The Last Page is dedicated to individuals who are making a positive impact on the LGBTQ community in Tampa Bay and Central Florida.
This issue, we check in with Dr. David Lyter, primary care physician and the founder of Diversity Health Center of Tampa Bay. Keep an eye on this space to learn more about the movers and shakers of your community.
Hometown: Dauphin, PA, a small town in the Allegheny Mountains outside of Harrisburg
Identifies As: Gay
Pronouns: He/Him/His
Out Year: 1980
Profession: LGBTQ Primary Care and HIV Medicine Physician, Diversity Health Center of Tampa Bay founder
Professional Role Model: Dr. Charles Rinaldo, a Ph.D. virologist at the Univ. of Pittsburgh
Hobbies: My dogs (Basenjis), taking cruises (especially on Atlantis and RSVP) around the world, kayaking in local rivers, growing native Florida plants in my yard and watching bluebirds nest in my birdhouses
What do you do professionally?
Provide primary care for the LGBTQ and general community, including HIV care and hormone replacement therapy for transgender men and women.
How do you champion for the local LGBTQ community?
By what I do professionally.
What is your favorite thing to read in Watermark?
The Tampa Bay Bureau Chief’s Desk. “Star Trek” rocks!
What is your favorite local LGBTQ event?
Tampa Pride.
What is your favorite thing about your local LGBTQ community?
How supportive patients have been of my practice.
What would you like to see improved in your local LGBTQ community?
I lived in Wilton Manors for eight years, which is “gay central” in Ft. Lauderdale. It had Rosie’s Bar and Wilton Drive, which is full of community establishments. I wish there was a similar community to live in on the Tampa side of the bay.
What would you like our readers to know about you?
I am a seminary graduate with a Masters in Religion and a Florida Master Naturalist. The Florida Master Naturalist Program’s mission is to promote awareness, understanding and respect of Florida’s natural world among Florida’s citizens and visitors. I’m also single and available!
What advice would you give your younger self?
You don’t need to spend years of anguish trying to change from being gay. It was not a choice. God made you that way and you should be proud of that.
What led you to your career in the medical field?
My mother was a nurse and my Christian upbringing taught me that service to others was what we all should strive to do. Dr. Charles Rinaldo, a PhD virologist at the Univ. of Pittsburgh and my role model, gave me my first opportunity to work as an openly gay physician in 1982. He asked me to assist in recruiting and examining a large group of gay men at possible risk of the new epidemic of immune deficiency that men were experiencing. It was called GRID at that time and eventually HIV/AIDS.
What should readers know about Diversity Health?
We’re located at 4302 N. Habana Ave., Suite 200 in Tampa and provide health care to all members of the general and LGBTQ community. We have one clinician and two staff members who always answer the phone, return your calls and will not forget your name. We’re committed to providing evidence-based patient care and to developing long-lasting relationships within our community. You can learn more about us by calling 813-518-0881 or visiting DiversityHealthCenter.com.
