education scholarship and quality improvement and patient safety scholarship.
The Jacksonville campus continues to collaborate with colleagues in Gainesville and had the pleasure to assist in preparation for the recent LCME reaccreditation site visit on the Gainesville campus. As we train the next generation of health care leaders, we are committed to find more avenues to work together as one UF.
To Discover: Discoveries that Make an Impact
Research teams at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville remain laser-focused on advancing the practice of medicine and providing access to leading-edge technologies for patients, with immediate and meaningful impact on their lives.
Erin Mobley, Ph.D., and Stacy Alvarez- Alvarado, Ph.D., are examples of faculty contributing research that makes a difference in the community we serve. Mobley, an assistant professor in the department of surgery, is focused on improving cancer survivorship care in underserved and federally funded patient populations with the Precision Care Survivorship Cohort and other trials. Alvarez-Alvarado, an assistant professor in the department of neurology is working to prevent cognitive decline in the Hispanic population with the PACT trial.
The REVERSE-IT trial funded by PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals explores the value of a new reversal agent for blood thinners as part of FDA breakthrough designation. Patients under our care were some of the first in the nation to receive access to this new potentially lifesaving medication.
Two NIH-funded R01 grants are bringing population-based genomic sequencing to our primary care practices. From these efforts, we are moving past a one-size-fits-all approach to disease prevention and screening. Indeed, as part of this larger effort, researchers are identifying individuals with genetic profiles that indicate they require specific follow-up genetic counseling and management through high-risk disease clinics.
Health Equity: Working Toward Inclusive Excellence
Core residency programs at UF COMJ have partnered with Madeline Joseph, M.D., to create a more inclusive workforce. To further improve health equity and inclusion efforts on campus, residency programs and some fellowship programs were given specific data to track trends and progress as we work toward inclusive excellence.
William McDade, the ACGME chief diversity officer, presented to department, residency and fellowship leaders to set the stage for the importance of diversity of residents and fellows in the workforce to achieve greater health equity in our health systems.