Deborah German Archives | �鶹ԭ�� News

�鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine Exceeds Nation’s Match Placement Rate

Wendy Sarubbi — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 17:51:58 +0000

��’s College of Medicine was designed to be a model of 21st-century medical education. The results and euphoria of Friday’s annual Match Day reaffirmed the mission as more than 100 students matched into residencies across the nation.

�鶹ԭ�� is setting the standard, earning a 99% match placement rate, compared with a national average of 93.5%.

Knights matched into specialties that include internal and family medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, surgery, pathology and emergency medicine, with 46 of the 108 completing some or all their training in Florida.

Nationally, students are headed to programs that include Brown, Duke, Emory, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Stanford and Vanderbilt. In Florida, students are going to Orlando Health, Miami, University of Florida and University of South Florida. Nine will further strengthen their ties as Knights in �鶹ԭ��-HCA Healthcare residencies in Greater Orlando, Gainesville and Tallahassee.

Medical school students cannot practice medicine immediately after graduation but must do three to seven years of residency training, depending on their specialty. Match results are kept secret until noon on the third Friday in March.

“At noon, as you open your match envelope, you are opening the door to your future,” Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and dean, said moments before the long-awaited unveiling.

Knights matched into specialties that include internal and family medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology, surgery, pathology and emergency medicine.

A Match Day Tradition

Friday’s Match Day was particularly meaningful for German, who recently announced she is transitioning away from her role leading the medical school. During her 20 years as dean, German has conducted the first class of medical school for each new cohort. Called, “The Good Doctor – A �鶹ԭ�� Tradition,” she asks students to think of the person they love most in the world and describe the characteristics of the doctor they want treating their loved one.

She writes those traits on a blackboard, which stays in the College of Medicine lobby as a contract between students, their faculty, patients and community.

Class of 2026 students designed decorative boxes to hold their Match Day envelopes. The boxes contained their Good Doctor words from four years ago, including grateful, humble, compassionate and resourceful.

More than 100 students matched into residencies across the nation at programs that include Brown, Duke, Emory, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Stanford, UCLA and Vanderbilt.

Finding Their Match

Ariana Johnson began to cry even before she opened her envelope and learned she will be doing her otolaryngology residency at Old Dominion University. A recipient of ��’s highest student honor, the Order of Pegasus, Johnson says the tears came as she realized she was finally achieving her dream after four years of hard work in medical school. As an ear, nose and throat specialist, she will be able to combine excellence in surgery with clinical patient care.

“I’ll be providing longitudinal care for patients,” she said. “With this specialty, you get to know patients for their whole lives.”

“I’ve wanted this since I was in middle school.” — Brandon Molligoda

Brandon Molligoda matched into neurology at Duke. He says his match result “means everything to me. I’ve wanted this since I was in middle school. I was always fascinated with how the brain works.”

Holly Moots ’17 ’24PhD is the third M.D./Ph.D. graduate in ��’s history. She researched pancreatic cancer during her joint degree and was thrilled to match into internal medicine at Lakeland Regional Hospital because of the residency’s focus on research and clinical trials.

“With my background, I want to take what I’ve learned in the labs and translate that into a clinical setting,” she said. “I can finally use all of this knowledge I got here at �鶹ԭ�� and apply it to help patients.”

Nine �鶹ԭ�� med students will further strengthen their ties as Knights in �鶹ԭ��-HCA Healthcare residencies in Greater Orlando, Gainesville and Tallahassee.

Addressing Florida’s Physician Shortage

The �鶹ԭ��-HCA Graduate Medical Education Consortium is the fastest growing residency and fellowship program in Florida and by this summer will be training more than 800 physicians in Greater Orlando, Sanford, Tallahassee, Gainesville, Ocala, Pensacola and Fort Walton Beach. �鶹ԭ��-HCA filled all their residency programs during National Match Day, adding 310 new physicians.

“As the need for physicians grows in the state of Florida, with an estimated 18,000 physician shortage projected over the next decade, we are helping to meet those needs,” says Stephen Cico, ��’s associate dean for graduate medical education and the �鶹ԭ��-HCA consortium’s designated institutional official. “We are focused on medical specialties that are or are going to be in the highest demand.”

Primary care is one of those specialties.

Victoria Millington ’21, who earned her bachelor’s degree in biomedical sciences before pursing her MD, is one of five Knights who will be staying in Orlando to serve their residences. She matched into her first-choice, internal medicine at the �鶹ԭ��-HCA Healthcare program in Greater Orlando.

Millington says she chose the specialty because it allows her to have long-term relationships with patients and coordinate with specialists to “bring all of the pieces of care together.”

“We are excited to welcome the next generation of physicians who will carry forward our mission — above all else, to care for and improve human life — and deliver compassionate, patient-centered care in the communities we are honored to serve,” says Cheryll Albold, who serves as vice president of graduate medical education for HCA Healthcare’s North Florida Division.

�鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine Founding Dean Deborah German to Conclude Tenure Following 2 Decades of Transformational Leadership

�鶹ԭ�� — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 16:34:58 +0000

After 20 years of leading ��’s College of Medicine and advancing the university’s clinical efforts, Deborah German will conclude her tenure as founding dean of the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine and vice president for health affairs.

“Because [Deb German] dared, the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine is now an engine of talent, research and impact that is shaping healthcare for generations.” — Alexander N. Cartwright, �鶹ԭ�� president

German will remain in her roles while �鶹ԭ�� conducts a national search for her successor. Following that transition, she will serve for one year as senior advisor for health affairs to the president and provost, supporting continuity during the next phase of growth.

When German arrived at �鶹ԭ�� in 2006, the College of Medicine existed only as a bold idea that many questioned. Today, it is a nationally respected medical school and the academic anchor of Orlando’s Lake Nona Medical City.

“When Dr. German came to �鶹ԭ��, many believed building a medical school from the ground up — at a young university, in a brand new medical city — was too ambitious, too complex and too risky. Deb saw possibility where others saw barriers,” says �鶹ԭ�� President Alexander N. Cartwright. “Because she dared, the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine is now an engine of talent, research and impact that is shaping healthcare for generations.”

Building a Medical School and a Workforce Pipeline

German arrived at �鶹ԭ�� in 2006 as the medical school’s only employee. Her mission: build a medical school that would be the academic foundation of an emerging Medical City and inspire economic development in the community, region and state.

From its inception, the College of Medicine was designed to be research intensive and community connected.

To attract the best and brightest students, German helped secure more than $6.5 million to provide full four-year scholarships and living expenses for every member of the inaugural M.D. class — the first time in U.S. history a medical school fully funded an entire class. She also established the focused inquiry and research experience curriculum, requiring every medical student to conduct original scientific research. �鶹ԭ�� medical students frequently achieve 100% residency placement rates.

Recognizing Florida’s growing physician shortage, German expanded graduate medical education in partnership with HCA Healthcare and the Orlando VA Medical Center. What began in 2014 with 17 internal medicine residents has grown to more than 720 residents and fellows training across Florida in high-need specialties including primary care, surgery, psychiatry, geriatrics and endocrinology.

This growth has strengthened Florida’s healthcare workforce at scale.

Advancing Academic Health Sciences

Under German’s leadership, �鶹ԭ�� established an Academic Health Sciences Center uniting the colleges of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Professions and Sciences, along with �鶹ԭ�� Health Student Health Services.

The Lake Nona Health Sciences Campus now includes the Medical Education Building, a new College of Nursing facility, �鶹ԭ�� Lake Nona Hospital, the �鶹ԭ�� Lake Nona Cancer Center, and the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences — home to nearly 3,000 undergraduate and graduate students preparing to become tomorrow’s scientific leaders.

In addition, the medical school’s Clinical Trials Division currently has 19 studies investigating new and better treatments for conditions including cancer, allergic asthma and Huntington’s disease.

In 2025, German also led the launch of ��’s , leveraging ��’s proximity to Kennedy Space Center to explore innovations that improve both space health and patient care on Earth.

“When we opened the medical school, we said we wanted to create a program that was locally, nationally and internationally relevant,” German says. “With our new space medicine program, we now can be galactically relevant.”

Expanding Patient Care for the Community

“Watching [�鶹ԭ��’s] growth and our impact on so many people, including my own family, has been both humbling and deeply rewarding.” — Deborah German, College of Medicine founding dean

German also led the creation of �鶹ԭ�� Health Faculty Physician Practice and the student-run KNIGHTS Clinic in partnership with Grace Medical Home to serve uninsured patients.

Most recently, �鶹ԭ�� unveiled a 38-foot Mobile Health Clinic, bringing free, high-quality healthcare directly to communities in need while serving as a hands-on training site for students across disciplines.

“Watching our growth and our impact on so many people, including my own family, has been both humbling and deeply rewarding,” German says. “My goal in coming to �鶹ԭ�� was to create the academic anchor of a new Medical City. That foundation is now fully in place; we have done a good job. Now it is time for new leadership that will take us to new heights.”

Research in 60 Seconds: Using Smart Tiny Bubbles to Treat Heart Disease

Nicole Dudenhoefer ’17 | Video by �鶹ԭ�� Social — Tue, 24 Feb 2026 18:00:32 +0000

Whether it’s solving the world’s biggest problems or investigating the potential of novel discoveries, researchers at �鶹ԭ�� are on the edge of scientific breakthroughs that aim to make an impact. Through the , student and faculty researchers condense their complex studies into bite-sized summaries so you can know how and why Knights plan to improve our world.

Name: Dinender Singla
Position(s): Professor of medicine; head of the Division of Metabolic and Cardiovascular Sciences; AdventHealth endowed chair of cardiovascular sciences

Why are you interested in this research?
My research journey began more than 30 years ago, while pursuing my doctorate, with a focus on developing molecular-based diagnostic tests for the early detection of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease. Over time, this foundation evolved as I collaborated with cardiovascular clinicians and basic scientists, deepening my commitment to creating innovative technologies that can meaningfully improve patient outcomes. Despite substantial global investment in heart disease treatment, mortality rates remain unacceptably high. Closing this gap continues to motivate my work and inspires me to find solutions. My ultimate goal is to develop transformative, science-driven therapies that not only improve clinical care but also save the lives of millions affected by cardiovascular disorders.

Who inspires you to conduct your research?
My mother has always been my strongest source of inspiration. She often shared stories about my maternal uncle and cousin, both of whom earned doctoral degrees. They sparked my early curiosity for scientific discovery. Though she was a homemaker, she was remarkably intelligent, forward-thinking and active. The values she instilled in me — hard work, persistence and creativity — continue to guide my scientific pursuits. Her passing from diabetes and diabetic cardiomyopathy profoundly strengthened my commitment to advancing cardiovascular research. Beyond her, my wife has been my greatest supporter, constantly motivating me to pursue ambitious scientific goals. These remarkable individuals have shaped my journey and empowered me to achieve all that I have accomplished in my research career.

How does �鶹ԭ�� empower you to do your research?
I joined �鶹ԭ�� in June 2007, coming from the University of Wisconsin and the University of Vermont, when the College of Medicine was still emerging and biomedical research was in its early stages. Making this move came with questions and uncertainties, even from colleagues who were hesitant about my decision. But I was driven by the desire to help build something unique and make a meaningful contribution at a new institution.

Are you a faculty member or student conducting research at �鶹ԭ��? We want to hear from you!

Throughout my journey, there were moments when challenges made me consider leaving. However, the support I received from Deborah German, dean of the College of Medicine and vice president for health affairs, reinforced my commitment to stay and grow here. As a clinician, German deeply understands the value of research and ensures I have the resources to succeed. More recently, Griff Parks, professor and director of the , has continued that support by providing the guidance and facilities essential to advancing my research. His perspective as an accomplished researcher allows him to recognize exactly what is needed for success in this field.

�鶹ԭ�� has also been an exceptional environment for finding talented, motivated students. I am deeply grateful for the support of my outstanding students, colleagues, staff and administration, all of whom have been instrumental to my success.

What major grants and honors have you earned to support your research?
I have secured more than $12 million in research funding from the National Institutes of Health to support a broad portfolio of innovative cardiovascular studies. Throughout my career, I’ve also been honored with numerous awards recognizing my scientific contributions. One of the most meaningful distinctions has been my appointment as the AdventHealth endowed chair of cardiovascular sciences, which reflects both the impact of my work and my vision for advancing cardiovascular research.

Why is this research important?
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide and imposes a significant economic burden on healthcare systems. Despite major advances in medicine, millions of patients still die each year because current diagnostic tools and therapies often fail to precisely target diseased heart tissue. Many treatments require patients to take multiple high-dose medications, yet clinicians cannot be certain that these drugs are effectively reaching the heart, limiting efficacy and increasing the risk of side effects.

My research directly addresses this critical challenge by developing an innovative, targeted drug delivery platform to transform cardiovascular therapy. Our goal is to create a safe, highly targeted treatment strategy that improves patient outcomes, reduces healthcare costs and lowers global cardiovascular mortality rates — all while advancing a more personalized, effective approach to heart disease care.

New �鶹ԭ�� Mobile Health Clinic Increases Access to Care

Wendy Sarubbi — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 17:56:05 +0000

�鶹ԭ�� unveiled a new 38-foot �鶹ԭ�� Heath Mobile Health Clinic on Wednesday, designed to bring free, high-quality healthcare directly to communities that need it most.

The clinic also serves as a mobile classroom, preparing �鶹ԭ�� healthcare students in programs including medicine, nursing, physical therapy and speech-language pathology with hands-on experience delivering community-based care.

The clinic is the first interdisciplinary clinical care program offered by ��’s Academic Health Sciences Center (AHSC). The center unites ��’s colleges of Health Professions and Sciences, Medicine and Nursing to create more interprofessional health education, research and patient care efforts.

“This new mobile health clinic is expanding access to healthcare in our community,” says Deborah German, who as vice president for health affairs leads the AHSC and serves as College of Medicine dean. “Our goal is simple and powerful – when healthcare providers work together, the patient receives better care.”

The clinic is focused on low income, uninsured and underinsured populations in Orange and Osceola counties, helping patients who face transportation, mobility or financial barriers that restrict their access to healthcare.

Services include screenings for blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol and hearing, along with chronic disease monitoring, fall-risk assessments, medication reviews, audiology services and health education.

With two private exam rooms, diagnostic equipment, and point-of-care testing capabilities, the clinic is aiming to reduce preventable conditions and improve long-term health for the Central Florida region.

“The �鶹ԭ�� Health Mobile Health Clinic is designed to complement the incredible work being done by community health centers, federally qualified health centers and charitable clinics across Central Florida,” says Caridad Hernandez, chair of medical education at the College of Medicine, who has worked for years to make the mobile clinic a reality. “Our goal is to fill gaps and meet people where they are, working hand in hand with these organizations to amplify resources and create a seamless continuum of care.”

The clinic is the first interdisciplinary clinical care program offered by ��’s Academic Health Sciences Center (AHSC), which is made up of healthcare providers, faculty, researchers, staff and students committed to improving healthcare and educating the next generation of healthcare leaders.

Training Future Health Leaders

��’s Academic Health Sciences Center is made up of healthcare providers, faculty, researchers, staff and students committed to improving healthcare. It is focused on educating the next generation of healthcare leaders and finding better ways to treat disease through innovation, discovery and collaboration.

The mobile clinic serves as a classroom on wheels that provides future �鶹ԭ�� physicians, nurses, audiologists, physical therapists, occupational therapists and others with the opportunity to learn in real-world settings, side by side, as part of interprofessional teams.

“These experiences prepare graduates who are not only clinically skilled but know how to work and communicate better in healthcare teams.” — Caridad Hernandez, chair of medical education at the College of Medicine

“They will see firsthand how life and social circumstances impact health and care, and how collaboration strengthens outcomes,” Hernandez says. “These experiences prepare graduates who are not only clinically skilled but know how to work and communicate better in healthcare teams. That training stays with them when they go into clinics and hospitals to care for us all.”

Mimi Alliance ’22 is a family nurse practitioner doctoral student at ��’s College of Nursing who is providing care on the mobile health unit and conducting doctoral research on hearing screenings for seniors.

“��’s mobile health clinic is an incredible and innovative tool that will allow us, as a group of providers, the ability to care for patients by serving them where they are,” she says. “Ultimately, this is going to improve the health of our communities.”

Addressing a Community Need

The mobile clinic serves Florida residents who are uninsured or underinsured with income levels at or below 300% of the Federal Poverty Level. Nearly 15% of both Orange and Osceola County residents are not insured, regardless of income level. In addition, 27% of Floridians say they do not have a personal physician.

Since March, almost 500 patients have visited the clinic for blood pressure checks, hearing screenings and point-of-care testing for blood sugar levels and cholesterol. It has provided care at Four Roots Farm, Kinneret Council on Aging, Grace Medical Home, the Central Florida Fairgrounds and four Central Florida YMCA locations. �鶹ԭ�� has also reached an agreement with Osceola County to provide care at community centers in the future.

Thanks to a grant from the Florida Department of Health, the clinic is working to improve care for the community’s diabetic patients with limited access to care.

Diabetes is a worldwide epidemic. In Florida, at least 2.17 million adults have been diagnosed with diabetes and an estimated 550,000 more are unaware they have it. The state’s diabetes rate is higher than the national average and it is getting worse – an additional 6 million adults in Florida have prediabetes.

“Many of our neighbors with diabetes have no access to healthcare. That leads to premature death, blindness, loss of limbs and kidney failure,” Hernandez says. “Through the FDOH grant, we can help provide these patients with needed care. We screen patients for diabetes, can provide prescriptions at no cost, and offer education on diet changes that will help them manage their disease.”

As one recent patient at Kinneret Council on Aging explains, “�鶹ԭ�� helped me know what kind of food and protein I can eat to help my blood sugar not get too high or too low. Thank you so much. You are helping.”

The clinic also started a diabetic foot program after one of the Kinneret patients said she and other diabetics lacked mobility and eyesight to regularly check their feet for ulcers or blisters. Diabetes increases a patient’s risk for foot ulcers that can lead to amputation. Thanks to the foot program, �鶹ԭ�� College of Nursing faculty and students are providing hands-on education and preventive screenings to patients, who also received their own telescoping mirrors to do regular foot checks at home.

Providing Needed Audiology Care

One of the clinic’s major health services is hearing health and the prevention of hearing loss.

“This is not just a ‘nice to have’ screening,” says Bari Hoffman ’96 ’98MA, associate dean for clinical affairs at ��’s College of Health Professions and Sciences and a certified speech pathologist who has helped lead the mobile clinic effort. “Hearing loss is linked to diabetes, cardiovascular and cardiometabolic conditions, balance, cognition and overall health. When we catch hearing loss early, we can intervene before it affects someone’s safety, memory, their social connections, or their long-term health trajectory.”

Thanks to a gift from the Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation, �鶹ԭ�� purchased diagnostic hearing equipment to provide clinical-grade hearing assessments in the community. And though a collaboration with Central Florida Hearing Aid Recycling Programs, the mobile clinic can help connect patients with reprogrammed, refurbished hearing aids at no cost.

“This is such a meaningful addition,” Hoffman says. “Identifying hearing loss is important, but ensuring people have access to hearing aids is what truly changes lives.”

The mobile unit is also supported by the Community Fund of our teaching hospital – �鶹ԭ�� Lake Nona Hospital and our partners HCA Florida Healthcare and The Jules B. Chapman MD and Annie Lou Chapman Private Foundation.

Stephanie Garris is CEO of Orlando’s Grace Medical Home, which provides high-quality, continuous care to some of Orange County’s more than 160,000 uninsured residents. Grace patients have received audiology care from the �鶹ԭ�� mobile clinic.

“This mobile clinic is an incredible resource for our patients, offering essential services they otherwise wouldn’t have access to.” —Stephanie Garris, CEO of Orlando’s Grace Medical Home

“This mobile clinic is an incredible resource for our patients, offering essential services they otherwise wouldn’t have access to,” Garris says. “Through our partnership with �鶹ԭ��, we are expanding access to care—especially for the working poor, whose jobs often don’t include healthcare benefits.”

Expanding Efforts

Mobile clinic leaders are eager to expand services and work with additional community organizations.

Plans also include expanding the mobile clinic into an innovation hub to pilot and evaluate emerging aging-in-place and digital health technologies and integrate new diagnostic and disease prevention tools.

�鶹ԭ�� research faculty also want to use the vehicle’s services to study better ways to advance health accessibility and chronic disease management. Educators from the AHSC’s three colleges also plan to grow interdisciplinary student training across areas including audiology, nursing, medicine, physical therapy and speech language pathology.

Community organizations wishing to partner with the mobile health clinic can contact anna.cisneros@ucf.edu.

�鶹ԭ�� Welcomes M.D. Class of 2028

Wendy Sarubbi — Tue, 13 Aug 2024 16:06:40 +0000

Before med school, Calvin MacDonald helped create 3D-printed bionic arms for children. Natalie Marshall hopes to become her family’s fifth generation physician, and in honor of that goal, came to the College of Medicine White Coat Ceremony with her late grandfather’s embroidered doctor’s coat. Both were among 120 M.D. students in the class of 2028 who were coated Monday in recognition that they are now colleagues in healthcare.

The new physicians-in-training include artists, engineers, athletes and crisis counselors. More than 80% did medical research before entering medical school. They received undergraduate degrees from BYU, Emory, John’s Hopkins, Ohio State, Rice and Vanderbilt. Thirty of them are �鶹ԭ�� alumni.

MacDonald is one of those Knights. He worked with children at Limbitless Solutions, an organization based at �鶹ԭ�� that specializes in accessibility technology including bionics for children missing limbs. He says he has always wanted to become a doctor and that his work with children taught him patience, understanding and the ability to communicate with those he will care for in the future.

Innovation and discovery are the core of Limbitless’ work and both topics were themes of this year’s White Coat Ceremony. �鶹ԭ�� President Alexander N. Cartwright told students of their opportunity to learn at the university’s biosciences cluster minutes from one of the world’s most visited airports.

“Your new home at ��’s Academic Health Sciences Center will embed you in health education, research and clinical practice — right in the heart of Orlando’s Medical City at Lake Nona,” he says. “At �鶹ԭ��, we turn our excellence into impact, and we boldly innovate where others would never dare. You will have that opportunity to innovate and to transform diagnostics, treatments and therapies to drive health outcomes for your patients.”

Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and founding dean of ��’s College of Medicine, told students they are joining an innovative, research-based medical school supported by physicians, scientists, clinics and hospitals across Florida.

“Students, today you become part of this community, part of a pioneering, young medical school committed to preparing doctors to face today’s healthcare challenges by putting their patients first,” she says.

That community includes donors like Mark Trolice, founder and medical director of the IVF Center, whose gift paid for all of the students’ white coats. The College of Medicine’s White Coat and Stethoscope campaign raised more than $53,000 this year — the most ever — from donations that included parents, faculty and staff.

Monday’s ceremony included the students’ first class in medical school: The Good Doctor – A �鶹ԭ�� Tradition. In it, German asks students to imagine the person they love most in the world is seriously ill with an undiagnosed condition. She asks them to describe the attributes of the physician they would want caring for their loved one. As students suggest a trait, German writes the word on a blackboard that stays on display at the medical school all year.

This year students came up with 35 words including passionate, reliable, courageous, resilient, knowledgeable, ethical, curious and accountable. When a student suggested humble, German responded, “That means it’s not about us, it’s about the patient.” When another suggested caring, their dean replied, “Patients don’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care.”

Marshall liked the word leader and said it described her grandfather, Manuel Torres, perfectly. He immigrated to the U.S. from Cuba and served patients as an anesthesiologist in South Florida for 50 years. He passed away last year before knowing where his granddaughter would attend medical school.

“It’s exciting to follow in my family’s footsteps,” she says.

Joseph Helmy’s favorite word on The Good Doctor board was humble because he says a physician needs to think about others first. Family and friends traveled from Helmy’s home state of Tennessee to join him at the ceremony, and took turns hugging, back slapping and fist-pumping the new �鶹ԭ�� physician-in-training as he wore his new white coat. Nearby stood Father Karas, Helmy’s Coptic Orthodox priest.

“I made the trip,” Father Karas says. “I had to come. Joseph is such a good person, my spiritual son.”

Congressman Soto Presents �鶹ԭ�� Funding for Pathogen Surveillance, Research

Wendy Sarubbi — Mon, 29 Jul 2024 14:00:26 +0000

A $900,000 congressional appropriation will help the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine create a pathogen surveillance and research core to identify and address future pandemics.

U.S. Congressman Darren Soto recently presented the funding to Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and founding dean of the medical school, and Griffith Parks, associate dean of research and director of the College of Medicine’s . Parks is an internationally recognized virus researcher.

Congressman Soto says he is honored to secure the support for “our hometown medical school because we all saw, with both Zika and COVID-19, the need to study diseases to improve the public’s health.”

During a tour of Parks’ lab, the College of Medicine leaders discussed the important role Orlando can play in protecting the nation and world from infectious disease.

“We are a global tourist destination with one of the world’s most visited airports,” German says. “The world is coming here. That’s why Orlando is the canary in the coal mine.”

During a tour of Griffith Parks’ lab, College of Medicine leaders explain Orlando’s role in predicting and researching new pathogens. (Photo courtesy of the College of Medicine)

The congressional funding will purchase genomic sequencing equipment that will allow College of Medicine researchers to identify the entire genetic makeup of viruses like COVID-19 and other microbes. Parks says such technology allows researchers to determine quickly the genetic makeup of new pathogens, a first step in identifying treatments. Microbiologists worldwide are continually monitoring pathogens — viruses and bacteria — that could lead to a pandemic.

“We’re certainly going to face more outbreaks like COVID-19,” Parks says. “It’s not if we’ll have another pandemic, it’s when.”

The ease and speed of worldwide travel was a key element in COVID-19’s spread, Parks says, adding that a pathogen research and surveillance core at ��’s Health Sciences Campus — located just minutes from Orlando International Airport — would help facilitative earlier recognition of potential pandemics. On any given day, Orlando’s population increases by one million visitors.

The genome sequencing equipment will also assist College of Medicine researchers focused on finding new therapies for diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, and provide research training for �鶹ԭ�� students seeking careers in medicine and science.

“In addition to research, our mission is to train the next generation of biomedical scientists,” Parks tells Congressman Soto.

Dean of �鶹ԭ��’s College of Medicine Named Central Florida Woman of the Year

Wendy Sarubbi — Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:07:39 +0000

The Women’s Executive Council of Orlando has named Deborah German, ��’s vice president for health affairs and founding dean of its medical school, as the organization’s 2023 Central Florida Woman of the Year.

The organization’s mission is to encourage and recognize women leaders and students to serve the Central Florida community.

In accepting the award on Oct. 12, German said she came to Orlando in 2006 to build a top-tier medical school that would anchor an emerging Medical City just minutes from one of the world’s most visited airports. The goal was to create what would become a global destination for medical research, patient care and education “for all of us,” she says.

Under Deborah German’s leadership, the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine has graduated more than 1,000 physicians.

“I wanted to have a great adventure, a life project, so that when I was 90 years old like my parents — who are now 96 and 93 — I could look back and say, ‘Good job,’” she says. “I have so much for which to be grateful.”

Under her leadership, the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine has graduated more than 1,000 physicians and welcomed its 15th M.D. class this fall. Thanks to community donations, �鶹ԭ�� was the first medical school in U.S. history to offer full four-year scholarships to an entire class — the charter class of 2013. Since that time, ��’s College of Medicine has created one of the fastest-growing graduate medical education programs in the state — with 550 residents and fellows training in �鶹ԭ��-HCA Healthcare programs from Orlando to Pensacola.

The college is unique nationally because it includes the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, which provides undergraduate, masters and doctoral programs. Biomedical Sciences is ��’s third most popular major. Burnett School faculty researchers focus their discoveries on the diseases that plague humanity — such as cancer, cardiovascular, infectious and neurodegenerative diseases. �鶹ԭ�� Health, the College of Medicine physician practice, has two locations — in East Orlando and Lake Nona — and provides primary and specialty care to patients across the community. The college has also begun a clinical trials program to advance translational medical research and recently partnered with NASA to conduct space medicine research that will impact the health of space travelers and those on earth.

At the 2023 Women’s Executive Council of Orlando awards banquet, Deborah German is joined by Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and (from left) Claudia Andl, a College of Medicine cancer researcher, Yanisa Del Toro, medical director of �鶹ԭ�� Health, and Onchantho Am, associate general counsel at the medical school.

�鶹ԭ�� Lake Nona Hospital, a College of Medicine partnership with HCA Healthcare, opened in 2021 next door to the medical school and is training �鶹ԭ�� medical and nursing students sooner than anticipated. �鶹ԭ�� Lake Nona Cancer Center, a new model of cancer research and patient care, opened the same year. Those facilities have helped create ��’s new Academic Health Sciences Center in Lake Nona. The center incudes ��’s Colleges of Health Professions and Sciences, Medicine and Nursing, along with Student Health Services.

Eventually the university hopes to locate many of its clinical training programs in Medical City for increased interdisciplinary medical education, research and patient care. A will break ground next to the medical school in Lake Nona in January 2024.

“Don’t be afraid to pursue your dream,” German told community leaders and other attendees at the awards banquet. “It’s what you were born to do. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. They are really lessons and … also guideposts pointing you in a better direction.”

��’s College of Medicine Graduates its 1,000th Physician

Wendy Sarubbi — Mon, 22 May 2023 13:56:56 +0000

��’s College of Medicine graduated its 1,000th physician Friday with streamers, cheers, tears and military salutes.

“You are my 1K graduates,” Deborah German, vice president of health affairs and founding dean, told the Class of 2023. “I couldn’t be prouder of the work you have done. When I came here in 2006 to build this medical school, it was hard to even imagine graduating 100 �鶹ԭ��-trained physicians. And look where we are now.”

In deciding how to recognize the milestone, medical school leaders didn’t want to analyze lists of graduates to pick one individual as the thousandth, German says, because with few exceptions, everyone in the class had gone through their medical education journey together.

“You received your white coats together…You entered your clerkships together where you delivered your first baby, participated in your first surgery, counseled your first psychiatric patient,” she says. “Together you cared for others during a worldwide pandemic…Our community is healthier today because of the work you did together.

“Your entire class — each and every one of you — are the thousandth graduate in my heart.”

After the last of the 123 new Physician Knights received their diploma, German asked for a round of applause and then — unbeknownst to the students — black and gold streamers fell from the ceiling.

After that celebration, the ceremony included the military promotion of , the 39th �鶹ԭ�� military officer to become a Physician Knight.

The new physicians will go onto residency training at top hospitals around the city, state and nation in specialties that include pediatrics, internal, family and emergency medicine, OB-GYN, surgery and anesthesiology. A record 12 graduates matched into psychiatry, saying they want to help address the nation’s mental health challenges.

Asked why they had chosen the and the graduates’ answers were remarkably similar: the people. They talked about the medical school’s collaborative, supportive, engaging “vibe,” how faculty and staff were committed to helping students achieve their dreams. They talked about the unique opportunity to build a young medical school and a growing Medical City at Lake Nona.

Amy Morrison did her undergraduate work at Cornell and after graduating from �鶹ԭ��, she will enter a general surgery residency at Orlando Health.

“I felt like I fit in from the first time I walked in the building,” she says of �鶹ԭ��. “I met my best friend during my admissions interview. And I was inspired to be part of growing a Medical City.”

Sarah Baker entered medical school at age 41, after having three children and working in public health in Florida’s Lee County. With her M.D., she is returning home to Southwest Florida to do her residency in internal medicine at NCH Healthcare System. As part of commencement, she gave her children certificates of appreciation for their love and support during her journey. “This diploma belongs to them and my husband as much as it does to me,” she says. Baker says the medical school’s culture supported her as a student with more life experience than most. “I never felt nontraditional at �鶹ԭ��,” she says. “Everyone in this class is my family.”

Yanisa Del Toro is medical director of , the College of Medicine’s clinical practice, and as a �鶹ԭ�� faculty member, she leads internal medicine clerkship training at the clinic and also is an advisor and mentor to students. She served as grand marshal for commencement and helped hood each of the doctoral candidates before they received their diplomas. As she did, many of the graduates stopped and hugged her. “That’s because so many have passed through my hands,” she says.

How to Resume Life After Months of Social Distancing

Jenna Marina Lee — Wed, 03 Jun 2020 18:39:30 +0000

Theme parks have announced reopening dates. Restaurants are enticing us with open-air seating. Barber shops can schedule the grooming your hair so desperately needs. Offices are starting to welcome back employees.

But after three months of physical distancing due to COVID-19, many of us have been left wondering, what do we do now? Where do we go — literally and figuratively — from here?

“It’s important we balance the need to get back to some kind of normal life and keep the economy healthy with keeping everyone as safe as possible,” says Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and founding dean of the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine. “COVID-19 hasn’t gone away. It’s still out there so we need to be smart.”

Katherine Daly, a licensed psychologist with more than a decade of counseling experience who serves as the director of Counseling & Wellness Services at the �鶹ԭ�� College of Medicine, offers some suggestions for navigating life again.

Take a gradual approach

“It probably would not be healthy to abruptly rush back into our pre-COVID life expecting it to look like the way it did,” says Daly.

In addition to adhering to the CDC’s recommended guidelines for venturing out in public, which includes wearing a mask and physical distancing, Daly also recommends doing self-assessments of your comfort level.

“I try to continually assess how does it feel going out?” she says. “If it feels stressful, then my world doesn’t need to be so big right now. My world can include those who make me feel safe and grounded.”

“I try to continually assess how does it feel going out? If it feels stressful, then my world doesn’t need to be so big right now.”

She also recommends having open and honest conversations with friends and family members to establish boundaries you feel comfortable with.

“Make it focused on how you’re feeling and your vulnerability and what you need,” she says. “In my case, I am more cautious because I have some conditions that put me a higher risk. I’ve had friends who are much more comfortable going to restaurants or beaches, and they’ll say to me, ‘We want to let you know what we’re doing so you can make an informed decision on if you want to see us.’ They know it’s not about being judged. It’s about people who care about each other feeling safe enough to communicate vulnerability.”

Maintain healthy routines

Daly says having a routine can help you regain a sense of control. Prioritizing sleep, nutrition and exercise should remain part of your daily life regardless if you’re still working remotely or returning to the office.

As more of us start to return to on-site work spaces, she stresses that having realistic expectations about your work routine will help you readjust.

“You may be used to rushing in and immediately hit the ground running and have a really productive work day,” she says. “But the first week back, you might need to ease in. You’re going to re-establish setting up your office, what it feels like to interact with your colleagues wearing a mask.

“I would encourage people not to expect too much of themselves and to allow themselves to readjust and re-establish those work routines so that work does feel safe again, and so people can establish some new boundaries of how to be healthy both mentally and physically in the workplace.”

Adopt these 5 practices

German emphasizes that staying safe in the era of COVID-19 comes down to dedicating yourself to do five simple things: Wear a mask anytime you leave home. Keep a safe distance between yourself and others. Wash or sanitize your hands frequently. Don’t touch your face. Stay home when you’re sick.

“We all have to do these things,” she says. “If only 50 percent of us take these precautions, the virus will continue to spread. We have to approach this as a team sport. By taking precautions, you protect yourself, your family, your friends and your community.”

Don’t be in such a rush to get back to normal that you don’t consider what aspects of normal might be better left behind.

“We will re-establish a sense of normalcy — it’s what we do as humans,” Daly says. “We’re highly resilient. We’ve seen our ancestors do that through various struggles throughout time whether its war or natural disasters.”

But Daly also says that it’s important to evaluate some aspects of our former daily lives that might not need to be part of our future.

“The impact that all of this has had on the environment — did we need to be in the office every day? Did we need to be driving cars every day? Did we need to be heating and cooling all of those buildings every day?” she says. “Maybe those aren’t things we need to rush back to. But there are certainly aspects of human connection that I think all of us are missing that we will probably embrace more dearly after this.”

“Stay calm. Stay grounded. Do your best to stay well.”

Use resources to manage stress.

Daly says it’s possible we may experience a year or two of residual stress from this pandemic. One thing that cannot be emphasized enough is protecting your mental health.

She suggests the websites Calm and Headspace for meditation and mindfulness exercises. Therapeutic literature, such as The Relaxation & Stress Workbook, can also be helpful.

For faculty and staff at �鶹ԭ��, she encourages them to take advantage of the , which offers counseling sessions for free.

“Stay calm. Stay grounded. Do your best to stay well,” Daly says.

Supporting Recovery – on Campus and in Our Community

Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and College of Medicine dean — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 14:33:15 +0000

Mental health and substance use disorders affect millions of us nationwide, and by seeking help, those who experience these challenges can embark on a new path toward improved health and overall wellness.

September is National Recovery Month and this year’s theme, “Join the Voices for Recovery: Together We Are Stronger,” carries an important message: We all play a role in recovery, whether or not we struggle personally with issues like depression, anxiety, alcohol, drug or nicotine abuse. All of us — as work colleagues, friends, family and health care providers — play a role in supporting each other to become physically, emotionally and spiritually stronger.

A number of resources are available at �鶹ԭ�� to support those in recovery. Student Health Services offers and we have added recovery information — including smoking cessation — on the .

�鶹ԭ�� is committed to helping those affected by mental-health challenges and substance-use disorders by raising awareness of these conditions and the recovery resources that are available.

In addition, we invite you to join us at the Veterans Academic Resource Center on Sept. 14 as for the �鶹ԭ�� football game against Stanford that will celebrate recovery. The event is co-hosted by the Veterans Student Organization and �鶹ԭ�� Sober Knights as well as recovery organizations from our community.

Behavioral health is essential to overall wellness. �鶹ԭ�� is committed to helping those affected by mental-health challenges and substance-use disorders by raising awareness of these conditions and the recovery resources that are available. Prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can and do recover. Please join me in being a voice for recovery.

Let’s all stay well – together.