Oluwaferanmi Okanlami, M.D., M.S., the director of student accessibility and accommodation services at the University of Michigan, virtually joined the UF College of Medicine in a dean’s grand rounds conversation April 10 to share his story and provide insights on how to improve accessibility for communities in relation to health care. By actively thinking about the ways we can embrace accessibility for people with varying levels of mobility, hearing, sight and more, he said, we can suggest improvements and hold people — including ourselves — accountable to provide better opportunities.

Several projects at the UF College of Medicine improve the ability for groups of people with different skills to become involved as members of the health care work force, such as Project SEARCH, and increase access to care among vulnerable community members, such at the UF Mobile Outreach Clinic and Equal Access Clinic.

Donna Parker, M.D., the UF College of Medicine associate dean for diversity and health equity, said Okanlami’s passion for accessibility and teaching others serves as an inspiration for the UF Medicine community members who are also interested in serving others.

For many students and professionals experiencing pervasive self-doubt in the health care field, the name commonly given to this phenomenon reinforces a false belief that they are frauds or imposters undeserving of the success they’ve built. This experience can affect anyone, especially during times of immense professional change, like graduating from medical school and beginning residencies or internships — something thousands of students from the University of Florida College of Medicine and around the world will experience in the coming months.

In reality, having imposter syndrome is a disconnect in how you view yourself versus how your friends, family and colleagues view you, said Jennifer Hunt, M.D., M.Ed., chief of staff for UF Health Shands and chair of the department of pathology, immunology and laboratory medicine at the College of Medicine.

“Our medical students are about to go into residencies, and they will step into being the least experienced person on the team. My advice is to remember that you are supposed to be the least experienced person on the team. Give yourself grace in those moments of learning; embrace the experience of being new at something, and try to enjoy a period of discomfort from the tremendous growth," she said.

When Tammy Williams, M.H.A., and Scott Sumner, M.B.A., were appointed as chief operating officer and chief financial officer for the University of Florida College of Medicine in late 2021, they were given one primary assignment: review the college’s financial and administrative infrastructure to understand opportunities to align governance, increase operational efficiencies, enhance financial stewardship and better serve the departments and support the college’s growth and goals as outlined by its five-year strategic plan.

To fulfill this need, project champions Williams and Sumner, along with project manager Mindy Pulliam, who works as the assistant director of operations for the college, embarked on a comprehensive evaluation of current structures and systems with assistance from Huron Consulting.

After a monthslong review informed by the college community, with a 91% participation rate from finance and administration stakeholders, the assessment process resulted in recommendations to more efficiently and effectively deliver administrative support services to departments in alignment with the college’s priorities. The resulting plan, called ELEVATE, or Efficient Leverage Engagement Value Align Trust Empower, launched April 20 and will lead to opportunities to improve efficiency and optimization of budget management, while emphasizing a sense of unity among the college community.