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2020 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient

John S. Curran, M.D.

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John Curran grew up on Grove Street attending the nearby Tatem School, Haddonfield Middle and graduating from Haddonfield Memorial High School in 1958.  In high school, John had an exemplary academic record and was the Valedictorian.  Four years later, John graduated Summa Cum Laude from Rutgers University Camden. 

John pursued medicine as his career. He attended the University of Pennsylvania College of Medicine where he was awarded the Spencer Morris Prize for being first in his academic class. Dr. Curran served his medical internship at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital and continued his medical education by completing his residency at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where he trained in Pediatrics and newborn medicine and achieved board certification in Pediatrics and Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine in 1974.

John had joined the United States Air Force Reserve in 1966.  After the completion of his medical training, Dr. Curran went on active duty and was assigned as the Chief of Newborn Services at the USAF Hospital in Wiesbaden, West Germany.  Major Curran was honorably discharged from active duty in 1972.  He continued his service in the reserves for an additional twenty years as a Pediatric Consultant, Flight Surgeon and Civilian Consultant to the Surgeon General.  His assignments took him to the Phillipines, Portugal, Germany and the United Kingdom. Dr. Curran was called to active duty in 1990, serving for six months during Operation Desert Storm.  John retired from the Air Force Reserve (Medical Corps) with the rank of colonel after 26 years of service.

Upon his initial discharge from active duty in 1972, Dr. Curran engaged in both an academic career as a professor of pediatric medicine while remaining actively engaged in clinical practice.  He is a charter member of the University of South Florida College of Medicine faculty in Tampa. Until relatively recently, he was actively engaged in clinical practice as the founding neonatologist at the Tampa General Hospital and as its Chief of Pediatrics where he founded the Regional Newborn Intensive Care Center at Tampa General.  Dr. Curran, in his role as the Medical Director for regional Children’s Medical Services programs has been a staunch advocate for children with special health care needs. 

Dr. Curran’s academic career has seen him rise through the ranks from Assistant Professor through tenured Professor of Pediatric Medicine.  He currently holds the rank of Professor Emeritus in Pediatrics and is the author of 30 peer reviewed articles, 15 book chapters, several technical reports and numerous abstracts and presentations. Dr. Curran retired after 45 years at the University of South Florida College of Medicine after serving for the last 21 years in university administration as Senior Executive Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs and during 2016/17 concomitantly as Deputy Secretary of Health for Children’s Medical Services for the Florida Department of Health.  He was recently honored with an Affiliate Professor appointment in the USF College of Public Health.

Dr. Curran has provided extraordinary service to his professional organizations and to the broader community with his advocacy for children.  Until 2011 he served as Chair for District X of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), an organization of 60,000 pediatricians representing Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Puerto Rico. He recently served as a facilitator for the Florida Perinatal Group within the Perinatal Group of Five sponsored by the March of Dimes for California, Illinois, Texas, New York and Florida and was a March of Dimes Grant Recipient at the Chiles Center for “Decreasing Scheduled Deliveries before the 39th Week of Gestation – A Multi-Center Quality Improvement Program in Florida”.  He has held many appointments in his state medical association, serving as President of the Hillsborough County Medical Association and on leadership committees of the Florida Medical Association.  He is a board member of the PRN program, supervising services for impaired students and physicians in Florida. 

Dr. Gerald Schiebler, fellow pediatrician and friend of John Curran commented on his leadership and advocacy.  He noted Dr. Curran’s work in establishing rigorous standards for Regional Neonatal and Perinatal Care Centers that has brought him before the state legislature on many occasions.  Schiebler stated, “He was an effective lobbyist, cognizant of how the system worked and what was needed to get legislation passed.”  His friend cited two of his most important traits, “His knowledge and ability to translate difficult medical terminology and concepts into language easily understood by legislators and his integrity.”  Dr. Curran’s efforts resulted in the establishment of standards for these centers.  Dr. Schiebler added, “John has been and remains the unquestioned leader in promoting the establishment of Regional Neonatal and Perinatal Intensive Care Units.”

Dr. Curran is now Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics. His national, state and regional leadership has been recognized by the American Medical Association who presented Dr. Curran with the Abraham Jacobi Award. This award honors “a pediatrician who has made long-term, notable contributions to pediatrics nationally in teaching, patient care and/or clinical research”.  He has been honored with a Lifetime Healthcare Hero Award in the Tampa Bay Region, and with the March of Dimes Lawton Chiles Perinatal Award and a Distinguished Service Award from University of South Florida.  Upon his retirement after 45 years of distinguished service, the University of South Florida trustees voted to honor Dr. Curran by naming the Children’s Medical Services building, the John S. Curran, MD, Children’s Health Center. 
 
Dr. Currently is currently keeping busy with increased engagement in the Hillsborough County Health Care Plan where he serves as the remaining Founding Member and Chairperson for the past 13 years.  His current interests at the HCHCP include a broadened focus on mental health including improved access and outcomes, issues with opioid use disorder particularly in pregnant women, veterans and suicide prevention, and working with College of Public Health MPH student interns on a Living Healthy program, and on COVID-19 programming.