Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a complex neuro-immunological disease with a rapidly changing therapeutic profile and advancing research.  Patients afflicted with MS are at times inappropriately managed, and symptomatic treatment can be frustrating for neurologists without additional training specific to the MS field.  Neurologists wishing to treat MS patients must therefore receive extensive and focused training in MS-specific care in order to effectively manage the disease. To this end, the USF MS Center is committed to the early diagnosis and ongoing treatment of MS through leading-edge, multi-disciplinary approaches, including the training of the future MS workforce. Our Center serves a large MS population of approximately 2,500 patients, coming from central Florida and the Greater Tampa Bay area population of more than 5 million. Our National MS Society-accredited Center is well situated to provide MS fellowship training, as it offers comprehensive care for MS patients through on-site neuropsychiatry/neuropsychology services, occupational and physical therapy with additional accreditation in treating MS patients, vestibular rehabilitation, urology services, EMG-guided botulinum toxin injections, Neuro-ophthalmology clinic, and a state-of-the-art neuroimaging facility. Fellows participating in our program would therefore build a solid foundation for managing a busy, MS-specific clinic under direct supervision. Additionally, we conduct MS clinical research, with multiple active studies ongoing, providing the Fellow with the unique opportunity to learn in-depth about trial design, patient recruitment, and regulatory/compliance requirements of conducting clinical research, while providing the opportunity to learn about the newest therapeutics in the MS pipeline. 

With the recent advances in understanding Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) spectrum disorders and Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein (MOG) antibody-associated disorders as demyelinating diseases of the CNS, it is important for the Fellow to also gain a solid foundation in understanding and treating these disorders for a focus in neuro-immunology. A sizeable percentage of our patient population at the USF Comprehensive MS Center includes those afflicted with NMO, MOG, and other neuro-inflammatory disorders. The Center also serves as the key recipient for outpatient referrals coming from Tampa General Hospital, a tertiary-care hospital and the largest teaching hospital in the region, which has been named the #1 hospital in Tampa Bay by U.S. News and World Report.

The Fellowship is a 1-year, primarily clinical training program, with the majority (greater than 60%) of the Fellow’s time spent in supervised, direct clinical care at the USF MS Center. The Fellow rotates with several MS-specialized attending neurologists in clinic to gain well-rounded training in providing direct care to patients with MS and related disorders. To meet key objectives and learning outcomes, the fellowship program also includes: 

• Clinical research participation, management, and design
• Opportunity to design and publish the Fellow's own research in peer-reviewed journals, with mentor oversight
• Participation at national/international MS annual meetings, including poster presentations
• Regular evaluations of MS Fellow and review with Fellowship Program Director
• Selective rotations through neuro-ophthalmology, urology, spasticity clinic, interventional pain, physical and occupational therapy, speech therapy, vestibular rehabilitation, neuropsychology, and other MS-related referral centers
• Opportunity to lecture to USF neurology residents and third-year medical students on MS and related topics
• Opportunity to participate in direct clinical teaching of rotating PGY-3 neurology residents and 3^rd-year medical students in MS clinic
• Attendance at:
  • weekly neuroimmunology course involvement at the PhD level
  • weekly Department of Neurology Grand Rounds
  • bi-weekly Neuroimmunology Case Conference to discuss complex patient cases and collaborate on diagnostic and treatment plans
  • bi-weekly Clinical Research Candidate meeting for patient recruitment
  • bi-weekly ACTRIMS Fellows Didactic Webinar Series nationally
  • monthly NMSS Clinical Fellow Complex Case Webinar Series nationally

Unfortunately, at this time our Fellowship Program is unable to sponsor J1 visas. 

Luis Compres Brugal, MD:  Joined Baptist Health South Florida, Miami Neuroscience Institute, Multiple Sclerosis Center in Miami, FL

Ribal Haddad, MD: Currently Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Clinic at Carle Health, Department of Neurology in Champaign, IL

Zuleyma Toledo-Nieves, MD: Joined private practice at Lakeland Regional Health, Department of Neurology in Lakeland, FL

Carrie Downey, DO:  Currently Director of the Comprehensive Multiple Sclerosis Clinic at Northern Light Neurology in Bangor, ME

Crystal Dixon, MD:  Currently Co-Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Clinic at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Department of Neurology, in Boca Raton, FL

Demetrios Konstas, MD: Currently Medical Director of the VA MS Center of Excellence at James A Haley VA in Tampa, FL

Natalie Moreo, MD:  Currently Associate Program Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship and Assistant Professor of Neurology at USF in Tampa, FL

Chetan Gandhy, MD:  Joined faculty at USF with a dual appointment at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center. Served as the medical director of the VA MS Center of Excellence.

Katherine Standley, DO: Currently Medical Director of Clinical Neuroimmunology Research at a biotechnology company

Derrick Robertson, MD: Professor of Neurology, Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Division, and Program Director of the Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship at USF in Tampa, FL.