Tampa City Councilman Mike Suarez tours FORE
On Wednesday June 5, 2013, Derek Pupello, CEO of FORE, gave a tour of the facility to city councilman Mike Suarez. Throughout the tour, the two discussed the need for funding, research, and education in order to create easy access and excellent care for physicians and patients throughout Tampa Bay.
“The great thing about FORE is that we’ve been able to publish a tremendous amount of research and we’ve educated thousands of healthcare professionals through our conferences and our surgical training lab. This has allowed us to make a substantial impact on orthopaedic medicine around the world from the work we are doing right here in Tampa” said Pupello.
The facility’s location offers easy access to University of South Florida orthopaedic residents to do all of their anatomical dissection courses in the surgical training center. Additionally, all third-year USF orthopaedic residents spend three months in the FORE biomechanics lab doing research.
FORE, which is a non-profit organization founded in 1999, has 22 employees that are focused on carrying out FORE’s research and education programs. Many of FORE’s programs are done in collaboration with the Florida Orthopaedic Institute (FOI) which is also headquartered in Tampa. FORE has recently begun developing intellectual property that has emerged from their research. This is an exciting new endeavor that will soon be launched as a separate technology accelerator company. One successful technology could not only benefit medicine, but could make a positive impact on Tampa’s economy in terms of local job creation.
City councilman Suarez offered advice and possible opportunities for research funding while encouraging Pupello to continue leading FORE in the direction that is best for the community.
“We need companies and organizations who are leaders, who know how to connect our community, and who can create jobs. You’re really doing something great here” said Suarez.
ABOUT FOI
The Florida Orthopaedic Institute is one of the nation’s top centers of orthopedic care, education, and research. FOI serves the greater Tampa Bay area and is home to dozens of highly trained physicians specializing in a variety of orthopedics services.
For more information on FOI visit their website here.
