The college added a number of new training experiences for students at the undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral levels over the past year. These include UF’s first undergraduate Haiti study abroad program, developed and led by faculty in the department of environmental and global health. In addition, the college was awarded a U.S. Department of Education grant to train 45 UF occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology graduate students to treat children with disabilities in early intervention programs.

A new National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism-funded training grant will support mentoring of pre and postdoctoral scientists to address problems related to alcohol and HIV. The program is co-directed by Robert Cook, M.D., M.P.H., a professor of epidemiology and internal medicine, along with colleagues at the College of Health and Human Performance and the College of Nursing.

U.S. News & World Report graduate programs, ranked in 2016, 2018 and 2019 (among AAU public universities)

Physical therapy 3

Occupational therapy 6

Biostatistics 10

Health care management 13

Public health 14

Audiology 15

Speech-language pathology 17

Clinical psychology 19

The college continues to climb in NIH funding among peer schools and is ranked ninth in NIH funding among public universities, based on the most recent data available. The rise in research awards has been accompanied by the publication of scientific findings of major significance.

These include the work of Krista Vandenborne, Ph.D., P.T., distinguished professor chair of physical therapy, who played a major role in a study of the drug edasalonexent, which was shown to slow the progression of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. She uses MRI to measure the earliest changes in muscle integrity, providing rapid feedback for clinical trials and setting the standard for measuring muscle changes in this disease.

John Lednicky, Ph.D., a research professor in environmental and global health, and colleagues made several discoveries, including evidence of Zika transmission through breast milk, a new “American” strain of chikungunya in mosquitos in Haiti, the first live case of Keystone virus in a human and detection of Madariaga virus in a Venezuelan child.

52,983 patient visits

The college provides clinical, professional and community service at the local, national and international levels. The department of clinical and health psychology provides psychological services for the entire academic health center and UF Health Physicians practices. UF HealthStreet, a community engagement program that seeks to reduce health disparities and improve access to research studies, now has more than 11,000 members from the community. Students in physical therapy, occupational therapy and clinical and health psychology offer pro bono services through Equal Access Clinics, providing care for local residents who are uninsured or underinsured.

In 2018, the department of occupational therapy launched UF SmartDriver Rehab, the area’s only service offering evaluations and interventions to improve driving skills of older adults and others who have medical conditions that may affect driving.

PHHP FY18 revenues

Grants/contracts       $36.2M

Tuition                          $12.9M

State allocation            $7.2M

Clinical care                  $7.2M

Foundation                   $1.0M

Other                               $3.1M

Total                              $67.6M