Students Participate in Pediatric Bootcamp, Host Ultrasound Festival, Become Members of the Gold Humanism Honor Society and More

CCOM Inducts New Members into Gold Humanism Honor Society

Photo: CCOM students were inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society.

Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine at Midwestern University (CCOM) recently held a ceremony to honor 28 medical students who demonstrate the highest forms of compassion and caring. Nominated by their peers, the future doctors were selected to be a member of the Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS).

The Arnold P. Gold Foundation developed the Honor Society in 2001 to recognize rising fourth-year medical students who demonstrate behaviors characteristic of the most humanistic physicians. GHHS emphasizes the importance of the human connection in healthcare, which they view as essential for the health of both patients and clinicians. Learn more about the recognition and the students who were inducted this year.

Fifth Annual ICOM Research Day Showcases Impactful Research

Photo: Nathan Weber, OMS II, discusses his research poster during ICOM Research Day on March 31.

A wide range of innovative research was on display at the Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine (ICOM)’s fifth annual Research Day on March 31, 2023. The event is a campus-wide celebration of the research and scholarly endeavors of the college’s students, faculty and institutional partners.

The event provides ICOM medical students the opportunity to showcase the scholarly projects they have conducted under the guidance of ICOM faculty mentors and in collaboration with local researchers. This year, ICOM students submitted a total of 45 poster presentations as well as three oral presentations. Read more and view photos from the event.

Spring Awards Ceremony Provides $738K to WVSOM Students

West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) recognized medical students for their academic and community achievements through scholarships and employees for their commitment to educate future physicians during a March 31, 2023, Spring Awards Ceremony. This year’s event offered recipients a total of $738,436 through 32 scholarships, awards and certificates of appreciation. Read more about each of the awards and their recipients.

UNTHSC-TCOM Students Host a Successful Medical Mission Trip Along the Border in Big Bend

The Texas Rural Health Association (TRHA) chapter at University of North Texas Health Science Center-Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNTHSC-TCOM) partnered with the Office of Rural Medical Education to run free medical clinics in one of the most medically unserved areas in the state. The TRHA student leaders from UNTHSC-TCOM worked with rural community leaders and local churches to make the trip a reality.

“The experiences that students get on this trip are unique,” said Afra Fathima, UNTHSC-TCOM second-year student and TRHA vice president. “By visiting the cities and meeting the patients firsthand, we’re able to better understand disparities in healthcare and the barriers that many communities, especially border communities, face in Texas.” Read more about the trip and hear from students what the trip meant to them.

AZCOM Holds Third Annual UltraFest for Ultrasound Education

Photo: AZCOM students practice using ultrasound technology to analyze body structures at the annual UltraFest event.

This spring, the Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine (AZCOM) hosted another successful UltraFest event on the Glendale Campus.

Led by AZCOM’s Ultrasound Interest Group, this student-driven event is an educational ultrasound symposium where healthcare students and physicians from all over Arizona come together to further their knowledge of and appreciation for sonography. The mission behind UltraFest is to encourage student healthcare professionals to become comfortable utilizing point-of-care ultrasound, a cost-effective yet informative diagnostic tool, in clinical practice.

VCOM-Carolinas’ Pediatric Bootcamp 

Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine Carolinas Campus (VCOM-Carolinas) students attended a Pediatric Bootcamp on March 31, 2023. The delightful, smile-filled event was directed by Hanna Sahhar, MD, FAAP, FACOP, discipline chair for pediatrics. The course included Standardized Patient Well Child visits, high fidelity simulations in VCOM-Carolinas' Simulation Center and occasionally being chased by small children. View more photos from the event on VCOM-Carolinas’ Facebook.

VCOM-Louisiana Students Learn About Non-Pharmaceutical Treatments

Photo: Dr. David Hale was a guest lecturer during VCOM-Louisiana’s ACONP non-pharmaceutical therapy treatment event in March.

Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine Louisiana Campus (VCOM-Louisiana)'s chapter of the American College of Osteopathic Neurologists & Psychiatrists (ACONP) hosted an event in mid-March focusing on non-pharmaceutical therapy treatments. John Webb, PhD, director for counseling services and psychiatry and neuro-behavioral sciences at VCOM-Louisiana, and David Hale, PhD, associate professor of marriage and family therapy at the University of Louisiana Monroe, lectured on interventions such as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, play therapy, strategic family therapy and Rogerian psychotherapy. View more photos from the event on VCOM-Louisiana’s Facebook.

Inaugural DO Class Achieves 100 Percent Residency Match Rate

Photo: Many of the students in PCOM South Georgia’s first graduating class of doctors of osteopathic medicine celebrated Match Day with their classmates on campus March 17, 2023. All of the students in the class matched with residency programs.

The first class of students in Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine South Georgia Campus (PCOM South Georgia)'s doctor of osteopathic medicine program, who will graduate in May, all matched with residency programs. PCOM South Georgia opened in Moultrie, Georgia, in the fall of 2019.

“I am very pleased that every student seeking a residency position after graduation has been successful,” said H. William Craver III, DO, dean and chief academic officer of PCOM South Georgia. “I think this represents the outstanding character of our students, faculty and clinical partners, especially for such success in just the first year of DO graduates.” Read more and hear from students who matched.

PCOM Faculty Named ACOFP Master Preceptors

Each year, the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians (ACOFP) recognizes preceptors for their commitment to educating students through the Master Preceptor Award. This year, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM)’s Michael Srulevich, DO, MPH, and George Spyropoulos, DO, have been awarded this distinction for their sustained commitment to excellence in the training, education and mentoring of osteopathic medical students in family medicine.

Preceptors are an important part of the clinical training experience provided to students at PCOM. They provide the experiential portion of the curriculum by supervising student physicians as they acquire clinical medical knowledge by helping to care for real patients—in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Read more about both preceptors and hear what the award means to them.

PCOM Georgia Students Celebrate 100 Percent Residency Match

Photo: Chris Staley (left), DO '23, celebrates his general surgery residency match with his family.

One of the most important days in a medical student's journey occurred this year on March 17, 2023. Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Georgia Campus (PCOM Georgia)'s fourth-year medical students learned where they matched into residency programs and where they'll spend their next three to seven years training in a specialty.

Leading up to the National Resident Matching Program’s Main Residency Match, students decided on their specialty of choice, interviewed and ranked programs of interest. In turn, following interviews with students, residency program directors ranked their choices and a complex algorithm aligned the students and programs.

Read more about the successful Match Day and which specialties students placed into.