24
COM Outlook . Spring 2014
contemporary education model with
Matthew Terry, D.O. (1991-1997)
were the results of the total effort and
dedication of all involved with the
institution during their tenures.”
Assessing Priorities…
Effecting Change
Stepping into the shoes of his
illustrious predecessors may have
been daunting initially, but with the
support of Dr. Terry, who served as
chancellor of the Health Professions
Division at the time, the college’s new
captain was able to make positive
and perceptible changes very quickly.
“When I accepted the position in
1998, NSU-COM was known for be-
ing an excellent osteopathic medical
school that provided its students with
a quality education—but little else
beyond that,” Dr. Silvagni explained.
A review of the existing faculty
members soon revealed a deficiency
both in the size as well as the depth
and breadth of those educating the
future generation of physicians. “The
vast majority were either relocated pro-
fessors from Philadelphia or graduates
from our college and residencies,” he
stated. “I spoke to Dr. Terry about it,
and he agreed that if the school was to
advance to the next level, there had to
be a different way to direct it.”
To address this matter, Dr. Silvagni
began enhancing and diversifying the
faculty by recruiting a veritable alpha-
bet soup of degreed professionals from
other universities and disciplines to
help build a sturdy infrastructure that
would help the college expand into a
range of areas and grow programmati-
cally. This included the vital area of
graduate medical education, which Dr.
Silvagni addressed by establishing the
college’s Consortium for Excellence in
Medical Education in 1999.
With the support of upper adminis-
tration, Dr. Silvagni spent the first five
years of his deanship masterminding
a mind-boggling mix of accomplish-
ments that included an explosion of
submitted grant proposals and grants
received, development and imple-
mentation of local and international
medical outreach trips, the formation
of the Department of Education, Plan-
ning, and Research, and the develop-
ment of the nation’s first osteopathic
preventive medicine residency pro-
gram. He also spurred the creation
of the Alumni Association Fund, the
expansion of the Department of Os-
teopathic Principles and Practice, and
the implementation of standardized
patients in the curriculum.
Additional highlights during those
initial years included
D
ramatic growth of internships,
residencies, and fellowships in a
range of disciplines
E
mphasis on active learning
D
evelopment of dual-degree pro-
grams and articulation agreements
with selected premed programs
The Terry Building - Home to the College
of Osteopathic Medicine since 1996.
Simulation: A key component of medical
education today and into the future.
