January / February 2013
TMH and UF&Shands Formalize Cancer Affiliation Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare and UF&Shands, the University of Florida Academic Health Center, have entered into an affiliation agreement to expand cancer care options for patients in the Big Bend region. “As one of the national leaders in cancer care, UF&Shands is an ideal partner for expanding Tallahassee Memorial’s oncology offerings,” said Mark O’Bryant, President and Chief Executive Officer of TMH. “This agreement formalizes an informal referral and support system that’s been in place by putting resources behind that relationship that will allow for things like teleconferencing and face-to-face consultations for patients,” added Tim Goldfarb, Chief Executive Officer of Shands HealthCare. “TMH patients will travel to Shands for specialized treatments, such as bone marrow transplants, while still receiving most of their care at TMH. They will move seamlessly from Tallahassee to Gainesville and back to Tallahassee, participating in a single system.”
The freestanding Tallahassee Memorial Cancer Center opened in January 2011, offering the region’s most technologically advanced radiation therapy treatments. During 2012, the facility expanded to its second story and added a spacious chemotherapy infusion area and new exam areas for Outpatient Infusion and the offices of TMH Physician Partners Cancer & Hematology Specialists, which were previously located within Tallahassee Memorial Hospital. In addition to making more services available in a single location, the new space allowed TMH to welcome a number of new oncologists and a hematologist who joined the excellent veteran team of radiation and medical oncologists serving Tallahassee Memorial Cancer Center patients. All inpatient cancer care remains in the hospital on the seventh floor Angie C. Deeb Cancer Unit, where patients and their families benefit from the multi-million-dollar facility renovation and technology advancements that occurred in 2008-2009.
Further, UF&Shands faculty will be able to enroll TMH patients in clinical trails. “This is excellent for TMH patients since distance has discouraged many from enrolling in trials”, said Tim Broeseker, M.D., oncologist and hematologist at TMH and the chair of the TMH Cancer Committee. “This will enhance our ability to access tumor boards and conferences and will strengthen our ability to collaborate while continuing to provide state-of-the-art care with the majority of that care right here in the Tallahassee Memorial Cancer Center.” The short list of benefits emerging from the TMH and UF&Shands combine are: Sharing of expertise and development of best practices to improve clinical quality and patient safety, increased access to UF’s oncology-related clinical trails, along with a focus on innovation, education and collaboration between cancer research teams and educators to benefit scientists, medical staffs and physicians-in-training and development of a collaborative physician model for the TMH cancer program.
Matt Sherer, Administrator, Tallahassee Memorial Cancer Center James Killius, M.D., Chair of the Medical Staff Executive Committee, Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Laurie Dozier, Chair of the Board of Directors, Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Mark O‚Bryant, President & CEO, Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare Kevin Behrns, M.D., the Edward R. Woodward Professor of Surgery & Chair, Department of Surgery, University of Florida College of Medicine Marvin Dewar, M.D., J.D., Chief Executive Officer, University of Florida Physicians and Senior Associate Dean, University of Florida College of Medicine Tim Goldfarb, Chief Executive Officer, Shands HealthCare Tim Broeseker, M.D., TMH Cancer & Hematology Specialists (at podium)
tallahasseeMagazine.com January–February 2013
143