LECOM Connection Winter 2015

THE

LECOM

ONNECTION

Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine WINTER 2015

THOSE WHO DARED A Tribute to the First Graduates of LECOM

Those Who Dared A Tribute to the First Graduates of LECOM

LECOM.edu

Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine 1858 West Grandview Blvd.

Erie, PA 16509 814-866-6641 • www.lecom.edu

John M. Ferretti, DO President/CEO Michael J. Visnosky, Esquire Chairman of the Board of Trustees Silvia M. Ferretti, DO Provost, Senior Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs

INTO THE LIGHT

John D. Angeloni, DO Vice Provost, Clinical Professor of Family Medicine, Bradenton Hershey Bell, MD, MS (MedEd) Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of the School of Pharmacy Anton S. Gotlieb, DDS, MS Acting Dean of the School of Dental Medicine Robert George, DO Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Bradenton Pierre Bellicini Institutional Director of Communications and Marketing

Entering a new school, and embarking upon an untrodden path, the first graduates allowed their spirit of adventure and a pressing desire to awaken their stirring intellect to guide their choice to attend a nascent Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Emerging from their educational journey, those first graduates reaped the reward of their bold risk.

Through the once seemingly dark and barren corridors, echoed the possible. The first graduates began the march through those halls toward academic exceptionalism and they held high their personal lamps of learning to light the way for those who would follow.

Now, as the largest medical school in the nation and its only Osteopathic Academic Health Center, LECOM seems a natural choice for those who seek the pinnacle of academic and medical prowess.

The LECOM education offers the light that guided those first students through the darkness.

Dim prosaic eyes open wide when exposed to the brilliant enlightenment of a superlative education. For as the maxim explains: dark is not the opposite of light; rather it is merely the absence of light.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine kindles great light in the world; it has set ablaze torches in the dark streets of life for all to see; and it has ignited the lamp of learning within its scholars, who in turn - have become a light to others.

Eric Nicastro Assistant Director of Communications and Marketing/Layout/Photographer Michael Polin Assistant Director of Communications and Marketing, Bradenton Rebecca A. DeSimone, Esquire Chief Writer/Editor-in-Chief Nicholas Pronko Social Media Recruitment Specialist/ Contributing Writer The LECOM Connection invites you to contribute to our publication. If you have news of alumni achievements, research or student activities, please contact the Communications Department, at (814) 866-6641, or e-mail communications@lecom.edu.

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A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

THOSE WHO DARED As the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine approaches a quarter of a century in the cultivation and advancement of academic exceptionalism, we pause to reflect upon the road taken, the path chosen, and - as the pages of this magazine are turned - upon the first students who dared to define our future.

The road to our future always begins in our past. As the years have taught us, the task ahead of us is never as great as the power behind us. As we turn our face to the light of the possible, the shadows of the impossible fall behind us and we learn that all for which we live is to make life less difficult for each other.

The LECOM mission was built upon this premise; a peerless amalgam of compassionate care, community service, and the profound purpose of the healing arts and the medical sciences. The academic excellence embraced by LECOM has blended these abiding principles into an educational paradigm unlike that of any other institution of its kind.

We become comfortable with where we are in the world when we are comfortable with who we are in the world and LECOM has long set out to define who we are, standing strongly through the tempests of tumult and change in the field of medicine to become both the largest medical school in the nation and it’s only osteopathic academic health center.

There is little doubt, that for many about whom we write in this issue, LECOM was the zenith of educational experiences.

Students deepened their appreciation for true academic scholarship and they wrested their spirits away from the shallow relativism, narcissism, and apathy that have become pervasive in contemporary higher education. LECOM taught, and continues to teach, the pursuit of wisdom, the pursuit of virtue, and the value of the human spirit.

John M. Ferretti, DO - President/CEO 04 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

In fact, many LECOM graduates are eager to note that they are not the same upon completion of their LECOM experience; a revelation that they approvingly discern.

At LECOM, the inculcation of knowledge is designed to elevate, enrich, and liberate the human spirit. It is not, and it must not be, merely theoretical. It must be adopted into a heartfelt cognitive awareness, rather than a mere affirmation of correct hypotheses. Knowledge that elevates, enriches, and liberates is knowledge that not only demonstrates a fact, but knowledge that also explains why and how it is a fact. The depth and breadth of such knowledge does more than settle a question in one’s mind; it promotes new arenas of exploration. It generates new questions, and it nurtures new lines of inquiry. The freedom of exceptionalism - the sort that LECOM advances and defends - is freedom to practice these virtues. It is freedom to pursue excellence and the freedom that enables us to master ourselves. It is a freedom that, far from being daunted by the rigorous standards of scholarship, demands them.

Of all of the weapons that we take into battle, none is more powerful than the mind.

It holds our instinct and our training, and it allows us to shape our destinies and to define our possibilities.

In all lives, disappointments are inevitable, yet discouragement is a choice. In the end, some of our greatest struggles become some of our greatest strengths.

No matter the path taken in the charge of this noble calling, our first graduates committed to it with great passion, with uncommon dedication, and with deep love. They have created and offered an incontrovertible value through the power and purpose of their work.

LECOM is proud of our first students. They were first to cross our threshold; they set the pace and they secured high the bar.

Please join me in paying tribute to those who dared. @1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 05

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CREDOS OF OUR CALLING

CREDOS OF OUR CALLING •FAITH•

COVER STORY pg 08 .....

Those Who Dared

The outer conditions of one’s life always will be found to reflect one’s inner beliefs.

Before there was a School of Pharmacy, before the Dental School, before LECOM changed the landscape of communities far and wide, there was a vision.

Nascent to the stellar rankings in journals and reports, predating the state-of-the-art Health and Wellness Center and the Coffee Cultures Cafe and Eatery, before LECOM became the largest medical school in the nation or the only osteopathic academic health center in the United States...there were Those Who Dared.

Turn the pages in this issue to meet just a few of those insightful and forward-thinking graduates who - as the title suggests - were the first to commit themselves to the rigorous study and scholarship within the nurturing walls of excellence at LECOM.

Faith embodies a seemingly intangible expression of hope for something better. More than a wish, it is a belief, rooted in the mind, based in the heart, and anchored to the soul. One acts in faith without guarantee or certainty of an outcome, for faith speaks the language of the heart. It is an expression of hope that transcends the conscious mind to embrace an understanding that one’s purpose is derived from Providence.

Wherever one may happen to turn and whatever course one may undertake - always, one will conclude by returning to that inner path that faith has marked. No one can be prepared for the heights to which one may soar until one acts upon that faith.

For some, all that one holds precious rests upon a faith in people - in a potential not yet fulfilled. The evidence of history points in a different direction. The world may be rife with ugliness, brutality, and injustice. Yet, there also is tenderness, kindness, and compassion; those embodiments of the spirit that speak to one’s better nature and to the bigger part of one’s heart.

CLASS OF 1997

FEATURES pg 13 ...... pg 20 ..... pg 26 ..... pg 30 .....

Duo of Auction Gala Triumphs LECOM Alumni Flattening the Learning Curve White Coat Ceremonies Empower the Class of 2018 LECOM Becomes Lead Agency for Safe Kids Erie

DEPARTMENTS pg 34 .....

Community is Our Campus

pg 36 .....

Faculty, Student, and Alumni Notes

pg 39 .....

Physician Spotlight

Medical professionals are faced often with the difficult challenges that test the great questions of human existence. As scientists, some may choose to turn away from faith, embracing reason as an easier, more readily explicable path to expedient answers to the difficult questions that may present themselves in the health care arena.

Yet, the most expedient answer may not fully lay bare the unremitting questions that defy certitude.

without a faith in others, we could never live as free people. This is the water that quenches parched souls. Yet, the abiding faith in a more profound purpose to one’s life and to the calling derived from it, suggests a deeper and more poignant meaning.

Einstein noted “My faith consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.”

Rather than turning a despairing gaze over the course of life, those called to the medical field understand that the innermost heart calls forth a great faith.

From renowned literary personages, to philosophers, to military leaders, the prominence of faith in their lives has held a seminal place. Wrote Emily Dickenson, “Faith is the pierless bridge supporting that which we see unto the scene that we do not.”

Penned Henry David Thoreau, “The smallest seed of faith is better than the largest fruit of happiness.” Remarked General George Patton, “There is something in every soldier that goes deeper than thinking or working – something that he has built in there; a world of truth and power that is higher than himself. I don’t know what you call it, but I call it faith.”

The medical profession too finds its place among those who draw strength from faith and who find a reinforcement of spirit and a compassionate comfort in the quiet recesses of a healing heart.

The theme of this magazine centers upon those who dared to embrace the commitment of heart and the determination of spirit to be the first LECOM scholars; those who have carried forth a belief in the possible, relying upon an indispensable credo of our calling: faith.

Without faith in ourselves we would hold ourselves unvalued, and

MISSION STATEMENT The mission of the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine is to prepare students to become osteopathic physicians, pharmacy practitioners, and dentists through programs of excellence in education, research, clinical care, and community service to enhance the quality of life through improved health for all humanity. The professional programs are dedicated to serve all students through innovative curriculum and the development of postdoctoral education and interprofessional experiences.

06 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 07

mater. “I feel very connected to LECOM,” he averred. Dr. Armile serves additionally as Ohio University College of Medicine (OUCOM) Clinical Faculty. Quite notably, he sits on the Regulatory Board of the Ohio Athletic Commission. The venerable Board members - appointed by Ohio Governor, John Kasich - oversee all combat sports in the state, including mixed martial arts, boxing, and grappling.

Dr. Armile and his wife, Theresa MarxArmile, MD, (an Endocrinologist) have three children: twins boys, Mark and Andrew, and a daughter, Elise.

THOSE WHO DARED As the Winter Issue of the LECOM Connection features members of the first class of graduates, it is with deep satisfaction that we recognize those daring pioneers who took the risk of earning their medical degrees at a nascent, untested college. In the prodigiously successful decades that have followed those early days, LECOM has watched with pride, the many graduates who have held themselves to estimable distinction and note. In this issue, we feature but a few of those first bold alumni as we share the stories of Those Who Dared.

This piece brings to the fore the attainments and achievements from which current students and alumni may anticipate the meaning that for them, LECOM holds - and is yet to hold.

08 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

James Adorno Armile, DO

Like LECOM, Dr. James Armile - a proud first graduate - knows that nothing worth while ever is achieved except by those who dare to believe that something far greater than the present circumstance is possible.

“I want to thank LECOM for pushing me to be the best that I could be and for sincerely wanting me to succeed,” commented Dr. Bean.

James Adorno Armile, DO was one such first graduate - one who was prepared to walk boldly ahead with a brand new vision.

In the more than twenty years since he was graduated from LECOM, Dr. Armile has established a thriving General and Surgical Dermatology Practice in Boardman, Ohio. Unquestionably, Dr. Armile has found the purpose of his calling. When asked to describe an appealing element of his practice, he responded enthusiastically, “It’s Dermatology! What isn’t appealing about it?”

The Ohio-based dermatologist is working closely with LECOM as he completes a study focusing upon the use of oral and topical antibiotics in acne patients. The study was designed to determine if patients had resistant Staphlyococus bacteria when treating with long term oral and topical antibiotics. The results showed that they did not. His report is pending publication.

Dr. Armile serves as LECOM Clinical Faculty, accepting numerous LECOM students into rotations with him each year.

As he passes along the LECOM tradition of “giving back,” Dr. Armile spoke with pride about his involvement with his alma

In fact, upon being graduated from LECOM, Dr. Bean undertook two residencies. He is now Board Certified in Family Medicine, as well as in Emergency Medicine.

Working at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, Pennsylvania, Dr. Bean performs a combination of clinical work and administrative tasks; and he educates residents in Emergency Medicine. “I am currently the Director of Urgent Care and I am completing my Certified Physician Executive Degree (CPE),” noted Dr. Bean.

He will be starting an MBA program next year.

I have been able to use my dual Board Certifications to teach the residents about inpatient care and management of patients in an Emergency Room setting.

“The person who follows the crowd usually will go no farther than the crowd. The person who walks alone is likely to find himself in places that no one ever has seen before.” ~ Albert Einstein

Dr. Armile explained that because LECOM accepted him as a student, he received an excellent education that made it possible for him to become a Dermatologist.

as a role model. The rigors that were instilled in him while in medical school those of a determined focus coupled with an unremitting attention to detail - have paid off for the LECOM graduate.

Dr. Bean has devoted this successful work to serving in the whirlwind of need and healing, and in so doing he has carried forth his superlative LECOM medical training and comprehensive service-based understanding to his teaching of others. The continuum of the LECOM spirit serves to better the quality of life for each of those whom Dr. Bean reaches in his calling.

Eric Bean, DO “You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor.” ~ Aristotle “I am proud to have been a part of the first class at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine,” averred Dr. Eric Bean. The 1997 graduate is one of the many LECOM graduates who has ventured forth from the prodigious inaugural LECOM class.

“I was mentored by Dr. Ortoski, who instilled in me the value of hard work, of dedication, and a spirit of helping others,” remarked Dr. Bean. As one of the LECOM first graduates, Dr. Bean emphasized that throughout his ensuing years of residency and practice, he has been using Dr. Ortoski

Even though it has been almost 20 years since his time at LECOM, Dr. Bean can remember each one of his classmates.

“Due to our small class size, we were a very tight group,” he explained. I recall Dr. Bucks’ first anatomy lecture, and the swirling fear and trepidation that churned within me; but I reminded myself that I was starting my training at LECOM, and my bubbling enthusiasm and readiness for training trumped my fear,” remarked the doctor.

Since his days at LECOM, Dr. Bean has been published in nationally recognized journals and he was honored with The Student Teacher of the Year Award from SUNY Upstate Syracuse.

Married to wife, Colleen, the couple has three children: Brianna, Andrew, and Elizabeth. @1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 09

The courage to take a step across the threshold of the possible has resulted in a truly estimable career as educator and physician for Dr. Bean.

Working in a place that nourishes and fulfills her compassionate mission, Dr. Matto also holds positions as Interim Family Medicine Program Director, Traditional Rotating Internship Program Director, and Director of Student Medical Education at DRMC. She attributes her success in that mission and her attendant leadership positions to her superlative LECOM training.

Biondolillo. “I was quickly reminded (by Dr. Silvia) of the dress code policy.”

Dr. Biondolillo, 44, noted that the LECOM commitment to professionalism is one of the superlative and high standards that distinguish the College from other institutions. “LECOM set the stage for professionalism,” he said. “Whether in a pharmacy or in a doctor’s office, one immediately can identify the LECOM student,” beamed Dr. Biondolillo.

Her speciality in Family Medicine appeals deeply to her. “I see all ages and I am not restricted just to being in the office. I am fortunate to make home visits and to engage in nursing home care,” stated the grateful first graduate.

Patricia Matto, DO “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires” ~ William Arthur Ward Dr. Patricia Matto is a LECOM first graduate who evinces Lincoln’s instructive maxim.

Her solid medical education as a member of the first class at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine underpinned her future success as Director of Medical Education at the Danville Regional Medical Center (DRMC) in Danville, Virginia; a career in medical education and clinical practice that has been “extremely rewarding and beyond challenging,” according to Dr. Matto.

Born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, and completing her undergraduate education at Gannon University, Dr. Matto is humbled to note that she is the only physician in her family.

“I am pretty sure that I was the very first applicant interview on Good Friday in April of 1993! Dry wall was still showing in the LECOM entrance and plastic was everywhere,” Dr. Matto chuckled. “It is powerful now to know, at present, that I attended the largest medical school in the country,” she reflected.

Dr. Matto highlighted a positive and professional instruction grounded in the pursuit of exceptionalism as the essence of her LECOM training.

10 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

“As for the role that LECOM has played in my success, there is no doubt that I was exposed almost daily to family medicine faculty, both at the school and in the community; and I still know that I can reach out to them at any moment for guidance,.

If I may mention, John Kalata, DO and Douglas Grisier, DO have been role models to me all this time,” she commented.

LECOM honed Dr. Matto as a superior physician, cultivating in her the estimable attributes of a health care professional.

“LECOM underscored that one’s appearance and one’s actions speak volumes about one’s character,” noted Dr. Matto.

Indeed, Dr. Matto has represented her alma mater well. She has garnered special appointments to the Virginia Academy of Family Physicians as a Board Member and Co-Chair of the Resident and Student Committee; and she has applied for the ACOFP Fellow Award for 2015.

Husband, Brian and their four children: Jessica, Jacob, Sydney, and Savannah along with their dog: Jasper, bring Dr. Matto the most personal joy.

The unparalleled training and first-rate medical education offered by LECOM defined the first graduates - physicians such as Dr. Matto. As William Arthur Ward states, the well taught continues to teach - a lesson clearly personified by Dr. Patti Matto.

programs offered at the LECOM Bradenton campus. “He (Frankie) loves the programs at LECOM and he seems to have been bitten by the medicine bug, just like Dad,” noted the proud father. Like LECOM whose professionalism and leadership, Dr. Biondolillo so well personifies - his actions are inspiring others to “dream more, to learn more, to do more” and to lead in every sense of the word.

Leadership also was instilled in the students from the very outset. Dr. Biondolillo commented that he, and his 37 classmates in the Class of 1997, set the benchmark of attainment for other classes.

Frank Biondolillo, DO “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” ~ John Quincy Adams Dr. Frank Biondolillo, entered LECOM in 1993, without the knowledge that one day, he would be an alumnus of the largest medical school in the nation.

“The LECOM administration had the vision to seize the moment and to make LECOM a leader in medical education,” said Dr. Biondolillo, who now makes his home in Sarasota, Florida. “Truly, it is amazing to see all that LECOM has accomplished since I entered the school with the first class,” the physician pronounced.

A native of Buffalo, New York, Dr. Biondolillo sought to attend a medical school near his home. When he heard about a new school opening less than two hours away, he welcomed the chance to make history.

“I wanted to get in on the ground floor of something special,” Dr. Biondolillo explained.

“As a group, the first class was very diverse,” continued the doctor. “All of us were in this together and we were going to follow through - all the way to graduation.”

The LECOM emphasis upon professionalism was evident from the very first day of class.

Dr. Biondolillo recounted an occasion during which he was tapped on the shoulder by LECOM Provost, Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs, Silvia Ferretti, DO for a dress code violation. “After a long day, I had tried to make my way to another lecture wearing scrubs and a lab coat, instead of changing into a shirt and tie,” recalled Dr.

Dr. Biondolillo marked his most important contribution as that of giving back to current LECOM students as a clinical preceptor.

“The LECOM students with whom I work during clinical rotations are exceptional.

They are not timid or passive, they jump right in and they want to learn,” he remarked. “I am very proud to be able to give back to students in the same way that someone else, years ago, gave back to me.

To think that someone took the time to teach and to make me the physician that I am today...how could I not give back?”

Dr. Biondolillo and his wife, Marcie have two children, Frankie (16) and Giada (8).

The couple watched with pride as their son participated in the Medical Science Academy and Human Body Explored

Dr. Harrison holds close to his heart many special recollections of his years at LECOM. “The incredulous look on Dr. John Ferretti’s face when we answered incorrectly to his internal medicine question while on rotation at Millcreek Hospital was priceless,” he chuckled.

“I remember classmate, George Amann’s uncanny ability to boil down 100 pages of notes into a two page study guide - also priceless,” reminisced the wistful first graduate.

“Because we were the first class, we were the de facto leaders,” he averred.

“Leadership is something that you are called to do - to lead by example, to accept responsibility - and LECOM fostered that character within each student,” asserted a grateful Dr. Biondolillo. “I would not be where I am today without LECOM.” Since being graduated from LECOM, Dr. Biondolillo has become a leader in the field of emergency medicine. He is the Medical Director of the Emergency Department of The Villages Regional Hospital in The Villages, Florida and serves as Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine for LECOM. Dr. Biondolillo also is a fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians, and he is a member of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine and the American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians.

“At LECOM, I learned the very best aspects of leadership; I learned that it was important to be a good follower in the form of being an intent listener,” commented the astute physician.

Kurt D. Harrison, DO

Dr. Harrison sought to “call out” his fond regards to other graduates who shared the First Class distinction. He articulated greetings to Frank Biondolillo and to his summer anatomy classmates as he reflected upon countless hours of study with his fellow scholars. He offered thanks to a classmate in the osteopathic manipulative treatment lab who “saved him” in a study crisis, recognizing Dawn V. and Lisa S. “as the calm amidst the storm.”

Dr. Kurt Harrison remembers well his experience as a member of the first class at LECOM. He recounted with great wit (and remarkable accuracy) many humorous interactions that he had enjoyed with fellow “Firsts.”

Of Fred, Bob, Don, Dan, and the “Philadelphia boys,” Eric and Mikey, and of so many others who made his memories of learning and of finding his calling, Dr. Harrison spoke ebulliently. “To all of my classmates, I miss you all,” he offered.

With an active and thriving Osteopathic Obstetrics and Gynecology practice - one that he shares with one partner in Fremont, Ohio - Dr. Harrison gives bounteous kudos to the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) for providing to him an adroitly focused course of training and exceptional leadership skills.

“Thank you, LECOM,” stated Dr. Harrison, “for a comprehensive, compassionate, service-oriented education;” and “my thanks too, for successfully guiding us through the Boards,” he furthered.

As an OBGYN, a Fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOOG), and a member of its Membership and Promotions Committee, Dr. Harrison has put those leadership skills to the test.

He has served as Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Promedica Memorial Hospital for the past seven years; noting that he welcomes the fast pace and occasional drama of an ObGyn/surgical practice.

Dr. Harrison and his wife, Alison, have five children: Hunter (18), Katie (17), Spencer (15), Chase (12), and Kurty (11).

As a symbol of the legacy and lasting impact of a LECOM education, Dr. Harrison concluded his delightful amble down memory lane by reminding readers that the baby that he is pictured holding in the very first LECOM yearbook now hopes to attend LECOM in three years!

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 11

Help the students of today . . . . . . become the health care professionals of tomorrow.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine continues growing rapidly, attracting some of the brightest candidates for the College of Osteopathic Medicine, School of Dental Medicine and School of Pharmacy. While LECOM maintains the second lowest private medical school tuition in the country, these students face mounting debt as they complete their education.

Each year, the college conducts fundraisers only for the purpose of providing scholarships to our students. Through these efforts and support from the LECOM community, LECOM students were awarded $3.7 million in scholarship aid this current academic year. And, since we began our scholarship fund, deserving students have received more than $17 million.

Your support of the LECOM Student Scholarship Fund will help deserving students fulfill their dreams of becoming physicians, dentists and pharmacists.

Donate online at lecom.edu/scholarship-fund or by sending your contribution to: LECOM Student Scholarship Fund 1858 West Grandview Blvd.

Erie, PA 16509

The

LECOM Stu d e n t S c h o la r sh i p Fu n d

Duo of Auction Gala Triumphs!

The key to a well-lived life is to keep company only with people who uplift you, whose presence calls forth your best. ~ Epictetus The philanthropic spirit thrives at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. Faculty, family, colleagues, business associates, community leaders, and hosts of LECOM friends are counted among the selfless philanthropists who gather each year to support the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine Student Scholarship Auction Dinner and Gala.

All who so willingly participate in these events recognize that philanthropy does not consist of giving money, rather it centers upon solving problems and building futures. Indeed, those futures lie before the attendees like pure white snow - and each philanthropist knows that the steps trod upon that “snow” create lasting legacies of the possible. For truly, the legacies of tomorrow are earned by the choices made today.

To all of those magnanimous hearts and forward-thinking philanthropists, LECOM offers sincerest gratitude as the words: “Not for ourselves, but for others,” remain the enduring LECOM anthem. @1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 13

2014 LECOM BRADENTON AUCTION GALA DRAWS BIDDERS BUILDING FUTURES Suncoast area leaders, philanthropists, and supporters turned out for the yearly gathering of spirited generosity on the evening of October 11, 2014, as the LECOM Bradenton Student Scholarship Fund Dinner and Auction Gala hosted its tenth annual event. This year, the shimmering and indulgent affair welcomed a plethora of LECOM allies seeking to provide their deepest support through their lively bids as they vied for a vast assortment of donated prizes.

Chaired by LECOM Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Robert George, DO and by Assistant Director of Communication and Marketing, Michael Polin - both of whose indefatigable efforts, team coordination, and superlative attention to detail was unmistakable the evening welcomed LECOM notables including President, John M. Ferretti, DO and Provost, Vice President, and Dean of Academic Affairs, Silvia M. Ferretti, DO who hosted the fundraising festivity at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota Grand Ballroom.

Scholarship recipient and LECOM Bradenton Pharmacy Student, Amanda Peebles, provided the invocation offering a depth of sincere gratitude to God and recognizing those assembled with words of appreciation for the Scholarship Fund.

A personal letter from Florida Governor, Rick Scott, was included in the Gala Program. Governor Scott offered his supportive boost to the LECOM objectives and to the far reaching value of the College.

A delightful cocktail reception was followed by a silent and a live auction at the black-tie affair as the band, Fetch, expertly performed classic rock tunes coupled with fabulously self-styled original songs.

Fetch is comprised of four brothers, two of whom have profound LECOM links. The band holds a special place in the hearts of the LECOM family as the lead singer, John, is a 2010 graduate of the medical school. Currently, he is in family practice in St. Petersburg.

His brother, (drummer) Dominick, is enrolled in the LECOM PostBaccalaureate Program in Erie.

As music quietly wafted above the gentle din of the surveying guests, bids were placed on more than 333 donated items.

Auctioneer, Jeff Burchard, of Auctions Unlimited, encouraged the willing live-auction bidders as the spirit of philanthropy gripped the dedicated attendees and ultimately resulted in several friendly bidding skirmishes.

The benefit and fundraiser for the future LECOM doctors, pharmacists, and dentists is a keenly anticipated October event that provides monies raised to assist the financial needs of matriculating students. The encompassing theme and character of the evening was that of immense support of the students. Noticeably spilling forth from each sponsor and contributor, supporter and bidder, was the palpable sense that the evening was focused upon building futures. The annual event has raised millions and with each passing year, it proves to be even more enlivening. The room boasted many distinguished individuals, political leaders, and organization sponsors whose outstanding contributions to the medical community 14 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

and to the community as a whole make the yearly occasion an unquestioned success.

The bountiful generosity and devoted readiness to advance the scholarship fund indeed proved the mission of the moment, and nowhere was it more evident than at the heart of the senior administration. Several interesting bidding episodes peppered the night, with one such moment occurring as an affable and brief bidding battle for a weeklong trip to Paris. The item - a stay in a lovely flat in the center of Paris with round-trip airfare included in the package - was successfully captured by LECOM Alumnus Gene DiBetta, DO (’10) at the conclusion of a paddle battle.

LECOM student-pharmacists Bella Mogaka (P4), Yareli Maez (P3), Christina Martin (P3) and Ashley Cubillos (P3) served as hosts at the 2014 LECOM Bradenton Student Scholarship Fund Dinner and Auction Gala at the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota, Fla. More than 450 guests bid on 333 items that were available for auction. The event raised $263,000, with all proceeds benefiting LECOM pharmacy, dental and medical students.

As the largest medical school in the country with campuses in Erie and Greensburg, Pennsylvania, the LECOM facility, located in Lakewood Ranch, Florida extends to generations of medical practitioners a dedicated commitment to exceptionalism and to educational distinction. The auction event is evocative of that charge as administrator and attendee alike join in the fund raising bidding.

The cost of a medical school education for the future health care practitioner of today can approach $250,000. The burden upon students to meet the onerous financial obligations while balancing the demands of a rigorous and exacting medical program is arduous. This grand occasion affords significant support and succor to the scholarship recipients. The delight that they found in being part of the program was readily apparent.

The night was a resounding success with 53 sponsored tables accommodated more than 450 guests as they dined and tendered their bids. Some of the more interesting items on the auction block included Club Tickets to the Tampa Bay Rays; a Boca Grande Golf and Resort package; stunning jewelry - among which included a fabulous white diamond and gold drop necklace and a custom-designed amethyst and diamond ring; autographed sports memorabilia; dinner, massage, and hotel packages; a spate of get-away trips; and a variety of appealing baskets to entice the all and sundry tastes of every attendee. A custom-made guitar, meticulously handcrafted by Rockbridge Guitars - a noted guitar maker in North Carolina - drew nearly $4,000. The guitar was graciously donated by bandleader, John Fetchero, DO. Eclipsing the gleam of the gemstones, the delight of the sumptuous dinner graciously provided by the Hyatt, and the imaginings of enthralling vacation destinations was the palpable purpose of the affair - that of the future of medicine and the quality of the doctors, pharmacists and dentists being fostered by those present in the audience. The continuing commitment to excellence advanced and advocated by LECOM remains steadfast. Perhaps even if, at the close of the gala, those in attendance headed home with a less weighty pocket-book or with a slimmer billfold, it is without question that they left in their wake more than dollars as they championed a cause that will surely transform lives for generations to come.

Gregory James, DO and his wife, Holly, enjoyed the festivities. Dr. James is the former President of the Florida Osteopathic Medical Association and Director of Medical Education at St. Petersburg (Fla.) General Hospital, a LECOM affiliate. Dr. James and FOMA have long been supporters of the LECOM Student Scholarship Fund.

Larry Klein DMD; Benco Dental Territory Representative, Kathy Klein; Benco Regional Manager, Durrand Ashford; and LECOM School of Dental Medicine Dean, Robert Hirsch, DDS, were among the guests in attendance at the LECOM 10th Annual Dinner and Auction Gala.

Since the school opened in 2012, Benco Dental has been a proud supporter of the Student Scholarship Fund. Benco was an Emerald sponsor for the 2014 Gala.

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 15

PHILANTHROPISTS FLOOD ERIE STUDENT SCHOLARSHIP GALA WITH LARGEST ATTENDANCE IN AUCTION HISTORY

A record crowd of more than 1,000 at the LECOM Scholarship Auction Gala in Erie was treated to a special performance by John A. Burton (top, left) and Trisha Yates (top, right), cast members from the Erie Playhouse.

During the Auction, Burton and Yates performed songs

The LECOM Student Scholarship Auction Gala held November 1, 2014, at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center was the 21st annual event - and this year, it set a record for attendance. With more than 1,000 guests filling the thronging gathering place, bidders participated eagerly in the event that has become the glimmering gem in the student scholarship crown. The LECOM-sponsored benefit and fundraiser for future doctors, pharmacists, and dentists is an enthusiastically anticipated event that provides monies raised to assist the financial needs of matriculating medical students as they answer their health care calling.

The 2014 offerings at the Erie Scholarship Auction included more than 800 items, presented both in a silent and in a live auction format. Enticing travel getaways to major sightseeing destinations, such as New Orleans or New York City drew competitive bidding exchanges. Fabulous works of art, collectibles, and memorabilia were displayed in brilliantly arrayed settings. Christmas and holiday decorations, including trees bedecked for the festive season to come, offered early options for the holiday shopper seeking to take advantage of gift buying opportunities. Making any sports enthusiast beam with delight were tickets to major sporting events presented in abundance. The theatre-goers were not to be forgotten as theatre offerings and concert event tickets abounded for the highest bidder.

All told, the Live Auction segment of the program included 27 items up for bid. The highest value item ($12,500) was that of an advertising package to run on local television. Two tickets to attend the Phoenix Suns versus the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball game at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland resulted in an affable paddlebattle for the prized Hollywood seats. That contest garnered a final bid of almost $6,000.

Highlighting a captivatingly entertaining portion of the evening program was a four-song snippet from the Erie Playhouse production of Les Miserables. Cast members performed the rapturously compelling music from the inspirational Broadway musical that delighted the audience and set hearts in motion for an enthralling night of meaningful philanthropy. LECOM is the 2014-15 Mainstage Sponsor of the Erie Playhouse.

The Highmark Scholarship announcement dovetailed agreeably with the overall theme of the evening - that of educating osteopathic health care professionals and assisting to defray the costs of such training.

from the hit musical, Les Miserables. Andrew Rainbow, the Music Director for the Playhouse (not shown), served as the accompanist to Burton and to Yates. Their performances were among the many memorable and entertaining moments from the event. LECOM is proud

Even though the LECOM tuition rates are among the lowest in the country, many students still graduate with considerable indebtedness. Since 1994, LECOM has awarded student scholarships totaling more than $17.4 million.

to serve as the 2014-15 Mainstage Season Sponsor for the Erie Playhouse, which will host performances of Les Miserables throughout the month of April.

Every dollar raised at the Auction benefits LECOM students as they pursue their noble dreams of becoming osteopathic physicians, pharmacists, and dentists.

The perfect auction team makes the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) Auction Gala in Erie a yearly success. The 2014 guest list was brimming and those philanthropists in attendance celebrated a night to remember by committing themselves wholly to a cause that truly will make a difference to LECOM students whose dream to become health care professionals may otherwise have been out of reach. Each autumn, the auction buzz across the western Pennsylvania region begins as the community and LECOM partners offer an evening that has become the social event of the season. The Auction in Erie attracts community leaders, LECOM alumni, and businesses who view LECOM as a major community asset. This year boasted the largest participation in the history of the Erie Auction, continuing to demonstrate the degree of impact that LECOM has upon the community.

The more than 200 LECOM students who volunteered at the Auction in numerous capacities - including working as runners, ticket sellers, and as bid spotters - helped ensure that the event ran smoothly and efficiently. The student volunteers included Chanel Choulagh (left), a second-year student pharmacist who modeled one of the auction items during the Live Auction. Paul Robbins, a second-year osteopathic medical student, and his fiancĂŠe, Shailyn Eckman, also were among the volunteers. LECOM is grateful for the efforts of the students and for their many contributions to the overall success of the Auction. Every dollar raised from the event benefits the LECOM Student Scholarship Fund.

The LECOM Erie Gala both inspires and enriches, as those involved and those invited gather with the common and purposed goal - to help support the future generation of health care.

The silent auction portion of the event allows guests to talk amongst themselves while bidding on items. The live auction segment of the program generates a high energy skirmish of bidding that caps the festivities. Yet each aspect of the evening in Erie culminates with the students. LECOM is ever grateful for the overwhelming response that supports the Student Scholarship Fund.

The LECOM Student Scholarship Auction in Erie was the 21st annual event of its kind. It featured a number of special guests, including Dwayne Woodruff (left), Jon Kolb (second from left), and Bruce Baumgartner (second from right). Woodruff and Kolb were key members of the NFL Pittsburgh Steelers’ Super Bowl winning teams.

More than 200 students worked at the Auction Gala as runners, ticket sellers, and as bid spotters for the Live Auction segment of the program. Two former Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl winning team members - Jon Kolb and Dwayne Woodruff - attended as guests of Dr. Karl Falk.

Baumgartner is a former Olympic gold medal wrestler who serves currently as the Director of Athletics at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Woodruff, Kolb, and Baumgartner had some good-natured fun with Karl Falk, DO (right), a physician at Millcreek Community Hospital.

The special guests took time to mingle and to meet

David Holmberg, President and CEO of Highmark, spoke briefly during the Gala to announce the first students to be selected for the prestigious LECOM and Highmark Student-To-Practice Academic Scholarships.

16 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

with the many Steeler fans and others in attendance. In addition to Woodruff, Kolb, and Baumgartner, a number of elected officials, business, and community leaders attended the Gala.

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 17

On behalf of all LECOM students, we wish to express our sincerest appreciation for all of the contributions to the LECOM Student Scholarship Fund. Through the donations of these sponsors and donors, each student has received a scholarship based upon academic achievement and financial need. The cost of obtaining a professional degree places an enormous financial burden upon the students, and many will graduate with a debt of more than $150,000. Through these scholarships, students are able to continue their medical, pharmacy, and dental educations, while reducing indebtedness. Again, we thank you for your generosity in supporting the LECOM Student Scholarship Fund.

Sponsors of the 2014 LECOM Bradenton Scholarship Auction

Emerald Sponsor - $20,000 Benco Dental Crest+Oral B - The Procter and Gamble Company

Diamond Sponsor - $15,000 Meisinger USA

Platinum Sponsor - $10,000 John M. Ferretti, DO Silvia M. Ferretti, DO Dr. and Mrs. Robert George Hyatt Regency Sarasota Southern Dental Industries

Silver Sponsors - $5,000 Coca-Cola Bottling Group Coltene-Whaledent CVS Health Dental Services Group – Clearwater Robert Hemphill, DO Kavo-Kerr Group Jeffrey and Edie Myers Larry Perich, DO – Perich Eye Center Premier Dental Products SHOFU Dental Corporation Vanessa Fine Jewelry Whip Mix Corporation Willis A. Smith Construction, Inc.

Bronze Sponsors - $2,500

Stephen Coppa, DO Jeffrey Grove, DO – Suncoast Family Medical Associates HBKW Insurance – Joseph Kelly Jackson Landscape Professionals, Inc. Grow Financial Credit Union Lakewood Ranch Commercial Realty, Kirk Boylston 18 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

Orlando Magic PAC Land Development Regions Bank Sarasota County Medical Society Wells Fargo

Patron Sponsors - $1,500

BB&T Bank Dr. Francis and Pamela Curd Rebecca A. DeSimone, Esq. Anthony Ferretti, DO Florida Osteopathic Medical Association (FOMA) FOMA District 7 John A. Freeman – Raymond James Investments Lakewood Ranch Dr. Anton and Susan Gotlieb Dean and Mrs. Robert Hirsch Horizon Insurance Hospital Corporation of America – Blake Medical Center Jan-Pro of Manasota K&K Enterprises of Sarasota Kaplan Manatee Healthcare System John and Michelle McKay – TBC Consultants Neal Communities Tim Novak Park Avenue Dermatology – Drs. George and Mary Schmieder Pittsburgh Pirates and Bradenton Marauders Mark A. Romer, DDS TGM Properties – The Yacht Club Vanguard Advanced Pharmacy SystemsOmnicare Inc. VitalSource Technologies Walgreens Pharmacy

Sponsors of the 2014 LECOM Erie Scholarship Auction Presenting Sponsor - $40,000 PNC Bank

Prmiere Sponsor - $35,000 Sherry Bauer

Principle Sponsor - $30,000 First National Bank Vantage Healthcare UBS Group

Major Sponsor - $25,000 Coca Cola Mary L. Eckert John M. Ferretti, DO Silvia M. Ferretti, DO Esther J. Fucci

Emerald Sponsor - $20,000

Erie Community Foundation Millcreek Community Hospital Medical Staff Pittsburgh Foundation WAPA Orris Hirtzel Foundation

Diamond Sponsor - $15,000 Richard P. Olinger Hubbard Bert, Inc. Suzanne Kelley, DO

Platinum Sponsor - $10,000

Erdman Company Hagan Business Machines LECOM John M. & Silvia Ferretti Medical Fitness & Wellness Center Senator Durell Peaden, MD & Nancy Peaden Seton Hill University Suomi, Inc./Interra Furnishings Walgreens

Gold Sponsor - $7,500

Building Systems, Inc. Church & Murdock Electric, Inc. Coffee Culture Dennis & Sandy Styn King Communications Northwestern Mutual Insurance Company Power Wellness Rabe Environmental Systems, Inc. Scott Enterprises WICU, WSEE, & The CW

Silver Sponsors - $5,000 Allegheny Health Network Bianchi Motors Church Hill Classics Corporation Friend of LECOM Gannon University Hershey Bell, MD & Marianne Bell Howard Hanna Real Estate Insurance Management

Joseph & Susan Kelly Judith Zboyovski Knox McLaughlin Gornall & Sennett LECOM Seton Hill Faculty and Staff LM Wander & Sons Lord Marquette Savings Bank Medical Associates of Erie Millcreek Community Hospital Morgan Stanley Networking Technologies Rite Aid Victorian Princess/Daniel O’Neill Vincent Fierro, DO WJET, Fox 66, Yourerie.com

Bronze Sponsors - $2,500

Antique Gallery Arent Fox, LLP Barber National Institute Books Are Fun Cadenhead Development, Inc. CVS Pharmacy Dan & Kitty Ann Nick Dolores Kutzer, PharmD Douglas Grisier, DO and Kathryn Grisier Erie Otters Hockey FastSigns Fiber Solutions First Energy/Penelec Frank Tursi, DO George H. Althof Plumbing, Inc Howard Industries Irv Freeman JD & Julie Freeman, JD James Lin, DO & Emma Lin Jan Hendryx, DO Joan Moore, DO John and Colleen Bloomstine Joseph McCormick Construction (Owen McCormick) Karl Falk, DO Keyser Consulting Group Lawrence Gabel, PhD and Marilyn Gabel LECOM School of Pharmacy Malady & Wooten Mark Kauffman, DO & Michele Kauffman, JD Northwest Savings Bank Paul and Debbie Hakel PremCom Raymond Seifert, DO and Carol Seifert Shawn & Julie Liebel Steve & Dana Demetriou The Hammocks of Millcreek Thomas Czarnecki, DO

Patron Sponsors - $1,500 A. Anthony & Sons, Inc. AICUP Distribution All That Glitters

Allegheny Health Network Anthony & Joseph Coppola, DO Armando Ricci, DO and Beth Ann Ricci, DO B. F. Fields Moving and Storage Christopher Carbo, DO & Ann Marie Carbo Contemporary Motorcar, Inc Danielle Hansen, DO & Corey Hansen David Cercone, Esq Douglas Fronzaglia, DO & Angela Fronzaglia Regan Shabloski, DO and Cheryl Moore, DO E4 Services, LLC Edinboro University Edward Faber, DO Engel O’Neill ENT Specialists of NWPA Eric Milie, DO & Christina Milie Erica Grazioli, DO & John Grazioli Erie Bank Erie Bayhawks/Erie Elite Basketball Fernando Melaragno, DO and Kimberly Melaragno First Niagara Bank Friends of Sean Wiley Healogics Health Fusion and Sol Lizerbram, DO Highmark Jason Goldberg, DO & Candace Goldberg John & Sandy Wojtkielewicz John Balmer, DO and Patricia Balmer John Kalata, DO Joyce Savocchio Kathryn Zboyovski LifeWorks Erie Lynne & Richard Miller Maleno Development Maplevale Farms Mark Terrell, PhD Mercyhurst University Millcreek Community Hospital Psychiatrists Miller Travel Services Phil & Chris English Philip Cacchione, DO and Beth Cacchione Ranko Barac, DO & Melissa Barac, PharmD Richard Ortoski, DO Robert George, DO & Goldie George Ronald Esper, DO & Kathleen Esper Roselle and Stan Walkiewicz Saint Vincent Health Center Scally Wags Sodexo Stairways Steven O’Donnell, DO & Diamilet O’Donnell Thomas and Lorraine Wedzik Tiny Tim’s Fishing Charters Urban Engineers Village Surgicenter of Erie, Inc. Vital Source Westbury United Methodist Community William Phelps, MD

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 19

LECOM Alumni

FLATTENING THE LEARNING CURVE

Josh Courtney, DO

Mark Kauffman, DO

Every new day, we are learning by listening, teaching by our actions, and we graduate as we move from one phase of our life to another.

Few know more about active learning and learning systems than does LECOM alumnus, Joshua Courtney, DO.

Mark Kauffman, DO, a Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) Class of 2000 graduate, is the COMLEX Level 2 PE instructor for COMBANK. He wrote the textbook entitled: History and Physical Examination: A Common Sense Approach, published

by Jones and Bartlett Learning.

Dr. Courtney is a licensed Anesthesiologist practicing in Charlotte, North Carolina; and he is the Founder and Chief Medical Officer of TrueLearn, a leading E-Learning company that specializes in testbased assessment and preparation for high-stakes medical licensure examinations. TrueLearn is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and it employs more than 100 physicians across the United States. The TrueLearn product suite includes learning tools specifically designed for medical students who are preparing for the COMLEX-USA and the USMLE examinations, and for physicians seeking Board Certification in the fields of Anesthesiology, General Surgery, and Emergency Medicine.

Joshua is also the Founder of COMBANK, which has helped to prepare over 40,000 osteopathic medical students nationwide for their COMLEX-USA examinations. COMBANK works with osteopathic colleges to integrate effectively the key board preparation techniques and materials into the academic curriculum.

Joshua has lectured at more than 20 osteopathic medical colleges, and he enjoys interacting with medical students to help them to achieve their personal goals on the licensure examinations and to match into their desired specialties of medicine.

20 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

Not only is Dr. Kauffman an author, but additionally, he developed the LECOM Accelerated Physician Assistant Pathway (APAP), the highly acclaimed three-year curriculum employed by LECOM to train physician assistants who seek to return to medical school. The unique and cutting-edge program is regarded by those who seek to become physicians as a pivotal opportunity to advance one’s training to the fullest extent of the medical calling. Dr. Kauffman is also the Assistant Dean of Graduate Studies.

“The world steps aside to let any man pass if he knows where he is going;” so said the Greek stoic philosopher, Epictetus. The LECOM alumni and staff involved in the foregoing platforms are a testament to this truism as they work to flatten the learning curve in the advancement of academic excellence.

As a side note, all of the online videos for COMBANK and all of the videos for the History and Physical Examination textbook (as well as the majority of the still photographs for the textbook) were taken by Eric Nicastro, LECOM Assistant Director of Communication. Nicastro’s freelance company, ZoomAndFocus.com | Digital Cinema specializes in high-end digital cinematography and photography.

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 21

SIMPLY SUPERB SIM-LAB LECOM Partners with Florida Hospital East Orlando to offer Simulation Laboratory

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) and Florida Hospital East Orlando (FHEO) have partnered to showcase their joint commitment to the community with the unveiling of a state-of-the-art medical simulation laboratory.

Florida Hospital East Orlando Director of Medical Education, Patricio Bruno, DO; LECOM Associate Dean of Clinical Education, Anthony Ferretti, DO and Florida Hospital East

LECOM contributed $100,000 to the project at the FHEO, which boasts an innovative lab wherein physicians, nurses, and medical students may refine their skills by using mannequins and patient simulators in their training.

The devices mimic heart attack, childbirth, and a host of other medical conditions that are encountered by physicians during real life situations.

Orlando Administrator and Senior Vice President, Michael Thompson, celebrate the opening of the Center for Simulation and Education at Florida Hospital East Orlando. LECOM donated $100,000 to the project, which boasts an innovative lab wherein physicians, nurses, and medical students refine their skills by using mannequins and patient simulators in their training. The devices simulate heart attack, childbirth, and other medical conditions that are encountered by physicians in real life situations.

LECOM third- and fourth-year students and residents practice a

A unique feature of the simulation lab consists of a video system that allows students to critique themselves by watching recordings made during their training sessions.

Bedside manner, greetings, and nutrition checks can be assessed immediately as the student enters the room. The comprehensive simulation lab includes three hospital simulation rooms, a skills laboratory with 16 work stations, and a high-tech lecture hall. The simulation rooms are linked together by a central command center whereby instructors deploy and monitor various clinical scenarios that are recorded for later educational review.

The lab will be used for a variety of illustrative activities, ranging from training in every day medical skills, to preparing for infectious disease outbreaks.

superlative medical institutions, such as Florida Hospital East Orlando, to improve and to broaden health care education and training.

First-year family medicine resident, Miranda McGahan, DO (14), noted that success in the simulation lab correlates to a high quality of care for patients. “The fact that we can run through the simulation process with our residents and medical students is crucial to good medical training,” commented the LECOM Bradenton alumna.

“The Sim will play a significant role in preparing us for the time that we are actually out of training,” she concluded.

LECOM third- and fourth-year students have long been a part of the Florida Hospital clinical rotation program in Orlando; a program that offers 32 core rotation slots.

That offering comes in addition to the 50 post-graduate residency spots that also are available to students. Two LECOM alumni from the Class of 2012: Paul Zipper, DO (Erie campus) and Douglas Haus, DO (Bradenton campus) currently are serving as Chief Residents at the Hospital in Family Medicine and Emergency Medicine, respectively.

“LECOM students are - bar none - the best,” asserted Dr. Bruno. “LECOM is a known product and their students never disappoint. That is the reason that we have increased our rotation and our residency capacity. We want to keep that relationship thriving,” he stated.

procedure on a patient simulator at the Florida Hospital East Orlando new simulation lab.

LECOM students are part of the Florida Hospital clinical rotation program; a program that offers 32 core rotation slots. That offering comes in addition to the 50 post-graduate residency

“The simulation lab provides a hands-on learning environment that enhances the quality and safety of patient care,” said Patricio Bruno, DO, Director of Medical Education at Florida Hospital East Orlando. “The staff uses the lab to explore and to perfect new clinical processes, crisis management techniques, advanced teamwork models, and educational research studies,” he furthered.

spots that also are available to students. Two LECOM alumni from the Class of 2012: Paul

The new sim center further exemplifies the continuous growth and commitment of LECOM as it partners with

Dr. Bruno explained that when one combines rotation and residency spots, there are approximately 40 to 50 LECOM students and graduates working at the Hospital.

LECOM remains ever committed to advancing technologies and services that provide and improve a full range of educational opportunities, not only for its own students, but for the community at large. This simply superb sim lab is yet one more example of that fervent commitment.

Zipper, DO (Erie campus) and Douglas Haus, DO (Bradenton campus) currently are serving as Chief Residents at the Hospital in the Family Medicine and Emergency Medicine programs, respectively.

22 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 23

PRIMARY CARE

LECOM MEDICAL STUDENT COMPLETES WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION INTERNSHIP During the summer of 2014, LECOM second-year medical student, Sindhoori Nalla, spent nearly two months working with the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland. The Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) in which Nalla took part, seeks to eradicate global povertygenerated diseases such as Malaria, Chagas Disease, Dengue Fever, Onchocerciasis, Tuberculosis, and Leprosy.

These, and other diseases, are prevalent in impoverished countries. Nalla was responsible for assisting with the development of a database that will allow researchers (and others who have worked previously with, or who have received grants from, the Programme) to collaborate and to develop innovative methods of treatment.

The database will include nearly 3,000 people around the world, including future WHO grant recipients. Expounded Nalla, “It will be an important step toward fighting disease in these countries by enabling, facilitating, and strengthening research. The end result will be more effective medications and methods of treatment.” The triumph of modern medicine in extirpating certain diseases is a real and powerful objective in combating disease in underdeveloped areas of the world.

Nalla expressed solicitude for the advancement of global health care; and her exceedingly personable, well-spoken, and intelligent assessment of her experiences reflect well upon her training at LECOM. “The WHO TDR Programme is an example of technology and research improving global health,” averred Nalla.

The fact that a LECOM student participated in an internship steeped in a deeply prestigious, and internationally known organization speaks well of LECOM and of Nalla. The international internship experience underscores a well-recognized fact that LECOM scholars rank among the best and the brightest of students attending any medical school in the country. Nalla is very grateful for her experience with the WHO, explaining that it afforded to her a new and truly global perspective upon health care issues.

Nalla’s internship was undertaken in conjunction with the Duke University Program on Global Policy and Governance, which allowed her to participate in a course entitled: “Health Policy in a Globalizing World,” that focused upon topics such as innovation and access to global health, nutrition, antimicrobial resistance, and non-

CONFERENCE

communicable diseases.

“The course was a great way in which to gain a broader perspective of the multitude of health issues that require a coordinated, global approach,” said Nalla.

Nalla called her internship - which LECOM helped to fund through a scholarship - “the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Commented Nalla, “Working with the World Health Organization gave me a valuable new perspective upon health care on a global scale. I am very grateful to LECOM.” The experience highlighted the importance of the multifaceted role of health care providers in improving health for all, and especially for disadvantaged populations.

Preventive measures, health literacy, and mobilizing communities can make a significant difference in overall health and life expectancy. Nalla hopes to build upon her experience as she continues her LECOM education.

Success is in the details: the patience, persistence, and perspiration that make an unbeatable combination for achievement. Second year scholar, Sindhoori Nalla, seems well on her way to finding success as an outstanding osteopathic physician.

MARCH 6-8, 2015

PRESENTED BY:

Primary Care 2015 offers a unique learning experience for physicians and health care professionals seeking to learn the latest information on medical advancements and treatment options. LECOM faculty and guest lecturers will present topics pertinent to primary care physicians, as well as specialists.

Primary Care 2015 will focus on health problems commonly seen in the offices of primary care physicians. The objective of this three-day seminar is to provide participating physicians with information about new medical advancements in order to increase the scope of treatment options available to primary care physicians and to enhance the physicians' existing knowledge of topics that will be covered. Following Primary Care 2015, the physician should be able to apply this new medical information in diagnosis and treatment, thus improving patient care.

PHYSICIAN REGISTRATION PRIMARY CARE 2015

To register, visit lecom.edu/cme Registration and fee deadline: March 3, 2015

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine anticipates Primary Care 2015 being approved for up to 20 AOA Category I-A CME credit hours pending approval by the AOA CCME. LECOM anticipates this activity will be approved for up to 20 prescribed credits by the American Academy of Family Physicians. An application for CME credit will be filed with the American Academy of Family Physicians. Determination of credit is pending. Primary Care 2015 will include up to 5 hours devoted to patient safety and risk management requirements.

PRIMARY CARE IN SARASOTA August 16-21, 2015 • Hyatt Regency, Sarasota, Florida

24 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

2015

Can’t attend our conference at Peek’n Peak? Save the date for our summer CME conference in Sarasota, Florida, August 16-21.

WHITE COAT CEREMONIES AT LECOM ERIE AND LECOM AT SETON HILL EMPOWER CLASS OF 2018

First-year Doctor of Pharmacy and Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine students recently participated in White Coat ceremonies. Receiving the white coat, which represents integrity and professionalism, is an important milestone for the students. Photos clockwise, from top left: Members of the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Class of 2018 at LECOM Erie campus receive their White Coats. Samuel Urick, DO, a 2008 LECOM graduate and Internal Medicine Physician with St. Clair Medical Services, gave the Keynote Address to the DO Class of 2018 in Erie. Top right: members of the DO Class of 2018 at LECOM at Seton Hill received their White Coats. Samuel G. Marcotullio, DO, a 2002 LECOM graduate and Hospitalist in Internal Medicine, with Premier Medical Associates, gave the Keynote Address to the DO Class of 2018 at LECOM at Seton Hill. Bottom left: the 143 members of the LECOM Doctor of Pharmacy Class of 2017 recited the Pledge of Professionalism. Nathan Dahl, PharmD, a 2011 LECOM graduate and Hematology/Oncology Clinical Pharmacist at the Mayo Clinic, gave the Keynote Address to the PharmD Class of 2017.

26 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

LECOM first-year Doctor of Pharmacy and Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine students undertook a significant and symbolic step in their health care careers as they participated in the 2014 White Coat ceremonies. The receiving of the white coat connotes a pivotal benchmark for the students as they complete their first semester of medical training and as they now prepare to make the transition from pre-clinical education to the more clinical aspects of their studies.

Dr. Urick’s remarks highlighted the symbolic relevance of the traditional white coat. “At first, it will be merely an empty white coat, but truly it will become part of their identity as osteopathic physicians,” he assured. “When the students recite the Osteopathic Pledge of Commitment, they will begin to understand the importance of preserving the health and the life of their patients and of retaining their confidence and respect, both as physician and friend,” he remarked.

On September 20, 2014, two LECOM graduates - who, themselves, once participated as students in the venerable coating ceremonies - served as Keynote Speakers at the Erie event. Speaking warmly of their time at LECOM, Nathan Dahl, Pharm.D., a 2011 LECOM graduate and Hematology/Oncology Clinical Pharmacist at the Mayo Clinic along with LECOM Bradenton graduate, Sam Urick, DO, a private practice, Board-Certified internal medicine physician with St. Clair Medical Services, offered practical and useful advice to the newly-coated class

The LECOM campus at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pa., held its White Coat ceremony on Saturday, October 4, 2014, for its 104 first year medical students. Samuel G. Marcotullio, DO, a 2002 LECOM graduate and Hospitalist in Internal Medicine with Premier Medical Associates of Monroeville, Pa., presented the Keynote Address in the Performing Arts Center at Seton Hill University. Dr. Marcotullio affirmed the sure success of the first year students at LECOM at Seton Hill provided that they are willing to work hard. “Give this challenge ahead of you all that you have; give it everything that you have got,” he exhorted the listening students.

His words filled the center with a deep sense of purposeful spirit.

“Be courteous, be collegial, be humble and be compassionate,” he added. The inspirational and wholly-welcomed remarks resonated with the students as they venture forth to answer the calling of their lives.

Dr. Dahl emphatically noted the value of developing trust with patients. He explained that pharmacists consistently are ranked at, or quite near, the top of all professions with respect to honesty and ethical standards. “Patients place a great deal of faith in their pharmacists to provide exceptional care,” expounded Dr. Dahl.

“This trust allows us, as pharmacists, to make use of our extensive knowledge in medication therapy to help improve patient outcomes, to increase adherence, and to optimize medication regimens in collaboration with prescribers,” he furthered.

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 27

THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIP LECOM Scholars Receive Highmark Scholarship While the nation works through the turbulence in the current health care climate, it remains the pledge of the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) to face those challenges with bold partners who possess a shared vision with the college. It is the supreme offering of generosity and the profound charge of organizations such as Highmark that seek a better tomorrow through the great efforts made today; efforts that reinforce the promise of an improved health care system where all may receive the best care – and where institutions such as LECOM stand ever in the vanguard to care for and to serve the rural and underserved populations of our communities.

Based in Pittsburgh, Highmark Inc. is among the largest health insurers in the United States and it is the fourth-largest Blue Cross and Blue Shield-affiliated company. Highmark and its diversified businesses and affiliates operate health insurance plans in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and West Virginia that serve 5.2 million members.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine is the largest medical college in the nation and its only Osteopathic Academic Health Center. With three campuses, a state-of-the-art Health and Wellness Center, a hospital system and an extensive list of affiliates and outreach platforms, LECOM leads the way in medical and academic excellence - and it ranks fourth in the nation in the training of Primary Care physicians.

This powerful partnership between LECOM and Highmark Health was broadcast officially last year in April - an announcement that revealed the establishment of a substantial, five year – $500,000 scholarship contribution to LECOM with the intended goal to increase the supply and retention of physicians within rural areas of Pennsylvania - places where compassionate care and selfless service are most needed.

On November 6, 2014, LECOM again welcomed representatives from Highmark, including Dr. Donald R. Fischer, Senior Vice

President and Chief Medical Officer, who announced the first students to be chosen for the Highmark Scholarship.

It was a proud moment for LECOM, for Highmark, and certainly for the five grateful scholarship recipients: Gabriella Chibbaro, Catherine Conway, Adrien Ennis, Anthony Cocciolone, and Samuel Sawyer.

The grand achievement draws to mind a key motivation that underscores each scholars’ call to rural primary care. Whether it is Gabriella Chibbaro’s compassion; Catherine Conway’s personal patient interaction; Adrien Ennis’ commitment to accessibility of quality care; Anthony Cocciolone’s whole-body personal focus; or Samuel Sawyer whose grandfather’s rural practice stirs his motivation - the Highmark Scholarship will support and benefit LECOM students throughout their four years of medical school and it will address the needs of rural and underserved areas for years to come.

“As scholarship recipients, we know well that developing long-term relationships with patients is one of the most rewarding aspects of becoming a physician. Though we certainly recognize that all specialties of medicine are important, we also believe that primary care affords us the best opportunity to work collaboratively with patients to improve their health and wellness, not merely to treat a list of symptoms,” averred scholarship recipient, Catherine Conway.

Ralph Waldo Emerson reminded us that “The task ahead of us is never as great as the power behind us.” With such fervor, the Highmark Scholarship supports the LECOM mission - a mission of serving others that ever has been the LECOM hallmark. Quite notably, LECOM currently has core third-year and fourth-year clinical rotation sites at 164 clinics, hospitals, and health care centers located within rural underserved communities; nearly half of those are located within Pennsylvania. The Lake Erie Consortium for Osteopathic Post-graduate Training (LECOMPT) has 37 teaching affiliates for residency training – including 17 teaching hospitals – most of which are located in or near underserved rural communities.

The less urban region of Pennsylvania finds 700 DO graduates practicing or training there, with 300 of those physicians living in rural counties outside of Erie and Pittsburgh. Evidence proves that medical students completing rural rotations are likely to remain in that community. According to a recent report in the Journal of Academic Medicine, LECOM ranks second in the number of physician graduates who practice in Appalachia. Of course, the LECOM facts and figures are impressive – but most important, beyond the tallies and the firsts, beyond the percentages and the totals – is the student who will go on to serve and to care for the patient.

“There are so many smart, motivated, and talented osteopathic medicine students at LECOM that selecting the recipients of the Scholarship was a challenge,” noted Dr. Fischer as he presented the awards.

As the five superlative scholarship recipients can attest, the calling of a medical professional is replete with healing possibilities and selfless purpose - a calling that they have shown to embrace fully.

LECOM is supremely fortunate to have within its midst a number of exceptionally outstanding scholars possessed of truly caring hearts and compassionate spirits - indeed those who mirror the LECOM mission. These profoundly purposed young scholars who have met the rigorous criteria of the Highmark Scholarship stand apart from an already estimable amalgam of students.

Through the power of partnership, LECOM and Highmark will create a better future for these five students (and for others who will follow them) - as they each receive $20,000 to pay toward their Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Degrees. As these students rotate through the Allegheny Health Network, they will find their home in the rural communities, and they will see the purpose of their calling that encourages them to remain within these areas most needful of their service - bringing the power of partnership to its fullest and most fruitful result.

Photo, far right: Silvia Ferretti, DO (far left), of LECOM and Donald R. Fischer, MD (center), of Highmark announced the first five students to be chosen for the scholarship. From left to right, Anthony Cocciolone, Gabriella Chibbaro, Catherine Conway, Adrien Ennis, and Samuel Sawyer. The students will practice in primary care in designated physician shortage areas.

28 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 29

For nearly a quarter of a century, LECOM has been a steadfast partner with the Safe Kids Program throughout the Erie region.

The venerable program has benefitted the community by providing safety-related equipment to local families and by hosting events designed to raise awareness and to educate parents and children that most injuries to children can be prevented. Among its many focus areas, the program highlights poison prevention; fire and water safety; as well as traffic, school bus, bicycle, and car-seat safety. LECOM was the first safety partner of SafeKids Erie and the College is now its lead agency.

LECOM Provost, Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs, Silvia M. Ferretti, DO, believes in the goals of the program and in the good that it carries forth into the community. She seeks to ensure that the future of the Program is secure. Patty Puline, a former employee of the Erie County Department of Health (the agency that previously oversaw the SafeKids Program) is now a LECOM employee as a result of the Program transition to LECOM and she will serve as the SafeKids administrator and coordinator. The decision by LECOM to assume responsibility for SafeKids Erie is yet another example (like the LECOM partnership with LifeWorks Erie) of the enduring LECOM commitment to serving the community.

In keeping with its mission of promoting improved health for all, LECOM recently announced that it will become the lead agency for the Safe Kids Erie program. On hand for the announcement were: (l-r) Silvia Ferretti, DO, LECOM Provost, Senior Vice President, and Dean of Academic Affairs; Patty Puline, the Program Coordinator; and Melissa C. Lyon, Director of the Erie County Department of Health, which previously administered the program. Safe Kids Erie will be a perfect fit with LECOM because of the abiding commitment to community that LECOM unswervingly supports and advances.

A Press Conference to announce the program transition was held on September 24, 2014 to mark an important point in the journey of the SafeKids Coalition as the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine follows through to a comfortable place of comprehensive leadership.

Join the LECOM Family of Physicians Treating Erie’s Families

As the largest medical school in the nation, LECOM is training the next generation of health care professionals at campuses in Erie and Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and in Bradenton, Florida. LECOM firmly believes in being a partner with these communities, in part, through its indefatigable efforts to improve health care for all. These efforts often are designed for those who have a difficult time accessing care. The LECOM commitment to service, and to providing care where it is most needed, is an integral part of the LECOM mission.

LECOM students volunteer many hours to better the health and to safeguard the welfare of the youngest and the most vulnerable members of the community. SafeKids Erie - led by LECOM -remains dedicated to the mission of preventing injuries, saving young lives, and promulgating health.

We are the physicians of the Clinical Practices of LECOM. Our goal is to provide our patients with the very best osteopathic, whole person care – mind, body and spirit – for a lifetime of optimal health.

You can become part of the osteopathic profession’s only Academic Health Center led by the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.

We’re currently looking to hire physicians for Neurology, Podiatry and Pediatrics for our growing practices.

Since 1991, the Safe Kids Erie program has worked to educate parents and families, and to raise awareness that injuries to children can, and should be, prevented. Safe

Please contact Dennis Styn at (814) 868-2504 or dstyn@lecom.edu to learn more about available opportunities.

Kids Erie areas of focus include: poison prevention, fire safety, water safety, traffic

Averred Dr. Ferretti, “Often, it has been said that ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’ The number of families who have benefitted from SafeKids Erie is proof that this old adage still holds true.”

and school bus safety, and bicycle safety. The program makes available to parents: child car seats, bicycle helmets, smoke detectors, home safety kits, and other safetyrelated devices. Under LECOM leadership, the program also will address head injury prevention, sports safety, bullying and violence prevention, and more.

LECOM CLINICAL PRACTICES

30 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

The road to our future begins always in our past.

Nowhere is this truism more evident than in Erie, Pennsylvania, and nowhere is it more defined than by the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine. The unremitting LECOM focus to better the community and to care passionately for its citizens has been ever central to all that is LECOM. Perhaps that is just one reason that the LECOM Institute for Successful Aging has been the fastest growing geriatric health program in the Erie Region. In the span of only five years, the Institute has introduced innovative programs that are designed to add life to one’s years, rather than simply adding years to one’s life.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) Institute for Successful Aging has added a new educational dimension for older adults by incorporating LifeWorks Erie into the LECOM family of health and education services. With triumphant past efforts clearing the way to future endeavors, LECOM plans to bring about a higher level of health and wellness to the community that it calls “home.”

LifeWorks Erie is the provider of relevant and contemporary programs, services, and lifelong learning opportunities for individuals age 50 and older. LECOM and LifeWorks Erie share a common goal of working with adults who wish to remain active, both mentally and physically, and those who desire to lead healthful and vibrant lives. The LECOM Institute for Successful Aging, through its geriatric specialists, offers primary care and consultative clinical services that work with primary care physicians. With the Institutes support, LifeWorks Erie will expand and enhance its programs and services to reach a broader group of people and it will work with them to help them remain in good health and live longer, more productive lives. The alliance will expand the continuum of care offered by the Institute, beginning by addressing the needs of very active adults and extending detailed attention to those elderly individuals who require enhanced geriatric medical care.

Rochelle Krowinski (L), CEO of LifeWorks and James Lin, DO (R), Director of the LECOM Institute for Successful Aging and Vice President of Senior Services & Adult Living for the Millcreek Health System

LECOM INCORPORATES LIFEWORKS ERIE INTO THE FAMILY OF HEALTH AND EDUCATION SERVICES 32 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

By integrating LifeWorks Erie into the Institute for Successful Aging, more diverse health care services will reach more citizens throughout the Erie region.

Geriatric specialists work with family physicians, patients, and families to encourage independence and to share decision-making as they outline the appropriate plan of care. Wholly within the same health care campus, the Institute team can diagnosis and treat an acute illness, perform surgery, provide transitional care after surgery, and facilitate short term and long term rehabilitation.

convenient access to Millcreek Community Hospital and to physicians from the LECOM Clinical Practices. In a short eight months, LECOM will further integrate these geriatric services within the new Senior Living Center.

LifeWorks Erie, formerly the Erie Center on Health and Aging (ECHA) serves as a convenient, central point of service for meals, education, recreation, socialization, and self-enrichment programs. LifeWorks Erie offers lifelong learning classes, socialization, and recreational opportunities, fitness classes, broad-based medical screenings, health and prevention education, and an annual flu vaccination campaign.

The opportunity to bring LifeWorks Erie into the LECOM family of health care and education will further add to this continuum of care. The Institute will work closely with LifeWorks staff to maintain the highest quality of lifelong learning for seniors; and LECOM will develop new programs that will meet the needs of those adults age 50 and older. Additional educational and health initiatives will reach those less active older adults who have varying abilities and functional levels - no matter where they live carrying to them the benefit of a fuller, more healthful life.

Because a life filled with the richness of health is a life well-lived, LECOM is committed to advancing and to enhancing social and educational programs for active seniors. Where there is health, there is life. LECOM is dedicated to the fullest enrichment of both.

Rochelle Krowinski (second from right) of LifeWorks and James Lin, DO, of LECOM discussed with members of the local media the new partnership

With scrutinizing attention to detail and compassionate attention, Millcreek Community Hospital has established precise levels of therapy, from acute rehabilitation through long-term care.

between the organizations.

Currently based in the LECOM Medical Fitness and Wellness Center, the Institute is strategically located, offering easy access to the entire community, including @1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 33

COMMUNITY IS OUR CAMPUS

COMMUNITY IS OUR CAMPUS

Students Observe World AIDS Day

Students Volunteer at Food Bank

Relay for Life

Students Help Shoppers Shop Healthier

Members of the Student National Pharmaceutical Association partnered with Walgreens to offer an event in observance of World AIDS Day. LECOM second-year student pharmacists Andre Tran, Preethi Yarabothu and Reyhan Harika were among the student pharmacists who participated.

College of Medicine second-year students Parker Lovelace and Liesel Bergmeyer volunteered at All Faiths Food Bank in Sarasota.

All Faiths Food Bank distributes supplies to 195 nonprofit agencies, pantries, soup kitchens, churches, community centers, schools and programs that offer hunger relief in Sarasota and DeSoto counties.

LECOM’s recent Relay for Life was a huge success, with almost $3,900 raised for the American Cancer Society. Among the students participating were OMS1s Matthew Schilling, Kristina Schmitt, and Lauren Sciullo. The event was organized by the College of Medicine Student Government Association (SGA) and held at the LECOM Medical Fitness and Wellness Center. The College of Medicine Class of 2018 was the leading team, with 35 members raising $655.

As part of LECOM community outreach during American Pharmacists Month, student pharmacists educated shoppers at a Tops Friendly Market about a variety of health-related issues.

Festus Mbakwa, a second-year student pharmacist, explained how consumers can make smarter and healthier food choices using the NuVal Nutritonal Scoring System.

Pharmacy Month Proclamation in Bradenton

Students Participate in Health Fair

Students Organize Coat Drive

Pharmacy Month Proclamation in Erie

LECOM student pharmacists received a proclamation for American Pharmacists Month from City of Bradenton Mayor Wayne H. Poston. Joining Mayor Poston (center) at the proclamation reading were: Andre Tran (P2), Abiha Ali (P2), Preethi Yarabothu (P2), Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice Mitchelle Rodriguez, Pharm.D., Ashley Cubillos (P3), Robbie Fisher (P2) and Nathan Bialek (P3). LECOM students hosted an array of events throughout the month, from Health and Wellness Fairs to blood pressure and glucose-level screenings.

Third-year student-pharmacists Keerat Khanuja, Katie Schumacher and Raven Galyen represented the School of Pharmacy at a Health Fair at the Manatee County Substance Abuse Coalition. The mission of the coalition is to develop community partnerships that implement comprehensive evidenced based environmental strategies to reduce substance abuse and promote health and wellness throughout Manatee County, especially among youth.

The LECOM chapter of the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) organized a coat drive for the Erie Multicultural Community Resource Center (MCRC). The participating student pharmacists, including Rachel Boulio and Megan Barringer (front row) and Jaxson Burkins and Amanda Chronister, collected and donated nearly 40 much needed coats for the MCRC’s clients, many of whom are refugees and immigrants.

The LECOM School of Pharmacy was recognized with a proclamation celebrating October as American Pharmacists Month. Accepting the proclamation from City of Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott (center) were student pharmacists Alex Covey, Mohamed Amer, and Jaxson Burkins and Abbey Krysiak, PharmD, Assistant Professor.

Throughout the month, LECOM student pharmacists held a number of events and health fairs designed to educate the community on the importance of medication adherence, cardiovascular health, and other related topics.

34 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 35

NOTES

STUDENT NOTES College of Medicine Erie Campus

Karisa Beebe (OMS2) received first place in the LECOM annual research day with her presentation titled: Hypoplasia of the Human Medial Superior Olive in Chromosome 15q Duplication Syndrome.

Seth Carter (OMS2) has been recommended for election to the position of Student Governor on the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians (ACOFP) Board of Governors. His nomination will be considered for final approval by the ACOFP Congress of Delegates in March.

Anja Ruffin (OMS1) was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps.

College of Medicine Seton Hill Campus Ashley Fritz (OMS2) was named LECOM at Seton Hill Student DO of the Year.

College of Medicine Bradenton Campus Kristen Balkam (OMS3) and Renee Sarno (OMS3) won the 2014 American Osteopathic Association (AOA) History Essay Competition. The duo split the $5,000 first-place prize for their essay, titled: The Historical Role of Rationalism and Empiricism in Defining Osteopathic Medicine’s Scope of Practice.

Arianna Gianakos (OMS3) presented a poster: Risk Factors Leading to Recurrent Dislocation After Hip Hemiarthroplasty: A Case Report at the Hospital for Special Surgery 26th Annual Holiday Knee and Hip Course in New York City.

Brooke Johnson (OMS3) presented a poster: Effects of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) In Lowering Perceived and Physiological Stress in Medical, Dental, and Pharmacy Student Populations at the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) Conference and Scientific Seminar in Seattle.

Asmi Sanghvi (OMS3) presented a poster: Recurring Metastatic Basal Cell Carcinoma 36 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

NOTES of the Head and Neck: Case Report and Literature Review at the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) Conference and Scientific Seminar in Seattle.

Bradley White (OMS3), Cassandra Beck (OMS3), David Johnson (OMS3) and Stephanie Luster (OMS3) had an abstract published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association. The abstract is titled: Is Negative Pressure Wound Therapy a Prudent “Bridge to Reconstruction” for Post-sternotomy Mediastinitis? The abstract was also presented at the AOA Conference and Scientific Seminar in Seattle.

School of Pharmacy Erie Campus Graham Garcia (P3) is engaged to Kristina Kanter. A May 2015 wedding in Lancaster, Pa. is planned.

Ashley Ramp (P3) was appointed to the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists’ Leadership Development Advisory Group. Only 60 studentpharmacists nationally are chosen to the Group.

School of Pharmacy Bradenton Campus

Research Award. They also co-authored: Surgical Ciliated Cyst of the Maxilla Secondary to a Prior Sinus Exposure – A Case Report and Literature Review, published in Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology and Oral Radiology.

Kaitlyn Huser (D3) received a $500 scholarship from Titusville (Pa.) Hospital.

Stephanie Mazariegos (D3) received a $2,000 scholarship from the KML Foundation of Tampa.

Desiree McMillen (D2) received a $3,000 scholarship from the Indian River State College Foundation in Fort Pierce, Fla. Stephanie Nguyen (D3) received a $5,000 scholarship from the Dental Trade Alliance.

ALUMNI NOTES Class of 2000

Jennifer Kish, DO, has joined Seriously Skin Cosmetic and Laser Medicine in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Kimberly Clifton (P4) and Rebekah Stoner (P4) co-authored: Effective Dosing of Gabapentin for Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy, published in the LECOM Point.

Colleen Staszak, DO, has joined Westshore Primary Care in Rocky River, Ohio.

Nicholas Ellis (P4) co-authored: The Declining Role of Sulfonylureas as Add-on Therapy in Diabetic Patients, published in the LECOM Point.

Christopher S. Poggi, DO, recently was appointed to the Pennsylvania State Board of Osteopathic Medicine by Gov. Tom Corbett. Dr. Poggi is Medical Director of Heartland Hospice in Somerset, Pa. He is a physician with Poggi Family Practice in Somerset and he serves as an active staff member at Somerset Community Hospital.

Anna Liu (P4) co-authored: The Second FDA Approved Inhaled Insulin, published in the LECOM Point.

Katie Schumacher (P3) received $400 from the Griffith Morgan Scholarship Fund.

Kaylee Toole (P2) and Danielle Moore (P4) presented the poster: Interdisciplinary/ Intercollegiate Community Outreach at the American Society of Health System Pharmacists Conference in Anaheim, Calif.

Class of 2003

Class of 2007 Krista Petrolla, PharmD, is a clinical pharmacist working with ExactCare Pharmacy in Valley View, Ohio.

Class of 2008

School of Dental Medicine Bradenton Campus

Victor Awuor, DO, has joined the neurosurgery department at Genesis HealthCare System in Zanesville, Ohio.

Namra Amin (D3) and Tatyana Pustylnik (D3) were awarded the American Dental Association/Dentsply Student Clinician

Jennifer Laman, DO, is a family practice physician at Access Health Care Physicians, LLC in Hudson, Fla.

Ashley Weiss, DO, is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and Director of Medical Student Education in Psychiatry at the Tulane School of Medicine in New Orleans, La.

Class of 2010 Antony Abraham, DO, has joined Mount Nittany Physicians Group Hospitalist program in State College, Pa. Keshav Deshpande, DO, has been accepted to a Trauma/Surgical Clinical Care fellowship at the University of Cincinnati.

Brianne Plante, DO, has joined MaternOhio Kingsdale Gynecologic Division in Upper Arlington and Powell, Ohio.

Class of 2011 Christine Sekula Crocker, DO, has joined Allegheny Health Network’s Alle-Kiski Medical Associates’ primary care group in Natrona Heights, Pa.

FACULTY NOTES College of Medicine

Bertalan Dudas, MD, PhD, has written and edited two books: The Human Hypothalamus: Anatomy, Functions and Disorders and The Central Catecholaminergic System: Anatomy, Functions and Disorders.

Mark Kauffman, DO, and Silvia M. Ferretti, DO, co-authored: The Accelerated Physician Assistant Pathway (APAP): A Three-year Medical School Curriculum for Certified Physician Assistants to Obtain Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) Degrees, published in Academic Medicine.

Dr. Kauffman presented the same research as a poster at the American Osteopathic Association Conference and Scientific Seminar in Seattle.

Cassandra Legari, PharmD, is an assistant professor at the University of Charleston (S.C.).

Randy Kulesza, PhD, co-authored the following: Organization of the Human Superior Olivary Complex in 15q Duplication Syndromes and Autism Spectrum Disorders, to be published in Neuroscience; Longitudinal Assessment and Perceptions of Medical Post-Baccalaureate Students, published in Medical Science Educator; Air Pollution and Your Brain: What Do You Need to Know Right Now, published in Primary Health Care Research & Development and Air Pollution and Detrimental Effects on Children’s Brains: The Need for a Multidisciplinary Approach to the Issue Complexity and Challenges, published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.

Denise Traficante, PharmD, and Tyler J. Covert were married on Sept. 13, 2014 in Amherst, NY. Dr. Traficante is a pharmacy manager at CVS Health.

Amanda L. Madurski, OD, has joined Sterrettania Ophthalmology (part of the Clinical Practices of LECOM) as an optometrist.

Class of 2014

Ali Moradi, MD, MPH, will present: Randomizing the Default Probability of a Binomial Risk Model Mixture Distribution to Induce Covariate Dependence for Robustly Forecasting Tuberculosis Hyperendemic Transmission foci in Florida, at the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease Annual Conference in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on Feb. 26-28, 2015.

Eric Yoder, DO, has joined Bronson Internal Medicine Hospital Specialists in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Class of 2012 Christina Horsman, PharmD, is engaged to Anthony Evanko. A 2015 wedding is planned at Geneva-on-the-Lake, Ohio.

Dr. Horsman is a pharmacist at Rite Aid in Chardon, Ohio.

Ariel Fialko, PharmD, is pursuing an MD degree at Dartmouth College Geisel School of Medicine.

Richard Rivett, DO, married Emily Davidson on October 24, 2014 in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Oren Rosenthal, PhD and Frank Liuzzi, PhD, co-authored two abstracts and posters: Students’ Attitudes About

Collaborative Work on Clinical Anatomy Cases Before and at the End of a Human Clinical Anatomy Course and Students’ Attitudes About and Most Important Study Methods Before and at the End of a Human Clinical Anatomy Course, published in the Clinical Anatomy Journal. The research posters were presented at the 31st annual meeting of the American Association of Clinical Anatomists in Orlando, Fla. David Sampson, DO, presented an OMM Lecture Series to physician interns and residents at Manatee Memorial Hospital in Bradenton, Fla. Mark Terrell, EdD, co-authored: The Prevalence of Abnormal Genital Findings, Vulvovaginitis, Enuresis and Encopresis in Children Who Present with Allegation of Sexual Abuse, published in the Journal of Pediatric Urology.

School of Pharmacy Marcus Campbell, PharmD, co-authored: The Declining Role of Sulfonylureas as Add-on Therapy in Diabetic Patients; The Second FDA Approved Inhaled Insulin and Effective Dosing of Gabapentin for Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy, published in the LECOM Point.

Sarah Dombrowski, PharmD, was certified as an Ambulatory Care Specialist by the Board of Pharmacy Specialties.

Kathleen Kelly, PharmD, was certified as a Geriatric Pharmacist by the Commission for Certification in Geriatric Pharmacy.

Brian Simpkins, PharmD, was certified as a Pharmacotherapy Specialist by the Board of Pharmacy Specialties.

Julie Wilkinson, PharmD, presented: Journal Clubs: Pearls for Facilitating the Millennial Generation, at the American College of Clinical Pharmacy Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas.

The LECOM Connection is proud to report about the accomplishments of our graduates, faculty, and students.

Often, we learn about these achievements through news reports. We appreciate The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine being mentioned in the articles and we ask that you note that you are a LECOM graduate, student, or faculty member when submitting news articles to your local media.

@1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 37

PHYSICIAN SPOTLIGHT

LECOM FULBRIGHT SPECIALIST TO SERVE AS GLOBAL LIAISON United States Department of State, Bureau of Cultural Affairs and it is administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars.

Fulbright Scholars serve as lecturers and they conduct research across an array of academic and professional fields. The primary goal of the program is to promote the exchange of American scholars and to advance scholarship among nations.

Dr. Jambhekar spent 35 days lecturing at the School of Pharmacy at the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS), in Pilani, India. The Institute is one of the premier higher education institutions in India. The BITS College of Pharmacy has 96 students enrolled in its undergraduate program along with 60 matriculating graduate students.

Sunil Jambhekar, Ph.D., LECOM Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, has been appointed to a four-year term as a Fulbright Specialist in the Public/Global Health category.

While at BITS, Dr. Jambhekar presented seven lectures to students including: Diffusion Process and Theories; Dissolution Theories and Factors Influencing Drug Dissolution; and FDA Guidance.

FIVE NEW PHYSICIANS APPOINTED TO THE CLINICAL PRACTICES OF LECOM

In addition to classroom lectures, he was involved in ongoing graduate-level pharmaceutics research. Dr. Jambhekar also lectured at the Institute of Pharmacy of Nirma University and at the L. M. College of Pharmacy of Gujarat University.

The Clinical Practices of LECOM comprises part of the LECOM Academic Health Center. Along with the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) and Millcreek Community Hospital, The Clinical Practices adds a multi-specialty group practice component to the osteopathic health care network. With locations throughout Erie county, physician specialties include: family practice, orthopedics and vascular surgery, neurology, urology, sports medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, pediatrics, geriatrics, and general surgery. The mission is committed to offering accessible, community-based care while promoting the advancement of medicine and education in all areas of the Millcreek Health System.

Dr. Jambhekar underwent a rigorous screening process to become a Fulbright Specialist. He was required to submit an online application form, a complete project statement, a list of significant professional accomplishments, a litany of scholarly publications, several reference letters, a curriculum vitae, a course syllabus, and a comprehensive delineation of lecture topics.

The application was reviewed by several committees with the final selection being made by the Fulbright Foundation in the host country and by the corresponding U.S. participants.

Now joining the expansive team of estimable physicians and health care specialists are five capable leaders in health and wellness.

LECOM is exceptionally proud of the significant accomplishments of Dr. Jambhekar in his estimable efforts and keen success in furthering global scholarship.

The Fulbright program is sponsored by the

Take your OMT skills to the next level.

This innovative publication about Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment of the cervical spine contains detailed anatomy descriptions with illustrations and 85 high definition clips (taken from different points of view) showing various osteopathic techniques divided into five categories: soft tissue, joint mobilization, high velocity-low amplitude, traction and intervertebral disc rehab.

This ebook is published by LECOM and is written from the perspective of both Italian and American physicians.

Christopher Rial, DO, a 2010 graduate of LECOM, is a family physician and sports medicine specialist. He completed his Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship at LECOM. Dr. Rial is currently part of the elite LECOM Sports Medicine team providing physician services for the Erie BayHawks, Erie Otters, Erie Explosion, and Mercyhurst University.

Jay Kiessling, MD, is a thoracic and vascular surgeon at Millcreek Community Hospital.

Dr. Kiessling is an Advanced Cardiology Specialist (ACS) Fellow and an American Board of General Surgery award recipient.

Kevin Falk, DO, a 2010 graduate of LECOM. He is an internist at Millcreek Community Hospital, specializing in neuromuscular and osteopathic manipulation; using this hands-on treatment to ease pain, promote healing, and to increase patients’ overall mobility.

Douglas Fronzaglia, DO, a 2000 graduate of LECOM, is a certified internist at Millcreek Community Hospital specializing in Geriatric Medicine. Dr. Fronzaglia manages patients at multiple nursing homes and assisted living facilities in Erie and Crawford counties. An Erie native, Dr. Fronzaglia completed a residency in internal medicine as well as a fellowship in geriatrics at Millcreek Community Hospital.

Megan Christman, DO, a 2010 graduate of the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, specializes in obstetrics and gynecology. Dr. Christman is affiliated with Millcreek Community Hospital and Saint Vincent Hospital, where she provides direct access and comprehensive care for women of all ages.

Download it today for $29.99 on Apple iBooks.

To view this book, you must have an iOS device with iBooks 1.5 or later and iOS with 4.3.3 or later, or a Mac with iBooks 1.0 or later and OSX 10.9 or later.

38 LECOM CONNECTION | WINTER 2015 | LECOM.edu

Although their practice addresses diversely dot the Erie map, their calling is singularly focused; that of providing superlative care and treatment within their respective areas of expertise. LECOM is especially proud to welcome these fine physicians into its ever-expanding nexus of exceptional health care offerings. @1LECOM | LECOM CONNECTION 39

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