Letter from the Dean

Dear Members of the College of Medicine Community,
 
Reflecting on my first year as Dean, I am grateful to each of you for sharing your time and talents in support of our mission.
 
I would like to share a few of our community's many highlights of the past year, which reflect our collective commitment to excellence:
  • Education
    • UME:
      • Launch of the FAU High School and STAR MD Pipeline Programs, 1st of their kind
      • 1st matriculates in the FAMU-FAU Pipeline Program
      • 3rd consecutive year of 100% placement of our graduates in residency programs
      • Launch of the HealthFirst Initiative
      • Clinical Skills Simulation Center Expansion
    • GME:
      • 1st class of Internal Medicine residents graduated, with 96% pass rate on the board exam
      • Approval of new Psychiatry Residency
      • Successful launch of Emergency Medicine Residency
      • Application for a Neurology Residency program and a Cardiology fellowship 
    • Graduate Education:
      • New creative course offerings reflecting collaborative faculty input
      • Enrollment increased by 25%
      • New BMS track developed in the Ph.D. program
  • Research:
    • Record number of new NIH grants including a total of $6.6M in funding for substance abuse research
    • Recruitment of 2 NIH-funded faculty members
    • Launch of the Clinical and Translational Research Unit (CTRU)
    • Investment in research infrastructure through State University Excellence Funds
  • Clinical:
    • Exploration of practice plan feasibility performed in conjunction with the strategic plan
    • Plans underway to establish a faculty practice plan
    • Creation of  "FAU Medicine" tagline in preparation for the practice plan launch
  • Development:
    • Record year of philanthropy, including nearly 2M in gifts to fund the Dementia Prevention Initiative
    • Restructuring of COM development with greater alignment with FAU's Institutional Advancement Office
  • Community:
    • Expansion of the Healthcare Outreach Program
    • Mission Clinic becomes a new clinical and educational partner allowing us to expand our care for the underserved
  • Awards:
    • Palm Beach County Medical Society 2017 Leadership Award in Healthcare
    • Palm Beach County School District Career & Technical Education 2017 Business Partner of the Year
    • FAU 2017 Distinguished Teacher of the Year, Dr. Darin Trelka
    • AMA John Conley Ethics Essay Contest for Medical Students, Matt Traylor, MS3
A forward-looking highlight was our inclusive and broad-based strategic planning process, which provides a vital road map for the next phase of the College of Medicine's growth and development.
 
During the 9-month planning process, I had the privilege to learn about the hopes and aspirations for the College of Medicine through our community-wide strategic planning conversations. From a multitude of diverse perspectives, a united vision has emerged for the College's future, including the requisite goals to achieve this bold new state:
  • Advance patient-centered research and discovery
  • Provide access to value-based care
  • Harness innovation to drive educational excellence
  • Enhance our identity and visibility
From the start, the strategic planning process created a palpable energy and excitement about the exhilarating possibilities for our future. This momentum will propel us forward with increased velocity as we transition to the important work of implementing the plan.
 
I hope that you are inspired to identify your own role within our strategic plan and that you will join us in working collaboratively to advance the health and wellness of our community through innovative leadership in medical education, discovery, and community-based care.
 
In closing, I want to thank each of you for welcoming me into the FAU family this past year and for all that you do to support our College of Medicine!
 
Best regards,
Phil
Dr. Toll Joins the Medical Brain Institute

Lawrence Toll, Ph.D., a renowned scientist whose research focuses on the management of pain and drug addiction through pharmacology and new drug discovery, recently joined FAU as a professor in the Department of Biomedical Science in the College of Medicine and as an investigator in the FAU Brain Institute. Dr. Toll is FAU's first recruit under the 21st Century World Class Scholars Program established by the state of Florida.
Gladstein Gift Unites Business and Medical Education

The Gladsteins recently donated $175,000 to the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine from the Marsha Lilien Gladstein Foundation to fund the Business and Leadership in Medicine Lecture Series and Medical Student Interest Group. "I am very excited about the new medical school, its wonderful leadership, and the opportunity to make an impact locally and nationally," said Phyllis, who is a member of the FAU Foundation Board and the development committee. Education in business is imperative in the medical school curriculum to ensure that doctors thrive and stay in the area.
  Read the Full Article 
Patient Testimonial: Valerie Ricciardi  

For Valerie Ricciardi, medical education specialist for the College of Medicine, the day started with a routine visit to her mother in a rehabilitation center and ended with an ambulance ride to Bethesda West Hospital's ER. Valerie was diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm. "It came out of the blue," said Valerie. "I had pain in my chest, and it became so intense I could not speak and knew I needed help. I wanted to go to an affiliate hospital for FAU's College of Medicine because I knew our medical students would be there."


Resident Highlight: Dr. Ramez Morcos

Our residents have been making great strides in their specialties. This month, Internal Medicine resident, Ramez Morcos, M.D., published " The Evolving Treatment of Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) through Guideline-Directed Recommendations" in The Journal of Clinical Medicine. Dr. Morcos was the primary author of this article and has collaborated on several articles during the past two years, including the prestigious, Journal of Vascular Surgery. It is "truly exceptional" for a first-year resident to have contributed to several publications in medical journals, said Henry Haire, M.D., medical director of the FAU Medicine Resident Clinic and associate professor of Integrated Medical Science.
Ed & Ethel Moore Alzheimer's Disease Research Award

Jigar Modi, M.D., Ph.D., was recently awarded a $100,000, Florida Department of Health postdoctoral fellowship grant from the Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer's Disease Research Program. Dr. Modi is currently a postdoctoral fellow in  Dr. Jang-Yen (John) Wu's laboratory and this new grant, entitled "Neuroprotection of Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (GCSF) Gene Therapy in Alzheimer's Disease" will continue to support their important research. Dr. Modi received a Master's degree in Biomedical Science, a Ph.D. in Complex Systems and Brain Science, and passed the board examination for the M.D. degree in 2017. Dr. Modi has excelled in all aspects of research during graduate school, publishing more than ten papers. He is considered a rising star in translational medical research. This two year award is Dr. Modi's first grant and is an extension of the research being conducted in Dr. Wu's laboratory on GCSF gene therapy for strokes. The research is additionally supported by a 1.2 million dollar grant awarded to Dr. Wu and co-investigators,  Drs. Howard Prentice and  Rui Tao , by the James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program, in the Florida Department of Health.
 
Medical Student and Resident Research Day 2018

The College of Medicine will hold its Medical Student and Resident Research and Scholarship Day on Friday, February 23 from 12:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. The keynote speaker is Professor and Chair for the Department of Biomedical Science and Interim Senior Associate Dean for Research, Dr. Janet Robishaw.  
 
Recent Publications from Students and Faculty

Congratulations to third-year medical student, Benjamin Childs, who recently published an article in the Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma, entitled, "Treatment of hypovitaminosis D in an orthopaedic trauma population." This marks Benjamin's ninth publication since beginning medical school.  
 
Congratulations to Professor of Integrated Medical Science, Mahyar Nouri-Shirazi, D.V.M., Ph.D., who recently published an article in the journal, Immunology Letters, entitled "TLR8 combined withTLR3 or TLR4 agonists enhances DC-NK driven effector Tc1 cells."   
Call for Employee Award Nominations

The University is pleased to call for nominations to three significant annual employee awards: the President's Leadership Award, the Gabor Exemplary Employee Award, and the Valic Customer Service Award. Winners will be honored at the Annual Employee Service Awards ceremony on Wednesday, April 25.  The deadline for submission is February 16 at 5 p.m. Details about the awards can be found at http://www.fau.edu/hr/files/ServiceAwardsAnnouncement.pdf. Click here for the nomination form.
Climate Keys and Dr. John Strasswimmer

College of Medicine, Affiliate Faculty member, John Strasswimmer, M.D., Ph.D., recently gave a lecture on Climate Change at the Norton Museum of Art. The event articles can here accessed here and here and the video here.
Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine
i[email protected] | (561) 297-4828 |   http://med.fau.edu
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