College of Medicine names chair of Emergency Medicine in Gainesville

After serving as interim chairman of the University of Florida department of emergency medicine since August, Joseph Adrian Tyndall, M.D., has been named the new chairman of emergency medicine in Gainesville, UF College of Medicine officials have announced.

Tyndall, a clinical associate professor of emergency medicine, is the first black faculty member in the college to serve as a department chairman. Tyndall is now responsible for emergency medicine's clinical operations, its student and faculty tenure and promotion processes and its residency program, which he hopes to strengthen during his tenure. The appointment was effective Jan. 1.

"Dr. Tyndall is exceptionally well-qualified for the job and one of the emerging key leaders in our institution," said Bruce Kone, M.D., dean of the College of Medicine. "It is a credit to him, our partners at Shands HealthCare and our institution that Dr. Tyndall has enthusiastically agreed to take on the many challenges ahead."

In his new position, Tyndall plans to put UF's emergency medicine programs in Gainesville on the map by continuing the college's dedication to first-class emergency care and a strong research-based residency program.

"Our growth as an institution depends on attracting outstanding residency candidates," Tyndall said. "We've seen great promise in our first graduating class and hope to continue the tradition."

The Gainesville campus began its emergency medicine residency program in 2006. The college also operates an older emergency medicine residency program on its regional campus in Jacksonville.

Tyndall first came to UF in November 2006 and served as vice chairman of the department before being named interim chairman last year. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where he completed residency training in emergency medicine and served as chief resident.

After moving to Brooklyn, N.Y., Tyndall was involved in academic emergency medicine as student clerkship director and residency program director at the Brooklyn Hospital Center. He later held faculty appointments as assistant clinical professor at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University and the State University of New York Health Sciences Center in Brooklyn, where he directed medical student and resident training in emergency medicine. He also directed clinical operations at the Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center's Level One urban trauma center in Brooklyn.

Tyndall, whose resident education and research interests include asthma, trauma and health services research, also earned a master's degree in public health from Columbia University.

"It's a privilege and an honor to serve the University of Florida and the Gainesville community," he said. "It's truly a challenge, but I feel strong work ethic and persistence yield accomplishment in the end. For me, the work is just beginning."