Achieving New Heights

from May 2020 Issue of RVU's Vista View: Finding a New Normal

Student Doctors Inspires Future Medical Students

Kelli Petersen, Marketing Manager, graduated from Regis University with a Master of Business Administration degree, with a focus on Marketing and with honors. She began attending the program part-time in 2016, taking time off last year to have a baby.

Ben Wilde, DO, Vice Chair of the Dept. of Primary Care Medicine, was awarded the Degree of Fellow by the American Academy of Family Physicians. This honor recognizes family physicians who have distinguished themselves through service to family medicine, advancement of health care in the community, and professional development through medical education and research. This determination is measured in these six areas: LifeLong Learning, Practice Quality and Improvement, Volunteer Teaching, Public Service, Publishing and Research, and Service to the Specialty.

Two students have been elected to national student leadership positions of the American Medical Women's Association (AMWA):

Rachel McCann, OMS II, was elected as Treasurer Elect; she has served as president of the local AMWA branch and contributed to the planning of the annual AMWA Region 8 Conference at RVU.

Haley Shumway, OMS III, was elected as Secretary; she is currently the AMWA Region 8 Director and helped establish AMWA and the Women in Medicine Club at RVU.

**Kristen Kaiser, Assistant Marketing Manager**

**Catherine Lewis Saenz, Communications Coordinator**

**Gina Marzulla, Marketing Coordinator**

The Marketing Department received two Excellence in Communications Awards from AACOM: 1st Place in the Advertising category for the launch of the Digital Health Track and 2nd Place in the Newsletter category for the Vista View! The EIC program, which receives over 100 entries every year from colleges of osteopathic medicine, recognizes the important role that communications plays in advancing osteopathic medical education and the profession.

Colorado Medicine, a local health care-focused publication created by the Colorado Medical Society, features a section in each issue for osteopathic medical students to submit written pieces and share their thoughts, as well. The reflections will be published bi-monthly. If you would like to submit an essay, contact Alexis Horst in the Writing Center at ahorst@rvu.edu for assistance with editing and submission guidelines.

In the January/February Issue, Angela DiCosola, OMS IV, wrote the article, "Making time to be present with patients," in which she recounts how technology, paperwork, and calls with the insurance companies soon took up more time than the patients themselves—and what she did to change this.

In the March/April Issue, Jeffrey Beach, OMS III, wrote the article, "Practicing mindfulness to process tragedy," about how the impact of a planned fetal demise delivery led to a discovery about mindfulness.

A Display of RVU's Military Excellence at AMOPS

Gathered in Las Vegas for the annual conference of the Association of Military Osteopathic Physicians and Surgeons (AMOPS), RVU students, faculty, and staff presented posters, held demonstrations, were elected to national positions, and received various awards. "We had more RVU students present research and attend the conference than ever before!" said Mackenzie Berry, OMS II, President of the RVUCOM Chapter of SAMOPS. "The conference [allowed] us to pursue further leadership opportunities, learn through lectures and simulations, and network with fellow HPSP students and military physicians."

Clinton E. Adams, DO, FACHE, President and CEO, received the 2020 AMOPS Robert Lutz, DO, Founders Award. Dr. Adams was a founder of the organization and has been "an untiring champion of AMOPS and of military osteopathic physicians and medical students for over 40 years". The award is AMOPS' most prestigious award.

Mackenzie Berry, OMS II, was elected to serve as Education Chair on the National SAMOPS Executive Board.

Cameron Lindemann, OMS IV, received the Senior Student Osteopathic Officer of the Year Award.

Benjamin Memmott, OMS III, was one of four medical students chosen to present their research during a Research Symposium's lunch-and-learn session. His research, "Quantitative Ultrasound Imaging to Assess Skeletal Muscles in Adults with Multiple Sclerosis," received second place.

Susan Roberts, OMS III, was elected to serve as Secretary on the National SAMOPS Executive Board.

The RVUCOM SAMOPS chapter received the Chapter of the Year Award.