SGA Rounds - Summer 2015, Vol 1, Issue 3

This past April, the Council of Osteopathic Student Govern- ment Presidents (COSGP) held its last quarterly meeting of the 2014-15 academic year in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at the Mar- riott Harbor Beach Resort & Spa in conjunction with the joint AACOM/AODME annual meeting. Ravi Uppal (class of 2017 president) and I were in attendance as representatives of the NSU-COM student body. This meeting had many great opportunities for collaboration, and we were able to ask our colleagues at the other osteopathic schools how they have overcome some of the adversities we face here at NSU-COM. Some of the topics we raised for dis- cussion included COMLEX study time, a physical space at school for spiritual life/meditation/prayer, and how other schools promote diversity among their student body. Interestingly, when it came to COMLEX study time, many of the schools ranged from either more than four weeks to only one week, with MSU- COM having the greatest time available for COMLEX studying. Additional data can be found on the COSGP website at www.cosgp.org . Another highlight from the meeting was hearing an update re- garding the single accreditation system from John Dougherty, D.O., of the ACGME Osteopathic Principles Committee, which was created to develop a single set of requirements for osteo- pathic recognition of GME programs in the single accreditation system. For more information and updates regarding the single accreditation system, please visit www.osteopathic.org/acgme . The NSU-COM student leadership looks forward to the COSGP Summer Quarterly Meeting to be held in conjunction with the AOA House of Delegates, which will take place July 14- 19 in Chicago, Illinois. EXECUTIVE BOARD SGA National Osteopathic Medicine Week By OMS-I Bhavik Gupta, Executive SGA Secretary COSGP UPDATES By OMS-II Lauren Boudreau, Executive SGA President During the week of April 19-25, NSU-COM students as well as faculty and staff members celebrated National Osteopathic Medicine (NOM) Week 2015 with a variety of events, all to celebrate the traditions of osteopathic medicine and help raise awareness of the profession. Following a kickoff breakfast on Monday, the college hosted the M1/M2 Awards as well as the final COM Cup event. Awards were given in recogni- tion of student achievement and faculty excellence, and it was inspiring to see all the wonderful things students and faculty members have accom- plished at NSU-COM. On Tuesday, the college had the privilege of hosting Joshua Courtney, D.O., founder and CEO of COMBANK—a question bank widely used by osteopathic medical students in preparation for the COMLEX-USA exams. To date, more than 35,000 osteopathic medical students have utilized the test items and analytics within COMBANK, and Dr. Courtney was able to provide invaluable insight to students. He truly believes in his mission of serving the osteopathic community by helping all individuals to realize their own learning potential. The highlight of NOM Week 2015 was the much-anticipated “Nuts and Bolts Residency Talk,” which took place on Wednesday. The event brought first- and second-year medical students together with a panel of recently matched fourth-year medical students and resident physicians. The evening began with a presentation by Traci-lyn Eisenberg, D.O., who spoke at length about how to manage third- and fourth-year rotations. She provided vital tips on how to be proactive in those crucial years and shared some of her experiences with working medical students as an at- tending physician. Following Dr. Eisenberg’s presentation, audience members were able to in- teract with the panelists, who reflected on their successes as well as the mis- takes they made during their years at NSU-COM. The evening was capped off with a “Speed Professional” event modeled after speed dating, which took place at the newly renovated Flight Deck at the NSU University Center. First- and second-year students rotated through tables representing different spe- cialties and were able to interact with fourth-year students and residents on a more personal level. On Thursday, another highly anticipated event—“OPP Clinic”—was run by David Boesler, D.O., and the OPP fellows to showcase their favorite OMT techniques—many of which are not part of the standard curriculum. This event had the largest attendance by the students, as well as some guest appearances by distinguished faculty members. The event allowed students to witness OMT in a different light, and our dean, Dr. Elaine Wallace, even made an appearance to showcase some of her own favorite techniques. The final day of NOM Week was capped off with a lunch barbeque on the Terry Patio where everyone could wind down and reflect upon the weeklong activities. NOM Week at NSU-COM brings together student doctors with practicing osteopathic physicians to celebrate osteopathic medicine and the opportunities it provides. It not only raises awareness, but also fosters camaraderie—leading to a student experience that tran- scends a fine education.