LECOM Suncoast Classic TriumphsAgain (cont)

This year, the tournament champion was Scott Gutschewski, finishing with a solid -21 under par to close the thrilling competition that held golf fans captivated. The anticipated week of sun, golf, and enthusiasm was highlighted by a reception at the Lakewood Ranch Grove Restaurant, followed the next day by a Pro-Am Tournament, and finishing with the highly-awaited professional competition.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM), as title sponsor of this sporting event has proclaimed its steadfast commitment to educational advancement in support of its Student Scholarship Fund and in fundraising endeavors that reinforce the noble calling of osteopathic medicine.

The event highlights wellness with aspiring athletes, who, like LECOM students, commit themselves to an extraordinary amount of work to achieve their career goals. These professionals mirror the passion to be great; a passion evidenced by fine LECOM scholars. For like the athlete, the scholar commits the whole of himself or herself to the calling of a lifetime.

LECOM is proud to be a part of the Lakewood Ranch community and of the greater Manatee County region. LECOM students weave through the tapestry of this thriving community giving of themselves in service to their neighbors. Whether it be fourth-year medical students serving at the Galvano One-Stop Clinic where they provide free primary care services or volunteering their training in health fairs, school outreach, public health screenings, and dental clinic offerings, LECOM scholars are working together for the betterment of the region.

Indeed, the enduring community presence and commitment of LECOM and its progeny underscore the success of events such as the 2023 LECOM Suncoast Classic. LECOM congratulates all who joined in the annual event as the College hails the sportsmanship of skilled competition and genuine camaraderie, and all who join closer to building success for shared goals and for the future of the community and region.

LECOM Provost, Silvia M. Ferretti, D.O., Receives

RobertA. KistnerAward

The Robert A. Kistner Award is an honor and an accolade that recognizes the most esteemed of medical professionals, for to be recognized for the Award, one must be deemed to have improved the quality and continuum of osteopathic medical education.

The Kistner Award signifies the most profound compliment, a prodigious accomplishment, indeed a

LECOM Provost, Silvia M. Ferretti, D.O., Receives

RobertA. KistnerAward (cont.)

noteworthy distinction. It seems wholly fitting that Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) Provost, Senior Vice President, and Dean of Academic Affairs, Silvia M. Ferretti, D. O. be named the recipient of this enduring tribute.

The praiseworthy Award is bestowed upon a deserving medical professional in remembrance of Robert A. Kistner, a physician who stood at the pinnacle of the advancement in the osteopathic field; and the names of those honored with this award are cataloged among the most distinguished and august names in medicine.

On April 27, 2023, the American Association of Osteopathic Colleges of Medicine bestowed this illustrious honor upon the LECOM leader.

Dr. Ferretti has committed her life’s work to the fields of medicine and education, serving in the realm of community betterment, and giving meaning to service in the field of osteopathic medical education.

Dr. Ferretti is nationally recognized as a multi-faceted trailblazer, humanitarian, and visionary who, through exceptional public service and steadfast commitment to providing educational excellence to future generations of medical professionals, has led LECOM to become the largest medical school in the nation.

As the first female Dean of an osteopathic medical college and as a constantly active and renown leader in osteopathic medicine, Dr. Ferretti has invested unflagging personal commitment to community and to Commonwealth, to classroom and to Country by improving the health and welfare of its citizens, by training future healthcare professionals in multi-disciplinary medical fields, and by revitalizing numerous areas throughout Pennsylvania through the establishment of medical educational institutions, health and wellness facilities, and outreach programs that bolster the municipalities in which they have been instituted. Throughout the last three decades, Dr. Ferretti has led LECOM in its mission to provide to its graduates exceptional academic training and purposeful community service.

As a champion of osteopathic medical education, her contributions and her commitment to strengthen the state of healthcare education overall and to improve the quality of life for so many make her the perfect choice to receive the Robert A. Kistner Award.

Inaugural LECOM Doctor of HealthcareAdministration (DHA) Cohort Joins 2023 Graduating Class

Throughout its three decade history, the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) has been renowned for identifying unmet needs in healthcare higher education and for effectively and comprehensively answering that call.

In 2014, the first business masters degree program was established at LECOM. The program boasted eleven students. The success of the Masters in Health Services Administration (MHSA) Program and its graduates spurred the explosive growth of the LECOM School of Health Services Administration (SHSA), a School that, in less than 9 years, offers four masters degrees and the DHA Program. The graduating Class of 2023 will become part of 426 SHSA alumni who are leading healthcare organizations across America.

The LECOM DHA three-year, 72-credit-hour intense research track program prepares health industry professionals to become innovative leaders and complex problem solvers. This degree program qualifies professionals to serve as college faculty members, preparing them to teach and perform interprofessional research focused upon “the business of healthcare.” They also are educated to become next generation healthcare administrative practitioners well prepared to harness advanced systems, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and virtual medicine to champion their important work.

Theoretical and practical studies are blended in this rigorous doctorate degree program. Like the other four School of Health Services Administration (SHSA) degrees, this program is delivered on-line and designed specifically for the busy working professional seeking to expand and elevate his or her career.

Dr. James Stikeleather and Dr. Timothy Novak

In addition to being a life-long entrepreneur, the LECOM DHA Founding Director, Dr. James Stikeleather, served previously for seven years as Chief Innovation Officer for Dell Computer Systems; and he is internationally known as a thought leader across industries. He and Dr. Timothy Novak, Dean of the LECOM School of Health Services Administration, were classmates at the University of South Florida - and it was there that the vision of the innovative DHA was conceived.

Their mission was to create something new, needed, and lasting at LECOM. This inspiration guided the design, construction, and delivery of a transformative terminal degree program.

DHA(cont.)

Drawing upon their cumulative knowledge and surrounding themselves with a collaborative of healthcare scholar-practitioner faculty, the DHA Program was inaugurated in the summer of 2020, during the Pandemic and its success was immediate and noticed.

Six students enrolled as true pioneers of the DHA Program, all of them aware that they were part of something life-changing, and all setting forth on a journey that would define the path for themselves and for those who followed. Each course was undertaken by the group for the first time and it was carefully evaluated to implement any required improvements. The LECOM DHA Class of 2023 is featured below, along with the titles of their dissertation research publications.

Richard Curren, D.O., M.H.S.A.

From Burnout to Eudaimonia: Identifying Key Contributors to Employed Clinician Burnout Using the Copenhagen Burnout Inventory

Loretta Darche, RN, M.B.A, M.S.

A Study to Learn How Curriculum Is Developed and Revised In Graduate Schools of Healthcare Administration

Brian A. McQuone, D.O.

Examination of a Physician-Created Wellness Toolkit Specific to the Practice of Medicine and its Effects on Emergency Medicine Residents' Wellness and Burnout

Breanna McKenzie, M.S.B.E. Barriers to Using Mental Health Resources in Primary School Setting

Natalie Novak, M.S.B.E.

Acute Care Hospital Administrators’ Willingness to Hire a Bioethicist and Pathways Towards the Advancement of the Profession

Brian A. Kessler, D.O.

Using Data Analytics of Medical Student Characteristics to Guide the Osteopathic Admission Process

There are a total of 16 LECOM DHA scholars in the next two cohorts and another 10 students expected to join the Program in July of 2023.

Healthcare is a pivotal industry and a vast business enterprise encompassing 20% of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP). According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in healthcare occupations is projected to grow 15 percent from 2019 to 2029, much faster than the average for all occupations, adding about 2.4 million new jobs. This projected growth is largely due to an aging population leading to greater demand for healthcare services. Healthcare occupations are projected to add more jobs than are any of the other occupational groups.

Talented, motivated, and skilled leaders are needed in the healthcare sector to manage these ever-growing requirements for medical services that align with rapid technological advancements, patient-centered ethical compliance requirements, and regulatory actions. Expertly trained health services administrators are essential to meet these demands effectively.

All of the LECOM SHSA programs provide students with indispensable knowledge, leadership, and communication skills required to plan, direct, and coordinate medical and health service organizations such as hospitals, healthcare facilities, public healthcare organizations, pharmacies, private practice groups, and senior living centers. The knowledge gained from these programs is vital to the understanding, planning, and implementation of sound fiscal policy, strategic planning, industry compliance, ethics, and responsible governance.

LECOM leaders are making their mark upon the future of healthcare administration as the College consistently maintains its noteworthy position in the vanguard of superlative medical education.

LECOM looks forward to probing the depths of understanding and to furthering the boundaries in the optimal practice of medicine as it continues to offer superbly designed programs to knowledge-seekers as they journey forward in the business of healthcare.

To learn more email about LECOM SHSA please visit:

SHSA@lecom.edu or call

941-405-1533

Classes are now forming for June 2023

LECOM Board of Trustees to Honor John J. Kalata, D.O.

In proud recognition of his installment as President of the Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association (POMA), Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) alumnus and faculty member, John J. Kalata, D.O., will be honored by the LECOM Board of Trustees as they issue a formal Proclamation as a tribute to mark his noteworthy accomplishments.

In the realm of the medical profession, the pledge to a cause beyond oneself underscores the essence of all that embodies the osteopathic philosophy.

Dr. John J. Kalata, a graduate of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and a graduate of the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he earned his Masters of Medical Education Degree, has demonstrated his abiding commitment to the purpose of this noble calling, evidenced by the accomplishment of each day in service.

Dr. Kalata has championed the principles that a conditioned body, a knowledge-seeking mind, and a purposeful heart are the cornerstones of a strong and vibrant community. For more than three decades, Dr. Kalata has served the Erie, Pennsylvania community as a Family Medicine Specialist.

He has distinguished himself as an esteemed LECOM luminary, serving expertly as Professor of Family Medicine at LECOM and at LECOM Health as Millcreek Community Hospital (MCH) Residency Director where he has helped to encourage and produce many other skilled physicians.

With a multi-decade career championing the healthcare needs of the community, Dr. Kalata has earned the trust of, and continued relationships with his patients; and the respect and admiration of his colleagues.