First class to begin fall 2011 at the USF College of Medicine Tampa campus and matriculate to LVHN campus in Allentown, PA, by summer 2013

Tampa, FL (Feb. 10, 2011) – J. Alan Otsuki, M.D., MBA, a recognized leader in medical education, has been chosen to help lead the innovative program in medical education jointly created by the University of South Florida (USF) and Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN).

Dr. Otsuki will be the founding associate dean of educational affairs of the USF College of Medicine at the LVHN Campus and chief of the Division of Education, LVHN. He will also serve as an associate professor of internal medicine at USF Health. He starts his new position March 14, joining USF and LVHN from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA, where he is associate dean for medical education and student affairs and associate professor of emergency medicine.

The SELECT program (Scholarly Excellence, Leadership Experiences, Collaborative Training) that Dr. Otsuki will oversee will welcome its inaugural class in fall 2011.

Dr. J. Alan Otsuki

A four-year program leading to the M.D. degree, SELECT will cross state boundaries to prepare physician leaders committed to accelerating change in health care. Students will spend their first two years taking classes at the USF College of Medicine in Tampa, FL, and then go to the LVHN campus in Allentown, PA, for two years to focus on clinical education. The SELECT program combines the strengths of USF’s nationally recognized medical school curriculum encompassing the full spectrum of health with LVHN’s outstanding reputation for quality, safety and interdisciplinary team care. Across all four years, students will be mentored by top medical faculty from both USF and LVHN and have the opportunity to build professional networks needed to drive reform in medicine and health care.

“Dr. Otsuki’s national reputation, along with his clinical and academic credentials, is a great fit for the unique partnership between USF and Lehigh Valley. His passion for excellence in teaching and improving patient care are just what we need as we advance our futuristic program in medical education,” said Stephen Klasko, M.D., MBA, CEO of USF Health and dean of the College of Medicine.

“Our USF and LVHN communities will benefit greatly from Dr. Otsuki’s scholarly spirit and impressive academic experience,” said Ronald Swinfard, M.D., president and CEO of LVHN. “He has the vision, inter-personal relationship skills, energy and credentials to explore the realities of the modern-day physician and help reshape medical education so tomorrow’s doctors can lead and innovate.”

“I’ve been very impressed with the degree of collaborative planning by the leaders at USF and Lehigh Valley to create and implement an innovative model of health care education,” Dr. Otsuki said. “It points to the tremendous commitment by both institutions to make SELECT so successful that the program becomes a model emulated by other medical schools across the country.”

SELECT’s distinctive curriculum will emphasize leadership development; health care organization, financing and delivery; public health and inter-professional collaboration, as well as high quality and safe care for patients.

“As health care becomes more complex, it’s so important for physicians to have the knowledge and skills to effectively handle these challenging situations if they want to be leaders who drive change and improve health outcomes for the public,” Dr. Otsuki said.

Dr. Otsuki will be based at the LVHN campus and travel regularly to the USF College of Medicine, where he will work closely with Alicia Monroe, M.D., the college’s vice dean of educational affairs, and her staff.

“Dr. Otsuki brings energy, a fresh perspective and ideal experiences to our ambitious goal to transform medical education and health care,” Dr. Monroe said. “Together, we will transform the knowledge of science, quality and safety into application that will better prepare students for clinical practice.”

Dr. Otsuki and Dr. Alicia Monroe, vice dean of educational affairs for USF COM

Dr. Otsuki’s own background is well-rounded – with experience in primary and specialty care, the business of medicine, faculty development, and impressive credentials in undergraduate and graduate medical education and curriculum development. Throughout his career, he has worked in many capacities across the health care system – from caring for individual patients and their families, to integrating hospital care into the community and to implementing new health care delivery processes and measuring their outcomes.

He received a B.A. degree from Yale University and M.D. degree from Dalhousie University in Canada in 1977. Dr. Otsuki completed his residency training in emergency medicine, including one year as chief resident, at Emory University Affiliated Hospitals. He also holds an MBA degree from Emory.

After spending five years as a family physician, Dr. Otsuki worked as an emergency physician in community and tertiary care hospitals for several years before joining Emory University School of Medicine as an assistant professor of emergency medicine in 1989.

At Emory, he filled many leadership roles, including associate residency director for emergency medicine, founding director of the Emory University Hospital Emergency Department, executive director of continuing medical education and assistant, then associate dean, for medical education and student affairs. As director of medical management for the Emory Clinic, Office of Managed Care, from 1996 to 1998, Dr. Otsuki developed practice guidelines and managed resource utilization for Emory’s multispecialty health care delivery system. He helped initiate and direct a mentoring program for first-year medical students to provide counsel on professional, ethical and career issues and help them transition into the community of medicine at Emory and in Atlanta. He has been involved in many activities to promote innovation in medical education, including advances in information technology, the use of standardized patients and inter-professional team training.

Dr. Otsuki is a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians and past president of the Georgia College of Emergency Physicians. He is a member (faculty) of the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society.

– USF Health –

USF Health is dedicated to creating a model of health care based on understanding the full spectrum of health. It includes the University of South Florida’s colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Public Health and Pharmacy, the School of Biomedical Sciences and the School Physical of Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences; and the USF Physician’s Group. With more than $394.1 million in research grants and contracts in FY2009/2010, the University of South Florida is a high impact global research university.

– Lehigh Valley Health Network –

Lehigh Valley Health Network includes three hospital facilities – two in Allentown and one in Bethlehem, Pa.; nine health centers caring for communities in four counties; numerous primary and specialty care physician practices throughout the region; pharmacy, imaging and lab services; and preferred provider services through Valley Preferred. Specialty care includes trauma care at the region’s busiest, most-experienced trauma center treating adults and children, burn care at the regional Burn Center, kidney and pancreas transplants; perinatal/neonatal, cardiac, cancer, and neurology and complex neurosurgery capabilities including national certification as a Primary Stroke Center. Lehigh Valley Health Network has been recognized by US News & World Report for 15 consecutive years as one of America’s Best Hospitals and is a national Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing. Lehigh Valley Hospital has been selected as a National Cancer Institute Community Cancer Centers Program. Additional information is available at lvhn.org and by following us on facebook.com/LVHealthNetwork and twitter.com/LVHNnews.

Media Contacts:

Anne DeLotto Baier, USF Health Public Affairs                         Brian Downs, Lehigh Valley Health Network
(813) 974-3300 or abaier@health.usf.edu                                484-884-0819 or brian.downs@lvhn.org