COM Outlook Spring 2019

NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | 15 Dozens of dedicated custodians move with unobtrusive efficiency through NSU’s Health Professions Division (HPD) each day as they empty trash bins, clean up spills, vacuum floors, and perform countless other tasks to keep the facility tidy and operational. To honor these “quiet heroes” who make the HPD study and work environment spotless, KPCOM students coordinated the inaugural Custodian Appreciation Day on October 30 in the Student Lounge. The idea was the brainchild of second-year student Zachary Burns, who was involved in custodian advocacy when he was an undergraduate student at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. Not surprisingly, when Burns presented the idea to his KPCOM peers, support was overwhelming. “Establishing Custodian Apprecia- tion Day at NSU was the least we could do,” said Burns of the event, which was cohosted by the KPCOM’s Student American Academy of Osteopathy (SAAO) and the Plant-Based Healthcare student organization. “It was a declara- tion that, as medical students and future doctors, we are not—and never will be—too busy or too important to thank the support staff who make our work possible.” To ensure the event’s success, 21 KPCOM student clubs collaborated to create a useful and interactive agenda for the participants. For example, the SAAO members and the osteopathic principles and practice fellows set KPCOM STUDENTS EXHIBIT APPRECIATION TO CUSTODIAL STAFF QUIET HEROES BY SCOTT COLTON, B.A., APR Because custodians’ jobs are extremely strenuous, the students provided osteopathic manipulative treatment to alleviate their various muscular aches.