Wave Magazine Online Jacksonville University News Hub
The Jacksonville University Board of Trustees has unanimously elected Mayo Clinic in Florida CEO Gianrico Farrugia to the board, effective April 29, 2016.
In addition to his leadership role at Mayo, the premier medical destination center in the Southeast, Dr. Farrugia is President of the American Neurogastroenterology and Motility Society. He recently co-authored “Think Big, Start Small, Move Fast: A Blueprint for Transformation from the Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation,” a book highlighting the need for change in the delivery of health care. Dr. Farrugia is also Director of the Enteric NeuroScience Program for Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minn.
“Dr. Farrugia is well known as one of the premier healthcare thinkers in this country,” said JU President Tim Cost. “He brings an important perspective to our university, especially considering our continuing ambitions in medical education. In his relatively short time in Jacksonville, he has already established himself well as an important community leader and true innovator.”
Dr. Farrugia completed his undergraduate training at St. Aloysius College in Birkirkara, Malta, and his M.D. at the University of Malta Medical School in 1987. He is also a consultant in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and the Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, as well as a professor of Medicine and Physiology in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.
He is considered one of the nation’s leading experts on individualized medicine, having previously served as director of the Mayo Clinic Center for Individualized Medicine with a focus on integrating genomics into routine clinical practice.
An award-winning, prolific investigator and inventor, Dr. Farrugia has been a leader across the breadth of Mayo’s three-shield mission. His research interests include genomics and the treatment of disorders of gastrointestinal motility. He has published more than 250 articles on these topics. His research is funded by the National Institutes of Health through the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, among other organizations.
Dr. Farrugia has received many honors throughout his career, including top teacher awards, Mayo Clinic Research Career Achievement Award and the Janssen Award for Outstanding Science in Gastroenterology.
Upon completion of his first three-year term on the JU board, Farrugia will be eligible for reelection for two additional consecutive terms.
The Jacksonville University Board of Trustees is made up of 30 members, including 10 alumni, representing national leaders in a wide range of fields such as education, technology, health care, financial services, medicine and the law.
For more information, contact Phillip J. Milano, JU Director of News and Publications, at (904) 256-7042 or pmilano@ju.edu.