8th Annual SURF Military Health Conference Returns in-Person to Campus

8th Annual SURF Military Health Conference Returns in-Person to Campus

Comprising of the 59th Medical Wing and Brooke Army Medical Center, The San Antonio Military Health System (SAMHS) alongside UTSA and UT Health San Antonio are hosting in-person the eighth annual SAMHS and Universities Research Forum (SURF) June 16 at UTSA. The forum highlights the latest research and discoveries of trainees, faculty, staff, and students working to improve health outcomes and readiness of the military community.

Representing academia, military, government, and industry, SURF is one of San Antonio’s largest professional development forums focused on healthcare research. The annual event provides attendees the opportunity to present and share innovations in research practice and policy; connect with scholars and practitioners for future education; and develop research and policy, collaboratively. This year features 29 podium and 49 poster presentations. The organizers also welcome BioMedSA and the San Antonio Medical Foundation to the planning committee.

“We celebrate the return of SURF to our campus as military health and readiness continues to be vital components of this country’s national security portfolio,” said Jaclyn Shaw, interim Vice President for Research, Economic Development, and Knowledge Enterprise at UTSA. “We have seen SURF grow from a regional conference to one with national visibility, serving as a forum where investigations and discoveries can be shared to advance the health ad wellness of our services members and their families”.

The keynote address will be given by Ambassador Deborah Birx, M.D. US Army (COL Ret.), of the George W. Bush Institute, where she serves as a senior fellow. Having spent her career serving the United States, first as an Army Colonel and later, Birx has managed some of the most high-profile and influential programs at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Department of State. As a world-renowned medical expert and leader, she has focused her work on clinical and basic
immunology, infectious disease, pandemic preparedness, vaccine research, and global health. Most recently, Dr. Birx served as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator. In 2014, Dr. Birx became an Ambassador-at-Large, when she assumed the role of the Coordinator of the U.S. Government Activities to Combat HIV/ AIDS and U.S. Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy. In this role, she oversaw the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in history, as well as all U.S. Government engagement with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Plenary speakers feature Elise Huszar, M.B.A. President and CEO of The Geneva Foundation, which
advances military medicine through innovative scientific research toward the common goal of advancing military medicine; and COL Andrew P. Cap, M.D., Ph.D. Director of Research for the US Army Institute of Surgical Research, where he, along with a staff of over 270 and a budget of over $40M, executes the DoD’s primary intramural research program in combat casualty care.

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet with exhibitors including the Air Force Medical Service Library-Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center, BioMedSA, CamnTech, Inc., The Geneva Foundation, Henry Jackson Foundation (HJF), The Metis Foundation, Summa Bio-Solutions, Inc., and the UTSA Brain Health Consortium.
This year’s research themes reflect the current needs of the military community which include:

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Register for SURF 2022.

Platinum sponsors include the San Antonio Medical Foundation, UTSA, and UTSA Health San Antonio. The Southwest Texas Regional Advisory Council is this year’s bronze sponsor.

The organizing committee wishes to thank the institutional leadership for their continued support: Bernard Arulanandam of UTSA; Byron C. Hepburn, associate vice president and director of the Military Health Institute at UT Health San Antonio; Col. Kristen Beals, M.D., vice commander of the 59th Medical Wing; and Col. Sean Joseph Hipp, M.D., M.S., chief medical officer of Brooke Army Medical Center.