For years, Sarah Maloney’s definition of “planning ahead” meant figuring out how to get through another day. From the time she was 13, Maloney, now 22, struggled with depression – cycling in and out of therapy and trying just about every anti-depressant on the market. Unable to cope or hold a job, she made several attempts on her life. In March 2011, suicidal and desperate for help, Maloney voluntarily checked herself into Tampa General Hospital’s emergency room. This time, things would be different. As a patient in the psychiatric services […]

USF Health’s new Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation is a showcase for creating the valuable high-wage jobs that Tampa Bay needs, said U.S. Rep Kathy Castor at a press conference Monday. “One of the ways we’re going to create jobs in Tampa during the coming years is by becoming one of the premier health innovation capitals in the United States,” Rep. Castor said as she stood on the sidewalk in front of CAMLS, with construction hammers pounding behind her. “This is going to build the jobs for the […]

For years Joyce Whidden suffered with heartburn and acid reflux. When an endoscopy revealed little more than mild redness, Whidden filled the prescription she was given for an acid reducer and resigned herself to living with the condition. But things got worse for the Zellwood, FL resident. “There was more regurgitation, more heartburn,” Whidden recalls. “I started sleeping on two pillows; eventually I migrated to the chair.” Joyce Whidden’s acid reflux got so bad she was afraid to eat. A new doctor diagnosed the now 65-year-old Whidden with achalasia, a […]

The USF College of Nursing’s recent expansion in simulation education took another leap forward with the addition of several new faculty leaders. Marisa Belote joined the College as director of Center for Virtual Simulation and Clinical Education (VSCE), Erik Rauch is director of the Nurse Anesthesia Concentration and responsible for nurse anesthesia simulation, Alicia Rossiter is coordinator of Graduate Simulation, and Brittny Chabalowski is coordinator of Undergraduate Simulation, as well as director for the College’s Upper Division and Second Degree Nursing Programs. The College’s expansion is also in tandem with […]

Jackie Gorr took some of the nastier side effects of chemotherapy in stride. No hair? No problem. Some days she’d wear the wig. Other days, she would go bald. And laugh about it. But Gorr found some side effects of fighting leukemia more difficult to cope with. Barely 21, Gorr was devastated when she heard that treatment would leave her infertile. “I want kids so bad. It crushed me,” she said. “It was like a slap in the face.” Jackie Gorr’s mother, Karen Espinoza, has been by Jackie’s side during […]

The USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute was illuminated Thursday evening in shades of purple – the signature color of Alzheimer’s disease — as faculty, staff, caregivers and university, community and governmental leaders gathered to celebrate the opening of its one-stop memory care center. The new Center for Memory C.A.R.E. reaches a whole new level in applying the latest technology and research to the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, while helping ease the anxiety and difficulties of patients and their caregivers. Guests had a chance to tour the distinctive $3.5-million […]

Mini-apartment to test ability of patients to live on their own helps set new center apart Tampa, FL (Nov. 17, 2011) — The  University of South Florida today opens a distinctive center offering people with memory disorders and their families a full range of individualized, multispecialty services in one welcoming place. The Center for Memory C.A.R.E. (Clinical Assessment, Research and Education), on the second floor of the six-story USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute, is designed to support patients and their caregivers while providing convenient access to the latest research, technology […]

Company used a USF patent in helping to develop its therapies to treat cancer and infectious diseases ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Oct. 20, 2011) – Officials with the city, state and University of South Florida Thursday announced that a clinical stage biotechnology company is moving its operations from New York to St. Petersburg’s Gateway Area – a significant new stage in its long-term partnership with USF. IRX Therapeutics, Inc. is developing therapies to treat cancer and infectious diseases.  Its lead product, IRX-2, is an active immunotherapy that is designed to treat […]

The USF Health-Symbionix team is creating the first simulation product on the market for laparoscopic hysterectomy USF Health physicians are an integral part of an international team developing the world’s first laparoscopic hysterectomy simulation module — an academic entrepreneurial partnership that may help change how future obstetrician-gynecologists learn.   Dr. Stuart Hart and Dr. Larry Glazerman, faculty members in the USF Health Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, last month visited Israel to work with engineers from Simbionix™  on the project.  The partnership is funded by a two-year, $700,000 grant from […]

The USF Health Simulation Consortium was recently accredited by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH) for its Assessment, Teaching/Education and Systems Integration.  The Consortium earned praise for several areas including the collaborative bond provided to the multiple simulation entities across colleges, and strong educational and training aspects of both the Consortium and of its clinical skills learning center for students, in particular. USF Health’s is the first and only such simulation program in Florida accredited by SSH. The USF Health Simulation Consortium includes USF Health’s five simulation centers (USF Health Simulation Center […]