Everyone wants the best possible care for themselves and their families but sometimes the choices can seem confusing. When a diagnosis is life-threatening and complex, the choice becomes clearer. You want an academic health system behind you every step of the way. But what does that mean?
“Academic medical care means the best possible clinical care in an environment that integrates education, patient care, cutting-edge technologies and groundbreaking research, with access to medical breakthroughs not available elsewhere,” said Dr. Peggy Duggan, executive vice president and chief physician executive, Tampa General Hospital (TGH). A 2019 study published in JAMA, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association, found that patients treated at a major teaching hospital have up to 20 percent higher odds of survival, compared with those treated at nonteaching hospitals.
Residents in the Tampa Bay region, and across Florida, have access to one of the largest academic health institutions in the nation, forged through the long alliance between TGH and the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine at the University of South Florida. This unique collaboration, which began in the early 1970s, has driven superior patient care, research, education and medical advancement. In 2025, Tampa General is strengthening its affiliation with USF Health, investing more than $162 million in talent, Graduate Medical Education programs, academics and research.
TGH is the primary teaching hospital for the USF Health Morsani College
of Medicine. Faculty from the school admit and care for patients at TGH and actively participate in almost every facet of the hospital’s specialized institutes. More than 700 resident physicians and medical fellows receive specialty training at the academic health system in areas ranging from general internal medicine to neurosurgery, in addition to training medical students, nurses and students in specialized programs such as physical therapy and radiology.
Here are some of the ways that this partnership can significantly improve a patient’s quality of life.
SCIENCE & RESEARCH
The TGH | USF Health Office of Clinical Research participates in an array of clinical trials that allow TGH to offer patients access to advanced therapies and technologies that they might not have otherwise. When no other alternatives exist, clinical trials provide options, including close monitoring of clinical care, increased clinic visits, frequent testing and potentially, free access to diagnostics and therapeutics. Research integrates seamlessly into patients’ multidisciplinary care teams.
Close to 150 physician investigators are involved in 690 clinical investigations of drugs, devices and procedures. The office is accredited by the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs, certifying adherence to rigorous standards.
COLLABORATION & MULTIDISCIPLINARY CARE
TGH Behavioral Health Hospital
Named one of the first such teaching hospitals in Florida, the new state-of-the-art TGH Behavioral Health Hospital, a joint venture with Lifepoint Health, also collaborates with the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine. Physicians within USF Health’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences will deliver a full complement of inpatient and outpatient care in dedicated units for pediatrics, adolescents, adults and geriatrics. Faculty psychiatrists will teach its medical students and resident physicians at the hospital.
Tampa Medical & Research District
TGH and the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine have strategically partnered with the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, and other innovative leaders in health care and life sciences, to establish the Tampa Medical & Research District. It is expected to generate more than $8.3 billion in annual economic impact for the region and the state, as it continues to expand. The district is anchored by TGH’s 3-million-square-foot campus and the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine’s campus. Spanning more than 1,500 acres, in and around downtown Tampa, it also includes the USF Health Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation and the TGH-USF Health Precision Medicine Biorepository.
The growing district plays a vital role in fostering collaboration and innovation.
In addition to the TGH Behavioral Health Hospital, the district includes TGH’s freestanding, 80-bed acute rehabilitation hospital and a freestanding emergency department.
“As one of the nation’s leading academic health systems affiliated with a university, TGH’s experienced teams of doctors and scientists collaborate on providing advanced patient care through pioneering research and the latest technology,” Duggan said. “This level of expertise can help many patients improve their quality of life and even achieve a full recovery.”
For information on TGH’s Academic Difference, visit TGH.org/Academic.
*University-based program