Thanks in part to the dedication and hard work of a USF Health researcher, patients with Parkinson’s disease may soon spend less time suffering from the debilitating symptoms of the disease.
Earlier this month, the FDA approved a new medication for Parkinson’s patients based partly on the findings of a large study led by Robert A. Hauser, MD, MBA, professor of Neurology and director of the USF Health Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Center at the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine.
Dr. Hauser’s research discoveries have led to a significant improvement in the quality of life for Parkinson’s patients – but it’s also a wonderful example of how patients benefit from academic medicine, and why patients do better in such centers.
In fact, studies show that patients have up to a when treated at an academic medical center.
That’s because academic medical centers have more resources. Their expert physicians collaborate with experts in other medical specialties, so a given patient is often evaluated by a multidisciplinary team with deep expertise because these physicians have access to the latest medical research, treatments and procedures. And academic physicians are especially adept at taking care of the most complex cases and unusual conditions.
In Tampa Bay, the academic difference is reflected in hospital rankings. Our faculty physician leaders help propel our primary teaching partner, Tampa General Hospital, to be ranked the #1 hospital in Tampa Bay for many years by U.S. News & World Report.
That’s great news – but still, those of us in academic medical centers need to do a better job of explaining to the public why patients – and society – benefit from academic medicine.
That’s why I’d like to see more stories like this one from AAMC News Today. Reporter Stacy Weiner did a great job of showing these benefits in her July 30 article, “.”
Weiner researched examples from five academic medical centers around the country, showing that:
· At the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, physicians employed an experimental gene therapy so that an 11-year-old boy with a rare form of congenital deafness could hear for the first time.
· A team of researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are using new surgical techniques to allow a patient’s brain to pass signals to help operate a new type of prosthetic limb, allowing for more complete and natural movement.
· Researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons have developed a technique to create an entire “glove” of bioengineered skin and soon hope to use these techniques to improve skin grafting treatments for burn patients.
· At the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, researchers have documented using spinal cord stimulation to treat paralysis and weakness in the arms patients who have suffered a stroke.
· At the University of Chicago Medicine, researchers have developed a blood test that can show whether a pregnant woman is at risk for life-threatening preeclampsia.
These examples from around the country are inspiring, and I’m proud to share some of the high-impact research and life-saving care happening here at USF Health. It shows how academic medicine is dedicated to Making Life Better.
-- Video by Allison Long, USF Health Communications