Hamilton Eye Institute
Program: Hamilton Eye Institute
Position: Consistently ranks among the top 10 providers across the nation in ophthalmic clinical care
Leader: Barrett G. Haik, MD, FACS, chair, UTHSC Department of Ophthalmology and Hamilton Professor in Ophthalmology
Mission: “To prevent blindness through patient care, research and education … the institute is poised to fulfill this mission for Tennessee and the nation over the coming decades.”
Founded: 2004 – Dr. Haik first envisioned HEI nearly 15 years ago and has served as its leader since the institute opened.
Current Team: 28 physicians and eye specialists
Core Strength: As a premier eye center providing an advanced level of vision care, the institute’s team manages more than 40,000 outpatient visits annually including off-site clinic locations at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center, The Regional Medical Center at Memphis and Methodist University Hospital. The faculty trains 12 residents, three fellows and more than 150 medical students each year, as well as additional students from other universities who participate in elective clerkships at the Hamilton Eye Institute.
Unique UTHSC Resources: Through the UTHSC Telehealth Network, HEI physicians collaboratively treat and manage patients in 16 countries including Brazil, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Ireland, Jordan, Lebanon, Mexico, Morocco, Philippines, Venezuela, and Vietnam via bimonthly live teleconferences and Cyber-Sight® telecommunication mentorship.
Musculoskeletal
Program: Musculoskeletal
Position: The UT-Campbell Clinic Department of Orthopaedic Surgery is one of the nation’s leaders in clinical practice and training specialists in sports medicine, pediatric orthopedics, general orthopedics, total joint replacement, foot and ankle, trauma, hand, and spine orthopedics.
The UTHSC Division of Connective Tissue Diseases (Rheumatology) is world renowned for its discoveries related to arthritis and connective tissue diseases.
Mission: To be recognized as a leader in teaching and research in musculoskeletal disease and to provide unsurpassed patient care.
Founded: 1924 – orthopedics; 1972 – connective tissue diseases
Leaders: S. Terry Canale, MD, chair, UT-Campbell Clinic Department of Orthopaedic Surgery; L. Darryl Quarles, MD, associate dean for research and head of the Bone and Mineral Research Team; and Arnold Postlethwaite, MD, chief, Division of Rheumatology
Focus: Research being conducted by the Division of Connective Tissue Diseases (in the Department of Medicine) is funded by 12 grants from federal sources that total $2.6 million annually and span an array of basic and translational topics including genetic control of arthritis, osteoporosis and fibrosis, regulation of type II collagen autoimmunity in RA, matrix metalloproteinase, chondrocyte biology, monocyte transdifferentiation to fibroblasts, immune tolerance and effect of interrupted sleep on autoimmune arthritis.
Substantial federal and private funding has consistently supported research in the Division of Connective Tissue Diseases (Rheumatology) on the elucidation of the structure and biology of collagens (the major structural proteins of the body) and their role in arthritic and fibrotic diseases. This large body of research has been translated from the bench and preclinical animal models to the clinic with recent testing of novel collagen-based therapies in clinical trials in two autoimmune musculoskeletal diseases, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic sclerosis (Scleroderma).
Bone-related research has focused on epidemiology of osteoporosis and fractures in patients with spinal cord injury and mechanisms by which kidney diseases affect bone metabolism. To widen the scope of research in musculoskeletal diseases, UTHSC recently set aside funds to recruit and support an accomplished scientist through an endowed chair (The Hyde Chair in Musculoskeletal Disease) who will bring additional unique strengths to the musculoskeletal research enterprise.
Current Team: UT-Campbell Clinic specialists include 41 physicians and more than 40 residents who provide clinical care through more than 9,500 clinic visits per month. The Division of Connective Tissue Diseases/Rheumatology is composed of six adult and two pediatric rheumatologists, six PhD faculty and three fellows engaged in research and/or clinical practice. The Bone and Mineral Research team from the Department of Medicine is composed of five scientists.
Core Strength: Campbell Clinic is recognized as a world leader in sports medicine, pediatric orthopedics, joint replacement, orthopedic oncology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and surgery of the hand, hip, foot, knee, shoulder and spine. For more than 100 years, Campbell Clinic has been a leading figure in orthopedics, a course immediately set by its founder, Dr. Willis C. Campbell when he opened his clinic in 1909. Dr. Campbell organized the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at UT in Memphis, established the first orthopaedic residency program in 1924, and co-founded the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS), serving as its first president.
New Initiatives: Dr. Quarles and his team have recently submitted a stimulus package application for funding support of the Hyde Chair as well as for the creation of the Musculoskeletal Orthopedics Dental Research Institute (MODI) at UTHSC. “We have a unique opportunity to establish an interdisciplinary program in musculoskeletal diseases that brings together several groups from within and outside the university to use the stimulus package funds to their greatest benefit by developing a self-sustaining program funded by research grants, contracts, and philanthropic efforts in the community,” Dr. Quarles said. “In the proposal, we presented a new organizational structure and business model that bridges various UTHSC departments, InMotion and Bioworks, bringing them into a functional consortium to develop synergistic research initiatives and private-public partnership that can serve as a model for supporting other research programs at UTHSC and in the community.”