Greetings and welcome to the winter edition of Academic Matters.

Exciting things are happening at the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville. As we continue to move medicine forward, we do so with a refreshed vision to transform lives through high-quality care, innovation, discovery and education. I am honored to be on that journey with you to advance medicine and create a healthier community.

In February, the downtown campus hosted Vision Fest. It was an opportunity for David Nelson, MD, senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida and president of UF Health, to speak about the future of UF Health. Attendees heard from Leigh Neumayer, MD, and Kevin Green, MD, who spoke about the great things happening here at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville.

The theme, Life Transformed, is built on 11 key values that all members of our organization should exemplify as we provide high-quality care to patients and educate the next generation of health care leaders. You can read more about the vision in this issue.

We are proud to have opened UF Health Emergency & Urgent Care Center – Baymeadows. This is Jacksonville’s first combined emergency room and urgent care center housed under one roof. The facility received its first patient March 7, and has all the advantages of an urgent care center as well as all the expertise of a hospital emergency room. The Baymeadows location is one of three EUCs to open its doors in the city. UF Health Emergency & Urgent Care Center facilities at Lane Avenue and New Kings are set to open later this year.

Last year, UF Health faculty had the opportunity to experience the inaugural Women in Medicine and Science Conference. This past fall, our WIMS leadership team held listening sessions, with both women and men faculty participation, to raise awareness and identify issues that women face in health care. From these listening sessions, along with issues identified in the AAMC Standpoint Faculty Engagement Survey, action plans will be developed to address some of the challenges faced by our women faculty as well as our male colleagues.

On April 28, the second annual WIMS Conference will be held on the UF Health Jacksonville campus. We are proud to open the conference to members of the Duval County Medical Society this year.

I am happy to announce that James G. Cain, MD, MBA, FAAP, D.ABA, has accepted the position of chair for the department of anesthesiology. Cain is a board-certified pediatric and adult anesthesiologist with the American Board of Anesthesiologists and Pediatric Anesthesia and Critical Care Medicine. He completed his residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and his fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital. He will bring years of experience and expertise to our campus and we are looking forward to welcoming him in June.

The legacy of Leon L. Haley Jr., MD, lives on through every faculty member, resident and fellow who had the opportunity to know him. As we continue to be #HaleyStrong, we look forward to the opening of the Haley Student Lounge in the spring of this year.

The lounge will serve as a dedicated space for medical students to recharge in a nonclinical setting without having to leave the hospital. As dean, Dr. Haley was instrumental in ensuring students received the best possible training and education. This will honor his dedication to undergraduate medical education and the well-being of all trainees on our campus.