PRESS RELEASE Anxiety disorders afflict women twice as often as men, but estrogen might not be the reason. Testosterone, though, could be. That is one of the preliminary findings in the lab of Florida State University researcher Mohamed Kabbaj, associate professor in the College of Medicine. He recently was awarded a five-year, $1.8 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to investigate the sex differences in anxiety. His research team also is working to identify the role of a gene called zif268.

Thomasville Medical Center's Stroke Center has added a new tool in responding to emergency stroke and critical neurology care, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, as part of the new teleneurology medicine program with Forsyth Stroke & Neurosciences Center and the Novant Neurosciences Network Solution. The new program will link Thomasville Medical Center and Specialists On Call (SOC), a Joint Commission-accredited organization of board-certified, specialty trained, community and university neurologists. SOC neurologists have a minimum of 10 years in clinical practice and include nationally recognized physicians affiliated with departments of neurology at world-class medical centers, including The Florida State University College of Medicine.

Watching 120 students put on coats might not sound like a memorable Friday night. But if those are new medical students slipping into physician’s white coats, and if the audience is filled with the people who love them, then suddenly it’s an unbeatable event. It’s called the White Coat Ceremony, and the College of Medicine’s Class of 2014 got to experience it August 20th.  White Coat Ceremony Speeches: John P. Fogarty, M.D., Dean, The Florida State University College of Medicine  [pdf]  Robert Watson, M.D., Executive Associate Dean for Administrative Affairs  [pdf]  Curtis C. Stine, M.D., Associate Chair, Department of Family Medicine and Rural Health Director of Clinical Programs  [pdf]  Komal R. D'Souza, Class of 2011  [pdf]    

Commentary by Shawn Shah, 23, student at the Florida State University College of Medicine. He is Medical Student Council president. “I spent almost two weeks in Ghana this past July, alongside nine other medical students from Florida State University and a team of physicians from the medical outreach organization Hearts Afire. We were able to provide free medical care to more than 2,000 Ghanaians…”

First-year students at The Florida State University College of Medicine will receive the white coats symbolic of their unofficial entry into the field of medicine during a ceremony Friday evening.

This week, TMH and the Florida State University College of Medicine announced that it will start a residency program in internal medicine, and this is great news for not only our community, but also the state. As we've pointed out before, in-state residencies are too limited given the increasing number of students graduating from Florida's medical schools.

Florida State University's College of Medicine and Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare announced Wednesday that they are planning to start a new residency program in internal medicine. It will be the second residency program based at TMH — it already has a family medicine program — and the first sponsored by FSU's 10-year-old medical school.

The Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Board of Directors and the Florida State University College of Medicine announced plans to pursue a joint internal medicine residency program for the Big Bend region. The Tallahassee Memorial and Florida State University Internal Medicine Residency Program would be housed at Tallahassee Memorial's main campus and The Florida State College of Medicine would be the institutional sponsor.

Until now, the only residency program option for students graduating from Florida State's College of Medicine was family medicine, but that's about to change. A new partnership between Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and FSU's College of Medicine hopes to keep graduates here by introducing n internal medicine residency program. The residency program will be established by 2012 and many graduates of the college of medicine say this residency program is long overdue.

The Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Board of Directors and the Florida State University College of Medicine today announced plans to pursue a joint internal medicine residency program for the Big Bend region. The Tallahassee Memorial and Florida State University Internal Medicine Residency Program would be housed at Tallahassee Memorial’s main campus and The Florida State College of Medicine would be the institutional sponsor. The program could begin accepting applications for resident physicians as early as fall 2011.

Press Release The Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Board of Directors and the Florida State University College of Medicine today announced plans to pursue a joint internal medicine residency program for the Big Bend region.

Press Release After a national search, The Florida State University College of Medicine has hired Ricardo J. Gonzalez-Rothi, M.D., as professor and chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences.

John Leonard Franklin, MD John Leonard Franklin, MD, 41, of Kingsport, Tennessee, passed away suddenly on August 5, 2010. He attended Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, where he was a member of Delta Tau Delta Fraternity and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences. Upon graduation, he entered the University of Florida's PIMS (Program in Medical Sciences) Program in Tallahassee, Florida, for 1 year and then completed his medical degree with honors at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida.

School-based health centers, which provide comprehensive medical care to students beyond the standard school-nurse clinic model, are awaiting a big boost from the federal government under the law overhauling the nation’s health-care system. Dr. Maggie Blackburn, the director of rural health for the Florida State University College of Medicine, in Tallahassee, said the capital-improvement money could help the system open a new clinic in Havana, Fla., a town of 1,700 about 16 miles northwest ofTallahassee.

A total of 120 new medical students formally received their white coats Aug. 20 at Florida State University – and one of them was from Gadsden County.

The refinement of the definition of retirement continues as Americans continue to age. In a new nationwide poll of older adults, ages 65 to 80, shows that over 80% of them view their retirement will be different and more exciting than their parents retirement. The Vi Next Chapter study examines the expectations and self perception of what the respondents are looking towards or experiencing in their retirement. Kenneth Brummel-Smith, MD, Charlotte Edwards Maguire, Chair, and Professor, Department of Geriatrics, Florida State University is featured.

PRESS RELEASE The Florida State University College of Medicine Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Program at Sacred Heart Women’s Hospital was recently awarded a $3,000 Community Awards Program grant from the Florida Chapter of the March of Dimes. The goal of the community awards program is to identify and fund community?based programs addressing the health concerns of pregnant women in the state of Florida.

RENAISSANCE DOC - It’s impossible not to like Dr. Stephen Badolato, president of the Brevard County Medical Society, and Brevard Physicians Network member. Caring, energetic,engaged, he’s any patient’s perfect physician. No wonder the man has been listed in the Guide of America’s Top Physicians. Dr. Badolato is an assistant clinical faculty member of Florida State University’s medical school, where he serves as instructor of non-operative orthopedics and sports medicine.

The Capital Polio Association celebrated the 20th anniversary of the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act on Sunday by honoring a humanitarian and stalwart in the medical field. Dr. Charlotte Maguire, 92, was honored with a "Spirit of ADA" award for outstanding service for her work, not only with children with disabilities, but for her work with those affected by polio, a debilitating virus that often causes paralysis of limbs and lung function. Dr. Charlotte Maguire is a cherished College of Medicine benefactor.

According to recent research from the United States, "Studies have shown that labor occurs primarily in the night/morning hours. Recently, we identified the human myometrium as a target for melatonin (MEL), the neuroendocrine output signal coding for circadian night." Study published by College of Medicine Post Doctrine Scholar, J.T. Sharkey and his colleagues.

The Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law at the College of Medicine is currently at work coordinating efforts across Florida to promote the POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) paradigm, a program that is intended to ensure that a patient's wishes regarding life-sustaining treatments are known, communicated and honored across all health care settings.

Living wills and advance directives often do not ensure that dying patients receive the kind of medical carethey want - or don't want - to endure. Now an effort being coordinated by the Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law at the college hopes to improve communication and produce a clear set of medical orders for a dying patient's care.

Dr. Paul Payne, who graduated from the college in 2006 and the college's Sacred Heart Hospital OB-GYN Residency in June, has joined OB-GYN Associates at the Veranda in Albany, Ga.  Payne started the college's medical student chapter of the Florida Rural Health Association, and he is one of the first two College of Medicine Alumni to also complete the Sacred Heart residency.

The health section of the Orlando Sentinel covers the primary-care shortage crisis in this article about how few current medical students are specializing in primary-care, usually due to financial issues.  Two of the College of Medicine's main goals are to encourage more students toward the primary-care field and to train more primary-care doctors for the national (and especially Florida's) growing population.

Researchers at the college are looking for 40-45 African-American caregivers to complete a study on effectively reducing depression in adult caregivers of dementia patients.  The caregivers will receive up to $100 for their time, and judging from the early results, will benefit psychologically, physically and spiritually.

Residents enrolled in the Tallahassee Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program have chosen to stay in the Tallahassee area to practice, which is good news the Big bend for Florida, given the nation-wide primary physician shortage. Some of the college's alumni graduating from the program include Drs. Robin Albritton, Garrett Chumney, Josef Plum and Brandy Willis; Tallahassee clerkship faculty member Dr. Donald Zorn is the program's director.

To increase the flow of information between the medical and law fields, the Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine and Law is producing an online journal dedicated to sharing research and collaborating on articles dealing with touchy, complicated topics. Medical-Legal Studies is already a part of the Social Science Research Legal Scholarship Network online ( www.ssrn.com ). Article also appeared in:  Drug Week  [pdf]

This article about a new procedure being performed at some Treasure Coast hospitals features two of the college's clerkship faculty members, Drs. Mario Sanguily and Rene Loyola, both of whom work and teach at the Ft. Pierce regional campus.

The Tallahassee Democrat voices its support for Tallahassee Memorial Hospital's residency program.  Five of its eleven graduates will stay in the Tallahassee area, and two more will stay in Florida. In order to keep Florida medical schools' graduates in the state, many more residency programs are necessary.  Dean John Fogarty comments on the college's dedication to training more family doctors for Florida's populations.

With a rapidly expanding population of elders, the number of dementia caregivers in Florida is increasing exponentially. Finding the best way to support them, especially with fewer state resources available, is the focus of ongoing research at the Florida State University College of Medicine. The study, which has been under way for more than a year, is being conducted by Robert Glueckauf, professor of medical humanities and social sciences.

PRESS RELEASE Nancy Hayes, Ph.D., a neurobiologist whose research has focused on genetic regulation of variability in the brain, has accepted an offer to fill the newly created position of director of clinical foundations (year 1 and 2) at the Florida State University College of Medicine. Her appointment in the Department of Medical Humanities and Social Sciences will take effect Sept. 1.

Dr. Brandy Childers Willis, a 2007 graduate of the College of Medicine, just entered practice as a primary care physician in her hometown of Tallahassee.  This advertisement ran in the Tallahassee Democrat to announce her services to the community.

PRESS RELEASE Dr. Charlotte Maguire has another framed certificate to hang on her already crowded walls. On July 25, the Capital Polio Association gave her a “Spirit of ADA” award for a lifetime of advocating for children with disabilities as well as treating them.

Addressing disparities in Florida’s physician workforce requires starting early – long before a medical school’s admissions  process begins. At the Florida State University College of Medicine, part of that effort is a summer “mini med school” for high-school students. Article also appeared in  Daytona Beach News-Journal ,  TC Palm ,  TC Palm(2) ,  Tallahassee Democrat

The Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law at the College of Medicine is currently at work coordinating efforts across Florida to promote the POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) paradigm, a program that is intended to ensure that a patient's wishes regarding life-sustaining treatments are known, communicated and honored across all health care settings.

The Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law has undertaken a close examination of Advance Directive policy, an issue that concerns and interests many Americans.  (From the Emergency Care Coordination Center, Department of Health and Human Services)

News of associate professor Timothy Megraw's most recent findings have made the cover of the June 15 issue of Developmental Cell, the highly respected biomedical journal.  Less than a year after he received a four-year, $1.2 million NIH grant to explore the roles of cilia and centrosomes in cell division, the Developmental Cell article outlines Megraw's discovery of a key protein's role in the division process.  See the Developmental Cell cover  here  [pdf]. Article also appeared in:  Medical News Today ,  R&D ,  ScienceBlog ,  WCTV ,  Genetics and Environmental Business Week , and others.

Ten years after opening its doors, the college has now reached full enrollment -- 121 students will receive their white coats as members of the class of 2014.

Led by speech therapist Dr. Nola Chambers, who did her doctoral research with the college's First Words Project in Tallahassee, the South African arm of the project is trying to reach across cultural borders to encourage South African families to have their children screened for autism before age 3 -- when autism therapy is most effective.

In a letter to the editor, Dr. Remigio Lacsamana expresses his support for the Halifax Medical Center's new general surgery residency program.

This article addresses how Halifax Health Medical Center -- along with medical care facilities across Florida and the entire U.S. --  is facing an increasingly severe shortage of general surgeons.  College of Medicine clerkship directors Pam Carbiener (OB/GYN) and Harry Black (Surgery) contribute their thoughts to the discussion.

PRESS RELEASE A Florida State University researcher has identified the important role that a key protein plays in cell division, and that discovery could lead to a greater understanding of stem cells. Timothy L. Megraw, an associate professor in the College of Medicine, has outlined his findings in the cover story of the June 15 issue of Developmental Cell.

PRESS RELEASE Living wills and advance directives often don’t ensure that dying patients receive the kind of medical care they want — or don’t want — to receive. Now an effort being coordinated by the Center for Innovative Collaboration in Medicine & Law at the Florida State University College of Medicine hopes to improve communication and produce a clear set of medical orders for a dying patient’s care.

Ten years after its creation and through carefully planned growth, the Florida State University College of Medicine has reached a milestone: The arrival of the 120-member Class of 2014 on campus this week gives the medical school a full enrollment of 480 students.

PRESS RELEASE Addressing disparities in Florida’s physician workforce requires starting early – long before a medical school’s admissions process begins. At the Florida State University College of Medicine, part of that effort is a summer “mini med school” for high-school students.

Each year the Capital Medical Society Foundation gives its "Access to Care" award to a graduating senior from the FSU College of Medicine who has worked actively to increase underserved populations' access to medical care.  This year's award went to senior Nicole McCoy.

An undergraduate student participating in one of the College of Medicine’s research labs has won the John C. Johnson Award from the TriBeta National Biological Honor Society. The award, recognizing the best research presentation by an undergraduate, was presented at the society’s national convention in Colorado last month. The Florida State University Biological Science Department chose junior Kourtney Graham to represent the university at the convention with her honors thesis project, which she completed alongside graduate student Molly Foote in associate professor Yi Zhou’s College of Medicine biomedical sciences research lab.

To increase the flow of information between the fields of medicine and law, a new center at the Florida State University College of Medicine and College of Law is producing an online journal dedicated to sharing research

PRESS RELEASE A Florida State University College of Medicine researcher has discovered a new interaction between a cell signaling system and a specific gene that may be the cause of B-cell lymphoma. The finding suggests a similar interaction could be occurring during the development of other types of cancer, leading to further understanding of how cancer works — and how it might be stopped.