University of Florida Student Health Care Center names new director

Guy Nicolette, M.D., has been selected as the new director of the University of Florida Student Health Care Center.

During an extensive national search, Nicolette emerged as the best candidate to lead the center because he is a highly skilled leader and a talented, compassionate physician, said Michael L. Good, M.D., dean of the College of Medicine.

“Dr. Nicolette is laser focused on optimizing the health of our UF students, and quickly diagnosing and treating disease when it occurs in individuals and in populations,” Good said.

Nicolette has served as the center’s interim director since June 2013.

One of his key priorities going forward is to look for ways to get more students to use the Student Health Care Center. While 52 percent of students use its services in a typical year, Nicolette said boosting that number will make for a healthier campus.

“We really want to be the student’s primary care doctor away from home,” he said.

Other programs that are popular and effective will continue, including a scheduling system that allows for same-day appointments. Nicolette will also work with university officials to optimize the physical environment of the Student Health Care Center, which is housed in a historic 1931 building originally known as The Infirmary. Some parts of the health center, including the lobby, second-floor waiting area, and pharmacy, recently underwent extensive renovations. Nicolette hopes that someday opportunities will present for a new facility to be located or built.

Nicolette’s detailed knowledge of the Student Health Care Center’s operations was impressive, said Joseph Glover, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. Nicolette also showed a strong grasp of students’ ongoing medical needs as well as more immediate situations such as a response plan if a new flu strain happens to appear on campus, Glover said.

“He is an ideal combination of the caring physician with an administrative competency needed to address the issues of a community of 50,000 students,” Glover said.

David Kratzer, vice president for student affairs, said he and his staff are extremely pleased Nicolette was chosen. More than 5,000 students a year go to counseling or get help with mental health issues, Kratzer said, and the coordination between Student Affairs and the Student Health Care Center has been seamless. Student Affairs oversees the Counseling and Wellness Center.

Outside the health center, Nicolette isn’t slowing down. He plans to stay on as a physician for the football, lacrosse, and men’s tennis teams. He also will continue as an assistant professor in the department of community health and family medicine in the College of Medicine, where he has been director of the Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship Program since January 2010.

Nicolette, who first joined UF as an assistant professor in 1996, has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Southwestern University and a medical degree from the University of Texas College of Medicine. He completed his residency in family medicine and then a fellowship in sports medicine at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Among his regional and national appointments, Nicolette currently serves on the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine Fellowship Committee and the Musculoskeletal Ultrasound subcommittee.

The Student Health Care Center had 20,919 patients between July 1, 2013 and June 30, 2014. Its staff includes a group of 25 physicians, advanced registered nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants; 58 registered nurses and health support personnel; and an 11-member psychiatry staff. It offers an array of primary and specialty care, including immunizations, an on-site pharmacy, nutrition services, sexual health services, sports medicine and women’s health services.