COM Outlook Winter 2020

12 | DR. KIRAN C. PATEL COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE While the new campus was being planned and constructed, a curri- culum overhaul and technology enhancements were being imple- mented at both campuses. (See related technology article on page 14 for details.) “This year’s freshman class has the benefit of a reordered curricu- lum. This curriculum has truncat- ed the basic ‘Basic Sciences’ into four months and entwined the remainder of the basic sciences into clinical sciences. This will allow students to learn informa- tion in a context (e.g., cardia physiology in cardiac medicine and pathology of the renal system in renal medicine). There will also be more patient-contact opportu- nities in both years one and two to help students ‘put a face’ on the disease processes they are learning,” Wallace said. “The addition of BodyViz technology allows anatomy and histology to be taught in a digitalized fashion, while the addition of the Lecturio system of board review within the curriculum helps students think of information in a board-review style as part of their studies,” she added. “All of this is accom- panied by the addition of up- dated robotic instruction in everything from cardiac arrest to labor and delivery.” The KPCOM has come a long way since it became the 15th U.S. osteopathic medical school in 1979 and graduated its inaugural class of 35 students in 1985. The college, which currently offers nine academic degree programs