Deborah German, Vice President for Health Affairs & Dean College of Medicine, University of Central Florida

In a conversation with Invest:, Deborah German, vice president for health affairs and dean of the University of Central Florida College of Medicine, discussed the college’s approach to innovative solutions in infectious diseases, utilizing artificial intelligence to improve efficiencies and patient outcomes, and how the region is positioning itself to become not only the happiest place on Earth, but the healthiest, too.

What have been some of the key highlights or achievements of the UCF College of Medicine in the past one to two years?

We have grown and continue to grow at a pace that is exceeding expectations, not only here in Florida but nationally. Our College of Medicine and our UCF Academic Health Sciences Center have three missions: research, patient care, and education. In the area of research, our scientists are achieving higher levels of success, and our focus is on infectious diseases. We also have a growing population health unit, and their ability to get NIH grant funding is extraordinary. Other areas of research excellence include neuroscience, cancer, cardiac, and technology use in healthcare.

In the area of patient care, our clinics are full. We’re having to hire more doctors to take care of patients. Our hospital is expanding and has been named one of two national innovation hubs. We’re already doing work with artificial intelligence that has been alpha-tested in our hospital and is being beta-tested nationwide. We are also creating programs that provide care to the underserved, a key part of our mission. Our patient care mission is growing and thriving, and our education mission is taking off like a rocket. 

How is technology being integrated into the college’s educational and research programs?

People don’t realize that AI is part of the fabric of our lives. When you work with young people, AI becomes part of the fabric of what you do. Our medical school curriculum’s learning modules now use AI and virtual reality; we’re using them to educate more efficiently and effectively. Our teams have been recognized and are now giving presentations at places like Penn and Emory because others are noticing that we’re taking the tool and using it to educate our medical students . In our hospital, AI is helping physicians with note-writing. Over the last 30 or 40 years, medicine has gone from your doctor looking at you, talking to you, hearing you, and maybe taking a few notes to your doctor with their side to you typing into a computer.  Using AI and other technology, we can generate a note virtually. That allows the doctor to spend all their time with you. When they’re done, they can read a note that AI has generated and correct it if needed. We’ve estimated that AI saves three to four hours of computer time a day per provider. I like to say Orlando is known as the happiest place on Earth, and based on what we’re doing, it will one day be known as the healthiest place on Earth.

How does the college engage with the local community to improve health outcomes and provide education?

One of the missions of a medical school is to help people who cannot get care and education. In the education area, we have pipeline programs that we use to go into parts of our community where youngsters don’t have the same level of role models for education and professional careers. We also have programs that bring them to medical school during the summer to inspire them about future careers in healthcare. 

We are also putting the finishing touches on a mobile clinic that will help take care of the homeless and transient individuals who have trouble getting healthcare. The mobile clinic will feature nursing, physical therapy, and medical students working together. It can drive to underserved areas so patients don’t have to come to us. We can go to them. The mobile unit will provide vaccines and preventative care and manage chronic illnesses for people who just can’t get to a doctor and likely don’t have insurance.

What role do advanced simulation technologies play in the training of medical students?

We are leaders in that area. We wanted our program to be state-of-the-art, using technology and simulation to improve education. One of the things we did early on was to partner with Apple. They built specialized computer screens over our dissection tables in the Anatomy Lab that could show CT scans and MRIs and also send students out to the internet. This allowed the students to look up right from their dissection table and access all the medical knowledge and scans of their cadavers. That hadn’t taken place before at any medical school. Fifteen years ago, our students were the very first to get iPads, which allowed them to have access to our library and medical knowledge anywhere, anytime, on any device. In our Clinical Skills and Simulation Center, students learn and practice patient care using computerized manikins that can be programmed to exhibit specific symptoms. We continue to advance our use of technology, which has advanced medical education.

How does the College of Medicine incorporate global health perspectives into its curriculum and research efforts?

Our infectious disease group has a proposal for UCF to become a global center for infectious disease surveillance and research in Orlando.  Because everyone travels here, Orlando is the perfect place to monitor infectious diseases. At the College of Medicine, we study malaria, dengue fever, COVID-19, and all the diseases present worldwide. The future of monitoring global wellness, especially in infectious diseases, is in Orlando.

What is your vision for the future of the College of Medicine, and what are some of the key goals you hope to achieve over the next five to 10 years?

We are growing and are an economic engine for our community. We bring to the community a highly educated workforce. In addition to the MD program with 480 medical students and 620 residents and fellows, we have up to 3,000 undergraduates studying biomedical sciences and biotechnology. Our focus for the future remains improving health for all.  

What are some of the challenges the college faces?

For our enterprise, we have two challenges. One is resources. We address those challenges by creating partnerships. The other challenge is data. If you’re going to be part of the future, using technology and artificial intelligence to create solutions,  the key factor is having data. Many businesses either need data, which we can provide through our partnerships, or they have data and need a partner committed to technology and the health and well-being of our community to make that data actionable.