NSU Horizons Winter 2008 - 2009

allowed it to become more vocal in ex- pressing opinions on national health care issues. Moreover, osteopathic medical schools, now numbering 25 nationally, have been focused on pro- ducing good physicians instead of cut- ting-edge research. Critical research would help the profession garner more national prestige, said Jacobson, adding that the trend is changing. The lack of marketing and public relations is another factor, said Steve Winn, executive director of the Florida Osteopathic Medical Association. Even the media gets confused with osteopathic medicine sometimes. In 2006, Newsweek magazine used the headline “Hero M.D.” on its cover in big bold print, even though the story was about Richard Jadick, an osteopath- ic physician. John Strosnider, D.O., former president of the American Os- teopathic Association, who passed away last year, had said that when he was dean of New England University College of Osteopathic Medicine— Maine’s only medical school—the media would occasionally report that the state had no medical school. Similarly, Florida’s media frequently fails to report the existence of the state’s two osteo- pathic medical schools: NSU and Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Bradenton. Transitions “Osteopathic medicine’s obscurity made it hard to attract applicants in the past,” said Sam Snyder, D.O., chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at NSU’s medical school. “Fifty years ago,” he said, “D.O.s were stigmatized as cultists who did not offer a full array of medical services.” Osteopathic doctors were not al- lowed to practice in civil service jobs until 1963 and not allowed to serve as medical officers in the U.S. military un- til 1966, according to the American As- sociation of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM). “In Florida, mem- bers of the Hillsborough County Medi- cal Association once made it unethical for its members to consult with a D.O.,” Winn said. D.O.s were not allowed to practice in all 50 states until 1973, according to AACOM. But that was then. Today, M.D.s and D.O.s work side by side at thousands of medical resi- dency programs throughout the coun- try and have joint partnerships and practices together, Winn said. Both types of doctors make the same amount of money, depending on their special- ties and the type and location of their practices. The national average for a physician’s annual income is between $160,000 and $200,000. Allopathic and osteopathic physi- cians also work together at medical schools. A. Alvin Greber, D.O., associ- ate executive dean for professional and extramural affairs at NSU’s Health Professions Division, is a professor of internal medicine at NSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine and the Univer- sity of Miami’s Miller School of Medi- cine, which teaches allopathic medicine. Tyler Cymet, AACOM’s associate vice president for medical education, graduated from Southeastern College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1988 before it merged with NSU. He went on to become a professor of general medicine at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, one of the nation’s top medical schools. NSU’s Medical School Like many aspiring doctors, Alva- rez applied to several medical schools to increase his odds of acceptance. NSU’s College of Osteopathic Medi- cine was one of his top choices. “Unlike some other medical schools I toured, NSU’s students seemed happy to be here,” he said. “Other important factors for me were the impressive facilities and resources such as the medical library, anatomy lab, Master of Public Health degree program, and the Dr. A. Alvin Greber Cardiac Simulation Center [previously known as the Harvey Laboratory].” Dana Block, D.O., a medical resident in Tennessee who graduated from NSU as an undergraduate and from medical school in 2007, said she chose the school because it scored a 100 percent on her personal checklist of the qualities of a good medical school, including factors like clinical exposure and placement for its graduates. “My experience at NSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine was amazing,” she said. “The classroom and clinical curricula are demanding, but rewarding, and they absolutely prepare you for the real world as a physician.” Second-year NSU medical student Vi Song Tring said his professors make the hard work worthwhile. “They are all role models, and I’m trying my best to select the best qualities that each professor has to offer, so that I may emulate them.” While the quality of the faculty, administration, and facilities are big reasons why students choose NSU, Jacobson said there are many other factors. “NSU medical students get to participate in international medical missions, provide health care to medi- cally underserved areas, and reach out to the community at numerous health fairs,” as he said. 34 horizons