Back in 2007, four University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine (MCOM) students started a student-run free clinic with a couple of exam rooms at the Hillsborough Health Department and an idea to help the underserved communities surrounding the university.

“We wanted to establish somewhere (that) is more a pillar for the community,” said Waldo Guerrero, MD, one of the co-founders of the BRIDGE Clinic. “What really drove the idea of the clinic was having a more substantiable way to provide care to the underserved folks.”

Fifteen years later, the BRIDGE Clinic encompasses more than 20 exam rooms in The USF Carol and Frank Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare and the volunteer services of USF students from medicine, pharmacy, public health, social work and physical therapy. The experience not only helps the students care for their neighbors but also assists their health care education.

“It was a great opportunity for me to be able to give back to the community while also getting a lot of hands-on experience,” said Marissa Maldonado, a fourth-year MCOM medical student.

The clinic has grown in response to rising demand for medical services among the uninsured and underserved in the community. The US Census Bureau reports that 14.9 percent of people 65 and under lack health insurance, and the Florida Department of Health says that 15.7 percent of employed people in Hillsborough County do not have insurance.

“The proudest moments are every Tuesday night after clinic is done, “said Eduardo Gonzalez, MD, co-medical director of the BRIDGE clinic. “Patients were seen and provided wonderful care that they otherwise they would not have been able to obtain.”

Donations are welcome to maintain and grow the clinic.

“Whatever gift is given, it will be used,” Dr. Gonzalez said. “It will be used 100 percent in the caring of patients.”

Kristal Ha’s emotional poem about her mother migrating to America after the Vietnam War, won the hearts of judges and more than 200 guests at the Annual BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show on Jan. 19 at the T. Pepin Hospitality Centre.

“My mother is my inspiration,” said Ha, a first-year medical student at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, after winning the talent show competition. “My mother sacrificed to give me a better life. And that’s what the BRIDGE Clinic is all about –giving up to give back to others.”

Charles J. Lockwood, MD, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, poses for a photo with the winner of the competition, Kristal Ha, and student event organizers.

The competition was strong, but Ha, who wrote the poem specifically for the BANDaids Talent Show, took the top spot. Runners up included USF Health’s acapella group “Say Ahhh! Capella” for singing Hallelujah, and Katrina Watcher and Jameson Kuang for performing “Astonishing” from Little Women.

Now, in its sixth year, the special event hosted by USF Health students, featured 10 acts including singing, dancing, poetry, comedy and musical acts – all to raise funds and awareness for the USF Health BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic. The event also included a silent auction, drawings and other fun activities.

Students behind the USF Health BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show.

“This event gives USF Health students the opportunity to showcase their hidden talents,” said Megan Melody, third-year medical student and student director for this year’s BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show. “As health students, we spend endless time in the classroom, in the library or in clinics, so this event allows us to have fun for a great cause.”

The BRIDGE Healthcare Clinic, founded in 2007 by four medical students, is a free student-directed clinic that helps serve uninsured patients in the university community area. Since then, the BRIDGE Clinic has transferred its clinical space to the Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare on the USF main campus and expanded to a nearby Florida Hospital Tampa site, offering additional nights each month to help meet the demand for access to quality health care.

“It’s amazing how far the clinic has come,” said Sam Crane, MD, co-founder of BRIDGE Clinic, who also attended the event. “We started raising funds by selling hot dogs in front of Walmart. Because of students’ commitment and hard work, BRIDGE is now bigger than any of us. It’s taken on a life of its own.”

Dr. Sam Crane, Co-Founder of BRIDGE Clinic

During his appearance at the event, Dr. Crane announced the BRIDGE Founders Award, created by founding members, Dr. Crane, Dr. Waldo Guerrero, Dr. Omar Hammad and Dr. Shelby Kent. The award will recognize two students every year, who help dedicate their time and talent to the BRIDGE Clinic to help those in need.

“BANDaids for BRIDGE gets bigger and better every year,” said Bryan Bognar, MD, vice dean of the Office of Educational Affairs for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. “This event represents the best of USF Health and the best of BRIDGE Clinic– coming together among all interprofessional health disciplines for a great cause.”

The event was a great success due, in part, to official talent show emcees, Melody and Charles Lockwood, MD, senior vice president for USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. They brought a lot of energy and laughs throughout the show.

Dr. Lockwood and USF medical student Megan Melody emceeing the event

The judges didn’t disappoint either. They included Dr. Bognar, Rahul Mehra, MD, alum of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry residency program and Chief Medical Officer of MehraVista Health; Rami Komrokji, MD, associate professor of oncologic sciences and clinical director of malignant hematology at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine; and Joanne Strobbe, MsEd, senior associate vice president for administration, finance and technology, chief financial officer for USF Health, and vice dean for administration, finance and technology for USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

Pharmacy student, Bionqua Lynch, sings Rise Up in tribute to BRIDGE Clinic

Sara Silva, staff assistant in the Department of Community and Family Health at the USF College of Public Health, sings Shadow Feet 

Student, Radhika Mehrotra, performs Marathi Indian Dance

Full talent line up:
Lay Low – Max Needham
Fireside – Maria Ngo
Don’t Wait – Bionqua Lynch, Shantel Houston & Raul Soto
Astonishing – Katrina Watcher accompanied by Jameson Kuang
Marathi Indian Dance – Radhika Mehrotra
Dancing with the Professors – James Harrison & Dr. Marzenna Wiranowska
The Voice from Above – Tara Zimmerman
Hallelujah – Say Ahh! Capella
Original Poetry – Kristal Ha
Shadow Feet – Sara Silva
Solo guitar – Shane Leighton (during cocktail hour)
Rise Up – Bionqua Lynch (BRIDGE tribute)

Sponsors for the event included: TJ Couch Family Foundation, Florida Hospital, Jay Carlson Photography, Carol Prokap and PRP Wine International, Joanne Strobbe and Tom MacQuarrie, Dr. Frederick Slone and Sheree Slone, Dr. Lynnette Menezes and Dr. Marian Menezes, Lokesh Coomar, Tampa Bay Sporting Clays, Tampa Bay Rays, Tampa Bay Lightning, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, USF Athletics Department, The Oxford Exchange, Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurants, Tampa Improv Comedy Theater and Restaurant, Yeungling Brewery, The Straz Center for Performing Arts, Tampa Museum of Science and Industry, The Florida Aquarium, Simple Graces Jewelry, Coppertail Brewing Company, Florida Orange Grove and Winery, JC Newman Cigars, and 3 Daughters  Brewing.

To view more photos, click here.

Story by Vjollca Hysenlika
Photos by Vjollca Hysenlika and Sandra C. Roa

The Suncoast Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) recently recognized the USF Health BRIDGE Clinic as its 2016 Philanthropic Service Organization of the Year. The award was presented at the AFP’s celebration of National Philanthropy Day on Nov. 15 at Lowry Park Zoo.

Staffed entirely by volunteer USF Health students and overseen by volunteer faculty advisors, the BRIDGE Clinic provides free primary medical care on Tuesday evenings at the Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare to more than 850 underserved patients each year from the University Community Area.

From left: Dr. Lucy Guerra, a BRIDGE Clinic medical director; Emily Goodwin, USF medical student; Kristin Prewitt, MD/MPH student and executive student director of BRIDGE Clinic; and Dr. Frederick Slone, a clinic medical director; recently accepted the AFP Suncoast Chapter Philanthropic Service Organization of the Year award on behalf of the USF Health BRIDGE Clinic.

What began nine years ago as the vision of four USF medical students has grown into a robust, interdisciplinary resource for both USF and the community it serves. USF Health students, social work students, and attending physicians accomplish its namesake mission of “Building Relationships and Initiatives Dedicated to Gaining Equality” by volunteering more than 13,500 hours each year at an estimated benefit of more than $1 million in health care services.

The clinic collaborates with community partners to provide routine care for non-emergency medical needs for uninsured adults who make 200 percent or less of the federal poverty guidelines. Its partnership with Florida Hospital has allowed the the clinic to operate at a nearby second location inside the Florida Hospital Pepin Heart Institute one Thursday night each month.

“We are honored and humbled to receive this award from AFP and are inspired by the efforts to better the Tampa community from the other recipients,” said Kristin Prewitt, executive student director of the BRIDGE Clinic and an MD/MPH student. “We couldn’t do this work without the countless faculty, students, and USF community members who dedicate their time to serving our patients. We owe any recognition to them and our patients.”

Two other University of South Florida benefactors, Kate Tiedemann and Ellen Cotton, were recognized as philanthropists of the year at the event. The couple’s generosity to the USF St. Petersburg campus has been recognized through the naming of the Kate Tiedemann College of Business and the Ellen Cotton Atrium.

Story and photo by Davina Gould, USF Health Development

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeJ5NwJOeks

USF Health’s best friends and supporters filled the TPepin Hospitality Centre Jan. 8 for the 5^th Annual BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show. The evening entertained all with nine acts, opening performances, lots of banter, a silent auction of nearly two dozen offerings, and everyone in their red-carpet attire – all for the cause of raising funds and awareness of the USF Health BRIDGE Clinic.

Winning this year’s BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show was a trio of students who combined their talents of voice, violin, saxophone and flute, performing “Leona Lewis and Beyonce Mashup.” The three winning talents are College of Public Health graduate student Cienna Welsey on voice, fourth-year medical student Samson Lu on violin, and Latin Grammy award-nominated artist Jose Valentino Ruiz on saxophone and flute, who is pursuing his PhD in Music Education at USF.

From left, Cienna Wesley, Samson Lu, and Jose Valentino Ruiz.

Runners up include: Preethi Rajan, Tigris Haran, Joel Perez, Philip Bowers, Carly Waldman, Hillary McMullin, Aleksandra Bacewicz, Daphne Porat, Katrina Wachter, Katie Allen, Abdul Rahman Hashimie, and Amanda Brennan, as Say Ahh! Capella; Jameson Kuang, who performed “Chopin Waltz in A♭ Major” on piano; and Nupur Godbole, Om Prakash Nankissoor, Harish Shyam, and Natalie Menendez performing USF Naach.

Jameson Kuang

This year’s event drew three of the four founders of the BRIDGE Clinic: Dr. Waldo Guerrero, Dr. Sam Crane and Dr. Omar Hammad (Dr. Shelby Kent was unable to attend). The event is a wonderful way to help continue their vision of offering access to quality care to an underserved population, said co-founder Waldo Guerrero, MD, assistant professor of neurology in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

“Free clinics are one of several safety nets for those who don’t have insurance and this BRIDGE Clinic is a great way to meet their health care needs,” Dr. Guerrero said. “I still volunteer at BRIDGE as an attending physician and the experience always reminds me of why I went into medicine. The patients are so appreciative of the care they are getting from us.”

From left, BRIDGE Clinic founders Dr. Omar Hammad, Dr. Sam Crane, and Dr. Waldo Guerrero (not pictured is Dr. Shelby Kent, who was unable to attend the Talent Show).

Since opening in 2007 , the BRIDGE Clinic has moved into clinical space in the Morsani Center for Advanced Healthcare on the USF main campus, and expanded into space provided by Florida Hospital, which allowed the Clinic to offer an additional night each week to help meet the demand for access to quality health care. Both sites offer MCOM students a greater education, said Bryan Bognar, MD, vice dean of the Office of Educational Affairs for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.

“This talent show is one of the key fundraising events for the BRIDGE Clinic, a student-led, student-run free clinic,” Dr. Bognar said. “That Clinic represents the very best of inter-professional education and inter-professional health care delivery and so represents USF Health.”

Dr. Charles Lockwood.

Talent Show Emcees for the evening were Dr. Charles Lockwood, USF Health’s senior vice president and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine, and Michael Carr, talent show director and third-year medical student.

Third-year medical student Michael Carr.

Providing insightful feedback and humor were this year’s judges: Bryan Bognar, MD, vice dean of the Office of Educational Affairs for the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine; Joel D. Momberg USF senior vice president of Advancement and Alumni Affairs and CEO of the USF Foundation; Dr. Rahul Mehra, alum of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine Department of Psychiatry residency program and Chief Medical Officer of MehraVista Health; and Dr. Madeline Snyder, first-year internal medicine resident in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and creator of the BANDaids for Bridge talent show.

Judges Dr. Bryan Bognar and Dr. Rahul Mehra.

Sponsors for the evening included: USF Health as Showstopper; Pepin Distributing, Couch Family Foundation, Wesley Chapel Toyota, Florida Hospital, Jay Carlson Photography, Dr. Fred and Sheree Slone, Dr. Mariam Menezes and Dr. Lynette Menezes, Mr. Richard Stegemeier and Mrs. Roberta H. Stegemeier, Dr. Valerie Riddle and David Reader, Ricardo Rendel, Tampa Bay Sporting Clays, Tampa Bay Rays, Tampa Bay Lightning, USF Athletics Department, The Oxford Exchange, Cooper’s Hawk Winery and Restaurants, Tampa Improv Comedy Theater and Restaurant, Carol Prokap and PRP Wine International, Yeungling Brewery, Bella Prana Yoga, The Gift Box Boutique, and The Brunchery.

Production team included: Michael Carr, Director; Vidhya Krishnan, Assistant Director; Megan, Melody Producer; Madison Collins, Assistant Producer; Nupur Godbole, Creative Director; Gautam Rao, Production Assistant; Kevin Hong, Marketing Director; and Jonathan Nilson, Technical Director.

This year’s full lineup included:

Thoracic Park: Edward Oh, Andre Lee, John Cassel, Usman Ahmad, Jameson Kuang, Scott Hoeckele

The Prayer: Elaine Tan

Say Ahh! Capella: Preethi Rajan, Tigris Haran, Joel Perez, Philip Bowers, Carly Waldman, Hillary McMullin, Aleksandra Bacewicz, Daphne Porat, Katrina Wachter, Katie Allen, Abdul Rahman Hashimie, Amanda Brennan

Leona Lewis and Beyonce Mashup: Samson Lu, Cienna Wesley, Jose Valentino Ruiz

Beauty and the Beast: Ollie Marseglia, Bionqua Lynch

Chopin Waltz in Ab Major: Jameson Kuang

Pirates of the Vitamin Sea: Caroline Bresnan, Katherine Woo, Key Yan Tsoi, Jude Nawlo

USF Naach: Nupur Godbole, Om Prakash Nankissoor, Harish Shyam, Natalie Menendez

Also performing at program interludes were: Madeline Snyder and Joel Momberg performing “White Coat Blues” and Mark Bender, Doris Deng, Abhinav Mohan, Shane Leighton, Raj Patel, Megan Melody performing “Mixomas.”

From left, Sheree Slone, Frank Morsani, Carol Morsani, and Dr. Fred Slone.

Dancing for USF Naach.

Co-director for the USF Health BRIDGE Clinic Viktor Flores.

Dr. Madeline Snyder and Joel Momberg help warm up the crowd.

This year’s winners give it their all.

Fun at the BANDaids for BRIDGE talent show.

Group shots along the red carpet.

See more photos on USF Health Flickr.

Video by Sandra C. Roa, and photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Communications

The partnership will increase access to specialty care for uninsured residents served by the USF Health student-run program and significantly increase the number of patients seen.

By Saundra Amrhein

Further strengthening ties between the two institutions, Florida Hospital Tampa has committed $1.2 million in donated goods and services to the University of South Florida to help expand community-centered medical care through the USF Health BRIDGE Clinic.

The BRIDGE clinic – a nationally recognized, student-run free community clinic now in its eighth year – provides primary medical care for more than 800 underserved patients a year from the University Community Area one night a week inside the USF Health Morsani Center for Advanced Health Care.

Leadership of USF Health and Florida Hospital Tampa as well as medical faculty and student volunteers pose for a photo on opening night of the BRIDGE Clinic at Florida Hospital.

Now, Florida Hospital Tampa’s donation of goods, services, office space and personnel will help significantly increase the number of uninsured patients seen through the BRIDGE clinic, expand specialty care and procedures, and cut weeks off the appointment waiting times for new and established patients, said Dr. Lucy Guerra, a volunteer co-medical director and one of several attending USF Health physicians at BRIDGE.

The additional resources for the BRIDGE clinic extension at the hospital – set up inside Florida Hospital Tampa’s renowned Pepin Heart Institute, located on Fletcher Avenue across the street from the university – will also help mitigate the plight of working families who cannot afford or qualify for insurance in the new federal health insurance marketplace but who also don’t qualify for Medicaid, Dr. Guerra said.

Officials from both institutions said they are thrilled about the partnership, which adds to their ongoing research and patient care collaborations across the Tampa Bay region.

“We’re incredibly grateful,” said Dr. Charles Lockwood, senior vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “This is a clear indication that our missions are completely aligned. We are here for the patients.”

Dr. Peter Bath, vice president of mission for Florida Hospital West Florida Region, echoed Dr. Lockwood’s sentiments and said partnering with the hospital’s next-door neighbor to provide health care for struggling families was a continuation of the hospital’s mission.

“This is a natural extension of what our mission is all about, caring for people and giving back to our community,” Dr. Bath said. “We know needs are significant for the underserved and we will continue to look for ways to help the community throughout all of our nine Florida Hospitals in the West Florida Region.”

USF medical student volunteer Jordant Vanzant checks the blood pressure of BRIDGE Clinic patient Sandra Avilez.

The donation and partnership stem from more than a year of meetings spurred by both university medical students seeking more resources for their high-demand clinic, and the encouragement of one of the hospital’s doctors.

Dr. Marian Menezes, a physician on staff at Florida Hospital Tampa, remembers how his wife – Dr. Lynette Menezes, the assistant dean for international affairs at the USF Morsani College of Medicine – convinced him to attend the BRIDGE clinic’s annual fundraising talent show more than a year ago.

“I fell in love with what they were doing,” Dr. Menezes said. He immediately sought out ways to help.

The medical students relayed their concerns about space, patients’ waiting times and the need for more specialty care for patients with serious medical problems. Currently USF doctors waive their fees for BRIDGE patients for certain surgeries and specialty procedures, but there are still facility fees and other types of expenses that add up to thousands of dollars. Dr. Menezes brought the issue to the attention of his colleagues at the hospital.

Expanding services offered by the BRIDGE clinic at Florida Hospital Tampa will significantly cut down patients’ wait times for appointments, which can run from three to four months, said Michelle Blanco, a USF fourth-year medical student and executive student director at the clinic.

“Now being able to tell your patients we can see you in the next few weeks – it’s very exciting,” Blanco said.

The patients will also have increased access to surgeries and specialty tests and procedures in areas like radiology, gynecology, orthopedics and surgery. “Both efficiency and quality of care are going to increase at BRIDGE,” Blanco said.

L to R: Dr. Theron Ebel, a critical care physician at Florida Hospital Tampa, with USF Health Morsani College of Medicine faculty members Dr. Eduardo Gonzalez and Dr. Lucy Guerra, co-medical directors of the BRIDGE Clinic, and USF medical student Kathryn Dean.

The expanded BRIDGE clinic, like the current one, will continue to pair medical students with supervising physicians. In addition to the USF Health doctors who volunteer at the Morsani site, the new site will bring in volunteering physicians from Florida Hospital Tampa. As the numbers of participating hospital physicians grow, the clinic at the hospital may increase its capacity from one Thursday night each month to opening as many as four nights monthly.

Dr. Krishna Tewari, a hospitalist physician at Florida Hospital Tampa, will be among the first. He said he plans to volunteer at least two nights a month.

“I’m excited to see the work here,” Dr. Tewari said.

The expansion also creates more volunteer opportunities for USF students from the colleges and schools of pharmacy, physical therapy, public health and social work – as well as student interpreters. They currently rotate through the current BRIDGE clinic and its 13 exam rooms at the Morsani Center.

Ali Antar, 22, nearing the end of his second year of medical school at USF, said with the expansion of BRIDGE, he would love to volunteer even more time at both sites. After a year at the original BRIDGE clinic location, the experience has deepened his understanding of the practice of medicine beyond what he’s learning in the classroom.

“When you’re a lower classman, any real clinical experience changes your perspective,” Antar said.

Meanwhile, patients are grateful for faster access to needed care.

“I went to get this appointment in October,” said Sandra Avilez, 51, sitting in one of the four BRIDGE clinic exam rooms inside the Pepin Heart Institute at Florida Hospital Tampa on the night of the expansion’s opening.

Avilez, formerly a customer service representative, lost her health insurance coverage with her job when her company moved her department and positions to another state. She hoped to get a check-up with a doctor at BRIDGE, because she was recently experiencing hot flashes. While waiting for an appointment these last few months, she did her best to keep herself informed about her health condition by reading articles and taking vitamins.

She was relieved to see the new BRIDGE clinic office space open at Florida Hospital Tampa in late February. It enabled the staff to bump up an appointment for both Avilez and her 77-year-old father.

“We were luck they could move up our appointment,” Avilez said. “Our date was for the end of March.”

Sandra Avilez, who lost her health insurance coverage with her job when her company moved her department to another state, was relieved to get an appointment sooner than expected at the BRIDGE Clinic.

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Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Communications and Marketing

They arrive after a day studying anatomy, lecturing on genetics or working in offices and laboratories:

There is the neuropathologist on oboe. The College of Medicine associate dean for student affairs on flute. The industrial psychologist from Moffitt Cancer Center on cello.

Shortly after 6:30 p.m. on a Monday evening, about two dozen of them chatter, place their chairs in rows of a semi-circle, and fill a small classroom in the Morsani Center with tentative, discordant noise.

“Tuning!” calls their leader, Dr. Frazier Stevenson, tapping his white conductor’s wand on his music stand at the front of the group. Just moments earlier Stevenson had whisked into the room carrying a still-hot burger in a fast-food white paper bag. “Strings!”

Every Monday night for the past three years, members of the USF Health Orchestra and Choir have gathered here, a reprieve from the pressure of their day jobs, research and studies, to bask in the warmth of a task and a beauty of a different realm. They are students, faculty and staff members from USF Health, as well as other university departments and members of the larger community, who for years have nurtured a separate passion for music alongside their careers.

“It’s completely different than the way we use our brain the rest of the day,” says Chelsea Schmitt, 23, a long-time violin player who is studying for a master’s degree in medical sciences.

On this evening, they are rehearsing for the upcoming holiday concert to be held Dec. 9 and Dec. 11 in the USF Health Rotunda (see information above). It is one of three sets of concerts performed by the orchestra and chorus throughout the year.

As the members settle into their seats, Stevenson focuses their energies on the first of the pieces for the holiday concert: “El Cristo de Palacaguina.” It is a Nicaraguan revolutionary Christmas song and will be accompanied by the chorus, a guitar and castanets. The violins are sweeping and majestic, the rhythms intricate and the flute melody sonorous.

Some members tap out the rhythms with a foot clad in sneakers or sandals; most have come here in jeans and sweatshirts, shorts and T-shirts; a few are still in medical scrubs.

After several run-throughs, they move onto “A Musicological Journey through the Twelve Days of Christmas.” Stevenson has orchestrated the clever piece, originally for piano and chorus, himself– as he does with much of the music, re-writing horn parts, for example, for the saxophones in the group. On this piece, each day of Christmas enjoys its own genre of music – from the baroque, to a Mozart-like arrangement, to a romantic, breathtaking take on the Dying Swan, to a thundering Wagner-esque piece, a Johann Strauss waltz and a John Philip Sousa march.

“That’s it! That’s Tchaikovsky!” Stevenson yells happily after a flawless run-through of a part that carries echoes of The Nutcracker.

His exuberance and energy are a hallmark of the rehearsals and keep them moving steadily along for the full two hours. Stevenson, a nephrologist and associate dean for undergraduate medical education at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, has also performed as a conductor, pianist and singer with the Tampa Bay Master Chorale as well as choruses in San Francisco and Sacramento.

The USF Health orchestra members are fully accustomed to his jocular prodding and witty asides.

“The idea is if you don’t play, you have to dance,” he jokes, asking more of an alto saxophone player.

“It’s a little chatter boxy,” he says at another point, asking the violins for a less assertive, rounder tone in a pastoral piece. “It’s not shepherds in New York City.”

Clarinet player Hannah Rutherford says Stevenson’s additional fun stories – such as the time he outlined the health conditions of the late, great composers, from bipolar disorder to syphilis– are among the highlights of participating in the orchestra.

Rutherford, 23, who is studying for a master’s degree in medical sciences, played clarinet in bands through her undergraduate years at Duke University and through graduate school at Boston University. She is applying to medical school at USF among other schools, and says the existence of this orchestra played an important role in attracting her to the university.

“I’ll do this if I go to med school,” says Rutherford, who plays an exquisite solo in one of the movements of “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”

“My goal for our group is to bring great music to the performers and audience while making the learning process fun,” Stevenson says. “We cover a lot of musical ground (from medieval music to Beethoven and Bach, to an Arvo Pärt piece from the 1970s), and have a lot of fun doing so, building interprofessional collaboration at USF Health. I like to challenge the players to produce their best possible outcome, while at the same time respecting that these are busy professionals. Perhaps the most rewarding thing is watching players who have not played in years gradually get their technique back and produce collective beautiful music.”

Many in the orchestra feel that they get as much out of it as they give back in playing.

“This is a stress relief,” says Stefany Martinez, a tenor saxophone player and a clinician in outpatient processing in the bone marrow transplant clinic at the Moffitt Cancer Center. “I’m dealing with blood and sutures all day.”

For Martinez, one of her favorite moments is on the day of performance, when she sees some of the patients from the clinic in the audience, a look of peace and enjoyment on their faces.

“This is a form of medicine, too,” she says.

Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Office of Communications

The USF Health BRIDGE Clinic has won a grant from the national Colon Cancer Alliance to provide colon cancer services to BRIDGE patients.

The BRIDGE Clinic, a student-run free clinic that serves medically underserved residents in the community near USF, offers an array of medical services but has not been able to provide the services associated with colon cancer, including the screening that is so critical to finding and removing cancers early, which equates to a cure, or the treatment and surgical options when cancer is found.

From left, Dr. Jorge Marcet; fourth-year medical student Juliana Gutierrez, BRIDGE Chief Operations Director; Dr. Frederick Slone, Medical Director for the Center for Advanced Clinical Learning; fourth-year Colin Sullivan, BRIDGE Chief Communications Director; and Dr. Eduardo Gonzalez, Associate Professor of Family Medicine, BRIDGE Faculty Medical Advisor.

The grant includes a recurring annual donation that is based a percentage of the funds made from the annual Undy 5000, the family-friendly 5K run/walk created by the Colon Cancer Alliance in which participants are encouraged to run in their boxers to bring attention to the area affected by colon cancer. This past February more than 400 people participated in the local Undy 5000, including patients and their families and friends, medical students, doctors, and nurses.

This year’s inaugural total for BRIDGE from last year’s race is nearly $6,700.

USF Health’s Jorge Marcet, MD, professor of surgery and director of the Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, is the local representative for the Colon Cancer Alliance, a national nonprofit organization that promotes community awareness for colorectal cancer.

“By every measure last year’s race was a success with a good turnout and people enjoyed themselves, great weather, and we raised much-needed money for the CCA,” said Dr. Marcet, who presented the check for the inaugural funds Oct. 21 to USF Health and BRIDGE leaders.

The funds will help meet the much-needed colon cancer care of patients visiting BRIDGE, said Frederick Slone, MD, a faculty medical advisor to BRIDGE, as well as assistant professor of medicine in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and medical director for the USF Health Center for Advanced Clinical Learning.

“We had no means for colonoscopies to screen for colon cancer and no funds for treatment if any cancer was found,” Dr. Slone said. “And screening is so important. If you wait for symptoms you’re too late. Screening is the way to find it early and cure it. Now with these funds we can actually do something and screen and treat a lot more people.”

Colorectal cancer affects 1 in 20 people and is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in the US. It is one of the most deadly cancers, but one of the most preventable by screening. The most common and most effective screening involves a colonoscopy. If a growth (polyp) is found in the colon it is removed, thus preventing its development into a cancerous growth. Although colorectal cancer is more common as a person ages, it is being increasingly diagnosed in 30 and 40 year olds, especially rectal cancer. Signs of colorectal cancer include rectal bleeding, change in bowel habits, and abdominal pain. People often ignore rectal bleeding, attributing the blood to more common ailments such as hemorrhoids. Rectal bleeding is always abnormal and should be investigated by an internal exam by a physician.

Next year’s Undy 5000 event will be on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, at Al Lopez Park in Tampa.

Visit their website for more information or ways to contribute.

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

Watch BANDaids for BRIDGE talent show promo:
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKnu1EHsNHM

Are you ready for USF Health’s take on American Idol, the Voice and the X-Factor?

You can be entertained and help raise funds for great cause at the BANDaids for BRIDGE Talent Show 6 to 10 p.m. this Friday, Jan. 11, at the T. Pepin Hospitality Centre, 4121 N. 50^th St., Tampa, FL 33610.  

All proceeds and donations will go to the BRIDGE Healthcare clinic, USF Health’s free student-run health clinic for the University community.

The fun kicks off at 6 p.m. with a paparazzi-style,  red-carpet entrance, cocktail hour, silent auction, cash bar, and hors d’oeuvres.

Students, faculty and staff from across all USF Health colleges will perform a variety of singing, dancing, dramatic arts, comedy and musical acts. Categories of talent will be rated by a panel of special guest judges.

The public event is open to anyone interested in attending. You can sign up and buy tickets through this website: www.usf.edu/ua/md/BRIDGE.   Tickets will also be available at the door.

A map and directions to the T. Pepin Hospitality Centre is available at the BANDaids for BRIDGE Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/events/304690662965944/319365084831835/?notif_t=plan_mall_activity