THE QUARTERLY PUBLICATION OF THE AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC PEDIATRICIANS
Summer 2016 Issue
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Student Club News
2016 ACOP Student Club of the Year
Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Carolinas Campus
By Christine Beeson, OMS-IV and Erin Thornley, OMS-III
Every year the American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians honors one of our outstanding student chapters with Student Club of the Year. This year, the student chapter at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Carolinas Campus (VCOM-CC) was chosen for this award. Over the 2015-2016 academic school year the ACOP Student Chapter at VCOM-CC held an impressive number of quality events in their community. Two of their biggest events this year included their P.L.A.Y. program and participation in their 4th annual Pediatric Wellness Fair.
The P.L.A.Y. (Promoting Lifelong Activity in Youth) program is run by VCOM-CC-student volunteers. It is held at a local elementary school with a high percentage of children from disadvantaged backgrounds. During P.L.A.Y. sessions VCOM-CC volunteers use fun activities to engage and educate kids about exercise and healthy life choices. When the curriculum was designed, osteopathic principles were kept in mind and the program aims to incorporate the mental, emotional and physical health of its participants. Worksheets are sent home with the kids to help encourage family involvement. The program developers are ACOP Student Members Meghan Milligan and Vanessa Hortian. They’ve been selected to receive a 2016 Excellence in Public Health Award from the U.S. Public Health Service Physician Professional Advisory Committee.
At the ACOP Student Chapter at VCOM-CC sponsored Pediatric Wellness Fair student members were able to provide education, resources and fun activities to approximately 250 children and their families. VCOM-CC students targeted public health issues such as obesity, violence and healthy lifestyle choices.
Overall, the ACOP Student Chapter at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine – Carolinas Campus showed an impressive interest and involvement in their community. We look forward to seeing what they have in store for the future!
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Student Club News
Des Moines University Pediatrics Club Update
By Michelle Brenner, OMS-I, Des Moines University, Pediatrics Club President
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Emelia Stille, OMS-I |
DMU Pediatrics Club has kept busy this semester and is thrilled to become a student chapter of ACOP in 2016. Spring semester has been busy here in Iowa. This year with help of our advisor, Dr. Michael Metts, we began Pediatric Grand Rounds on campus monthly over the lunch hour. We’ve discussed various topics such as congenital skeletal anomalies, oxygen usage in children and how to discuss vaccination with parents. We are excited to continue this program next year and watch it improve and expand. In addition, we have partnered with other clubs on campus to bring in speakers to discuss the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on later substance abuse as an adult and how to recognize sexual assault in the healthcare setting.
The DMU Pediatrics Club not only has focused on extra education, but we pride ourselves on our dedication to community service. Once a month we volunteer with Gigi’s Playhouse, a Down Syndrome achievement center, to help host a Friday Karaoke night. It’s a blast to color, sing and play games! In the spring, we also partnered with the Oncology Club to host Spring Fling for the Children’s Cancer Connection. In March, we hosted cancer-battling kids and their siblings for an Easter-themed party. From an Easter egg hunt, to cookie decorating, to face painting, everyone there had a great time! We even let some of the kids paint our faces! We are indebted to our many community partners and look to grow in our outreach to the kids in the greater Des Moines area.
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From the ACOP National Liaison
VCOM-Auburn Updates
By Tamer Abuaita, OMS-I
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Tamer Abuaita, OMS-1 |
ACOP Student Club at VCOM-Auburn has been quite active during the last few months! Although our organization was recently established in November of 2015, the city of Auburn has been so welcoming of our presence throughout the community. Here are a few events to highlight someone of our activities.
In December of 2015, we participated in the 1st annual "Grade-School Medical School" at the local elementary school. We set-up four stations where the children would rotate and learn about different aspects of the DO profession. In January, we braved the cold in the 4th Annual Polar Plunge in order to help raise money to support Lee County Special Olympics’ athletes at area, state, and national games. In March, we participated in the 35th Annual Easter Easter_Egg Hunt where we handed out Easter eggs filled with healthy snacks and fun gifts!Currently, we are participating in the Miracle League of East Alabama. Every Saturday during the months of April and May we volunteer as buddies at the Miracle Field so adults and children with disabilities get to experience the thrill of playing baseball. In the future, we hope to continue establishing our presence in the Auburn community. Eventually, we would like to create a series of Prevention and Wellness classes so children and teens have the knowledge to make healthy lifestyle decisions, especially after they become independent from their parents.
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From the ACOP Student Trustees
Student Clubs Updates
By Erin Thornley, OMS-III & Christine Beeson, OMS-IV, ACOP Student Trustees
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Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine
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Michigan State University
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Nova Southeastern University
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Nova Southeastern University
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Nova Southeastern University
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Edward Via College of Osteopathic
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Rocky Vista University
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Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine |
Part of our job as Student Trustees is to bridge the gap between student members of ACOP and the Board of Trustees. We also work to connect the student chapters of ACOP together via social media and during our conference meetings in order to exchange ideas, improve our individual clubs and make larger differences in our communities. This year, to promote connectivity, we encouraged ACOP student chapters to participate in a national project with a unifying theme. The theme of the project was childhood obesity and education on nutrition and healthy lifestyles. We encouraged student clubs to use a multitude of resources, including the following websites:
http://www.letsmove.gov
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/kids/
https://www.healthychildren.org/English/
Pages/default.aspx
To help clubs brainstorm ideas for events, we provided a short list of ideas and allowed chapters to get creative with their own ideas. We asked that chapters submit their photos with a brief description of their event for publication.
The ACOP student chapter at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine collaborated with Wellsville, a non-profit organization committed to educating, entertaining children and their families to L.E.A.P (Learn, Embrace, and Actively Practice). With the help of a dietician, children and families played active games that incorporated exercise & learned the importance of brushing and flossing their teeth regularly for good dental hygiene. They also discussed the organs of the digestive system.
The students at Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine received a dean’s grant of $2,500 and were able to teach 200 families the importance of nutrition and physical activity. Thestudent clubpromoted physical activity for kids by providing a bounce house, zumba, a kid's boot camp, dance, and martial arts. Fifteen local vendors provided healthy food & information. The club also hosted a pediatrician and nutritionist to educate families.
The ACOP members at Nova Southeastern University College of Osteopathic Medicine put on three events. During “Anatomy Academy,” 60 children (ages 6-12) learned about nutrition, anatomy and what to expect when they go to the doctor.
This same club hosted a nutrition lesson for 8th grade students about the new “my plate” portion sizes and discussed the benefits of eating healthy and the damaging effects of cholesterol.
This chapter also held a Cooking Demo for 6th grade students to learn how to make healthy tots from butternut squash and zucchini. They were taught the importance of eating vegetables with certain vitamins to fuel the body.
Students at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Carolinas Campus held a “PLAY Program” (Promoting Lifelong Activity in Youth). The program was started by two club members and is an after school program that teaches children about eating right, being active and encouragement.
At Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine, ACOP students members held a “Food, Fun, & Fitness” project. Alongside the Denver Osteopathic Foundation, pre-schoolers, kindergarteners, and first graders learned about healthy eating habits, hand washing, teeth brushing and understanding about their own body organs.
The ACOP student chapter at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine held a project to educate first graders concerning the importance of healthy eating and active lifestyles.
The goal of this project was to unite the student chapters of the ACOP while making a huge difference in the lives of children nationwide. We were so pleased with the number of clubs and submissions to our first national project and hope the students who participated enjoyed this unique opportunity to be a part of something larger.
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ACOP Pediatric Track
at OMED 2016
September 16-19, 2016
Anaheim Convention Center
Anaheim, California