News Notes – Fall 2023
Celebrating the achievements of UF College of Medicine alumni

Maria Elena Bottazzi, PhD ’95, has been named the 2023 recipient of the Vilcek-Gold Award for Humanism in Healthcare. The award, a shared initiative of the Vilcek Foundation and the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, recognizes an outstanding immigrant health care professional in the United States and honors the positive impact that accessible and humanistic care has on public health. Bottazzi serves as co-director for the Center for Vaccine Development at Texas Children’s Hospital and associate dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine.

Adam J. Bruggeman, MD ’12, FAAOS, FAOA, has been named chair of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Advocacy Council. In this role, he will lead efforts to advocate for the orthopaedic community before federal and state legislative, regulatory and executive agencies. Bruggeman is an orthopaedic spine surgeon at the Texas Spine Care Center in San Antonio and an adjunct faculty member at the University of Texas Health Science Center.

Sunil Joshi, MD ’98, an allergist and immunologist, has been named chief health officer for the city of Jacksonville by Mayor-elect Donna Deegan. In this role, Joshi will work collaboratively to improve housing and rental affordability, health insurance education and other preventive health initiatives. Joshi also served as the former president of the Duval County Medical Society, the Duval County Medical Society Foundation and the UF Medical Alumni Board of Directors.

After serving as senior associate dean for medical education and academic affairs for nearly 20 years, Alma Littles, MD ’86, has been named interim dean of the Florida State University College of Medicine. Littles was also recently named vice chair of the Council of Florida Medical School Deans, a collaboration among Florida’s 10 public and private medical schools.

Brian C. Taschner, MD ’98, has been named president of the UF Medical Alumni Board of Directors for the 2023-25 term. A Fort Myers cardiologist, he focuses his clinical practice on the effects of lifestyle changes on cardiovascular disease. He has served in leadership roles with various professional organizations, including a six-year term on the board of the Florida chapter of the American College of Cardiology and a stint as president of the Southwest Florida chapter of the American Heart Association.

Marcy Verduin, MD ’00, the associate dean for students and a tenured professor of psychiatry at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine, has been named first vice president of the American College of Psychiatrists. In this role, she will work with other board members to provide leadership and oversight for the college’s programs and future directions. Verduin also serves as chair-elect of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Group on Student Affairs and book editor for the Journal of Psychiatric Practice.
Update: Dr. Verduin was installed as national chair of the AAMC’s Group on Student Affairs during the Learn Serve Lead conference Nov. 3-7, 2023.