LAKELAND, Fla. – Florida Southern College and Lakeland Regional Health have announced a three-year partnership between the two pillars of the Lakeland community. Lakeland Regional will serve as the exclusive healthcare provider of Florida Southern College Athletics while also securing a full-time Certified Athletic Trainer who will work directly with Florida Southern College.
 
"We are excited to further solidify an already great relationship with LRH," said Florida Southern College Director of Athletics & Dean of Wellness Drew Howard. "The physicians and staff continue to support the health and wellness of our student athletes. I am grateful for the leadership at LRH and the continued partnership that will continue to elevate our athletic department."
 
As part of the partnership, the Head Athletic Trainer position at Florida Southern will now be named the Head Athletic Trainer sponsored by Lakeland Regional Health. The Florida Southern College Sports Medicine staff will partner with the LRH sports medicine team which includes orthopedic surgeons, primary care sports medicine physicians, concussion specialists, certified athletic trainers, and sports-trained physical therapists.
 
Starting in 1916 as Morrell Hospital, the facility began with 65 beds and 24 employees. Today, Lakeland Regional Health is one of the largest hospitals in Florida with 910 beds and is the second largest private employer in Polk County with nearly 8,000 employees and a medical staff of more than 1,300. It is the only hospital in Polk County to offer three hybrid operating rooms and a hybrid catheterization lab.
 
Florida Southern College boasts a rich athletic history with 30 NCAA Division II National Championships, including in golf (13 men's, four women's), baseball (9), men's basketball (2), softball, and women's lacrosse, plus significant academic honors like the NCAA Presidents' Award for Academic Success and numerous D2 ADA Achievement Awards, solidifying its status as a top DII program in both athletics and academics.
 

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About Lakeland Regional Health
Not-for-profit Lakeland Regional Health reaches beyond its hospital walls to promote wellness, education, and discovery in new places and new ways, providing a wide range of inpatient and outpatient healthcare services at its Medical Center, Hollis Cancer Center, and ambulatory care locations. Lakeland Regional Health earned Most Wired Advanced and Most Wired status ten times since 2013 and has earned workplace awards from Forbes, Gallup, and Becker's Hospital Review. Its 910-bed comprehensive tertiary referral hospital, Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center, operates the Jack and Tina Harrell Family Institute for Advanced Cardiovascular Medicine; a Level II Trauma Center; the Carol Jenkins Barnett Pavilion for Women and Children, which includes a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; the Bannasch Institute for Advanced Rehabilitation Medicine; and the Harrell Family Center for Behavioral Wellness.