Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine Students Hold Educational Program for Local Medical School Residents

The Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine (CCOM) held the third annual Advocate Residents Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM) Day, where CCOM student scholars taught and reviewed OMM principles with over 30 residents and program directors from Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Advocate Christ Medical Center, and Advocate Lutheran General Hospital.

Kurt Heinking, D.O., FAAO, CS, Professor and Chair, Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine, CCOM, said, “Midwestern University’s CCOM is committed to enhancing and fostering OMM education for the local graduate medical education community. The residents reviewed how to diagnose their patients accurately and apply appropriate manipulative techniques based upon their diagnosis.” Some of the topics covered included reviewing osteopathic manipulative medicine principles in order to diagnose and treat issues affecting the extremities, sacrum (bone at the base of the spine), or pelvis. “The program was well received, and the residents enjoyed working with and meeting residents from other sites in the Advocate system,” Dr. Heinking said. He also shared that the OMM student scholars from the CCOM program undertook the preparation and teaching of the event. 

One of the OMM student scholars involved in planning the event was Jordan Barry (CCOM ’25). She detailed that she and the other students coordinated the event with residency directors and catered to the topics the residents wanted to learn, cover, and review. “I think it’s a great way to connect with different residency programs founded on osteopathic principles. It’s an opportunity to brush up on OMM knowledge to treat our patients in the clinic. We reviewed and reframed skills in osteopathic manipulation and treatments for the residency and their programs,” Jordan said. She also appreciated her chance to teach. “This is a good opportunity to teach someone who’s further along in their career and learn from them in other settings. It’s also a good opportunity to remind them of their osteopathic skills to incorporate into their own practice.” Jordan reflected on her takeaway from the experience as “a great relationship with the neighboring residency programs that support education of medical students and increase opportunities for the shared love we have for osteopathic medicine and how it really helps our patients.” She also shared that she hoped the attendees would “gain new knowledge of ways to treat their patients and trying new things and a reminder OMM has a place in their practice as a whole in residency and the future.”

Alyssa Bowen (CCOM ’26) is also an OMM student scholar who worked to build the curriculum as well as work with the program directors. “As students, we learn a lot about OMM in school. In practice, there are lots of obstacles to overcome when providing OMM in the clinic,” Alyssa remarked and added that some of the obstacles could be a lack of appropriate equipment. Alyssa advised, “Find a way to use OMM and be involved and talk to the patient. Make the most out of the appointment.”

Attendees also discussed their appreciation of the event. Gina Schueneman, D.O., Family Medicine, Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital, (CCOM ’03), reminisced, “This is very fun for me to be back on campus. This is where I started my teaching career, and I never stopped. This was just another opportunity to teach residents OMM and work with residents in other hospitals.”

Nick Pochedly, D.O., a third-year resident at Lutheran General Hospital, said, “It was nice to meet and review techniques for common things we see in the office.” He also expressed his appreciation for talking over topics that the residents do not always have time to review, and he said the students at Midwestern University did a good job leading the training sessions. “The students were very familiar with techniques and ways of adapting to body size,” Dr. Pochedly stated.

Events such as the Advocate Residents Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM) Day assist students with their educational journey, while supplementing their acquired skills and knowledge as they take the opportunity to share information and review with medical residents from the community. Collaboration is an essential aspect of Midwestern University’s commitment to fostering the next generation of patient-centered healthcare professionals.