Palm Beach County physicians, like Dr. David Amrose of TGH Advanced Kidney Care, connect patients in need of transplants with experts, like Dr. Kiran Dhanireddy, vice president and chief of the TGH Transplant Institute.
Tampa General Hospital (TGH) is bringing world-class academic medicine and research to Florida’s East Coast
Cilette Morris, a West Palm Beach resident, had been on a kidney transplant list with a local hospital and the process was dragging. “A family member in Tampa suggested I try TGH. It was a fast and straightforward process compared to the other hospital,” Morris said. “TGH was very caring and very efficient; there’s a whole institute dedicated to transplants. The team keeps in touch and keeps you up to date, making sure you’re doing what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to. They almost put more interest into everything than the patients do!”
Since the transplant procedure, Morris has been participating in an observational research study, thanks to the academic medical institution. The study uses a mailed blood test to analyze how well patients are receiving their donor organs and to detect early signs of possible organ rejection.
“I decided to take part in the research not only because I stood to benefit, but also because I was grateful and saw an opportunity to help other people,” explained Morris. “The testing tracked my bloodwork and let the team correct anything wrong very early. Fortunately, everything went well for me, so most of my follow-up care has been through telehealth appointments.”
When patients need care for rare or complex medical conditions, they look for the latest treatments and technologies and highly experienced doctors. Those are often found at academic medical institutions, and TGH is bringing that level of care and service to Florida’s East Coast. Palm Beach County and Treasure Coast patients who need a higher level of care now have a direct connection to TGH’s academic and research resources; they don’t have to leave the state to receive world-class medical care.
TGH has been the primary teaching hospital of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine since the school was created in the early 1970s. TGH patients have access to cutting-edge academic medicine and resources, which include a wider variety of clinical trials, research studies and breakthroughs, options for advanced immunotherapy procedures, enhanced personal treatment plans, and a convenient path to complex surgeries.
Tampa General Hospital President and CEO John Couris
“As a research and academic hospital, we’re not just practicing medicine. We’re defining how it is practiced,” said John Couris, president and CEO of TGH.
More than 700 medical school residents and fellows receive specialty training at TGH in areas ranging from general internal medicine to neurosurgery. In addition, University of South Florida medical, nursing, pharmacy and physical therapy students all receive part of their training at TGH. Faculty of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine admit and care for patients at TGH, as do private practice physicians, many of whom also serve as adjunct clinical faculty at USF Health.
TGH is one of the highest-ranked hospitals in Florida by U.S. News & World Report for 2022-23 and the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine is ranked among the best grad schools in medical research for 2023. The college is committed to converting discoveries into best-practice clinical care by building meaningful, applicable research programs. It has made significant strides in increasing the quality and diversity of research, helping drive USF’s record growth in federally sponsored research and recruiting preeminent scientists who secure funding from the National Institutes of Health.
“Our sustained rise in national rankings reflects the rapidly increasing strength of our educational, research and clinical mission,” said Dr. Charles Lockwood, executive vice president of USF Health and dean of the Morsani College of Medicine. “We are now competing with the nation’s most storied and respected programs. These outstanding metrics also position us to attract the highest-caliber students and faculty, further advancing our program into the national spotlight for its outstanding education, exceptional research and world-class clinical care.”
TGH has created a framework of state-of-the-art services for patients on Florida’s East Coast, with the expertise and innovation of a preeminent academic medical center. The initiative began with an alliance with the Cancer Center of South Florida, which is now the TGH Cancer Institute. Since then, TGH has also established TGH Concierge Health, TGH Digestive Health Center (formerly TGH Gastro Group of the Palm Beaches), TGH General Surgeons of the Palm Beaches, TGH Advanced Kidney Care and TGH Imaging.
“We are the state of Florida’s hospital. We want to support, complement and augment current care in the community, so patients can get what they need without leaving the state,” Couris added. “TGH is building a patient-centered system to deliver world-class care.”
To learn more, please visit TGH.org/ThePalmBeaches.
