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UF residents and fellows honored at 2012 graduation

Many will stay in Jacksonville to continue their training, take a UF faculty position or enter private practice

More than 100 residents and fellows walked across the stage on Wednesday, celebrating their graduation from their respective programs at the University of Florida College of Medicine-Jacksonville.

But about a quarter of them aren’t leaving campus, which speaks volumes about the quality of the educational components at the college and about Jacksonville, said Daniel R. Wilson, M.D., Ph.D., vice president for health affairs and dean of the UF College of Medicine-Jacksonville.

Nine graduates have been hired on as faculty at the UF College of Medicine-Jacksonville and 11 more will be completing fellowships on campus in a variety of subspecialties. Another three are staying on as administrative chief residents.

Of those who will not be going on to further training and have decided on a destination, 40 percent will be working in Jacksonville and two out of every three will stay in Florida. The top deciding factor of where new physicians end up working is where they complete their residency or fellowship, and those numbers hold true with this class.

"The outstanding physicians and faculty provide exceptional training for our residents and fellows, many of whom will continue their careers in academic medicine here or practice in the community to continue to serve in Jacksonville," Wilson said.

Ten doctors also graduated from the Shands Jacksonville Pharmacy Residency Program. Of the seven who have decided their next career move, four will be staying in Jacksonville, including two who were hired on by Shands.

With new specialty programs graduating physicians this year and several other programs added over the past six years, the auditorium is getting more and more crowded every year, said Constance K. Haan, M.D., M.S., senior associate dean of educational affairs and director of UF’s graduate medical education programs in Jacksonville.

"That is a great celebration of the growth of the educational environment on our campus," Haan said.

As part of Wednesday’s ceremony, the college also announced the recipients of several annual awards:

Louis S. Russo Jr. Award for Outstanding Professionalism in Medicine: Resident award, James Christopher Cunningham, D.O., diagnostic radiology; Faculty award: Joseph J. Tepas III, M.D., surgery

College of Medicine Excellence in Student Education: Resident award, Steven S. Dalati, M.D., obstetrics and gynecology; Faculty award, Scott L. Silliman, M.D., neurology

Edwards Jelk Outstanding Resident Clinician Award: Tuan Truong, M.D., general surgery

Rosilie O. Saffos Outstanding Resident Teacher Award: Eric Christian Stiefel, M.D., orthopaedic surgery

Ann Harwood-Nuss Resident Advocate Award: Emily M. Christman, M.D., medicine

Featured Faculty

Scott L. Silliman, MD

Scott L. Silliman, MD

Professor
Medical Director, Comprehensive Stroke Program; Program Director, Vascular Neurology Fellowship