AOA Leaders Tackle Education Issues

Among the organizational and policy decisions made at its annual midyear meeting, the AOA Board of Trustees approved several actions that affect students.

2005-2007 Strategic Plan
Looking to the future, the Board adopted, in concept, a new strategic plan to guide the AOA through 2007. The plan has five strategic paths—research, education, membership, advocacy and collaboration.

• Research:
  The AOA seeks to revitalize D.O.s’ interest in integrating osteopathic principles and OMT into their practices by supporting research, and by promoting greater opportunities for D.O.s and osteopathic medical students to become clinical researchers.
   
• Education:
  While the number of osteopathic graduate medical education programs
  has increased in the past year, the number of students participating in the AOA Intern Registration Program, commonly referred to as the “AOA match,” has declined. To address this trend, the strategic plan calls for developing tactics to promote quality and commitment to osteopathic medicine throughout all stages of the D.O. medical career.

  In addition, the plan calls for a continuation of efforts to collaborate with the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) for creating an AOA-ACGME dual-residency track. Furthermore, the AOA is committed to working closely with institutions and organizations involved in training future D.O.s—osteopathic medical schools, osteopathic postdoctoral training institutions, teaching hospitals, and the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine.

• Membership:
  Based on research findings, the AOA will create new incentives and services to meet the changing needs of members. It will also explore ways to more aggressively recruit students, interns, residents, and practicing D.O.s to join the AOA, and to become more actively involved in the profession.
   
• Advocacy:
  Professional liability insurance reform will remain the AOA’s top legislative priority until physicians receive relief. Through the plan, the AOA will work to expand its influence in Congress and in state Legislatures.
   
• Collaboration:
  A major part of the plan will focus on strengthening relationships between the AOA and other osteopathic medical organizations. Beyond the osteopathic family, partnering with outside groups such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Family Physicians will help to increase the AOA’s influence nationwide. The plan also calls for efforts to advance osteopathic medical education and practice rights internationally.

Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)
The Board approved the implementation of a service that will give osteopathic medical students the opportunity to submit applications electronically to postdoctoral training programs. Students may begin using ERAS in July 2005.

Through the service, students can transmit program applications, letters of recommendation, transcripts, and other supporting credentials to any AOA approved postdoctoral training programs to which they choose to apply. ERAS prevents students from having to produce multiple copies of application related documents each time they apply to a program.

Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA)
The Board approved an organizational structure for COCA that meets the requirements set by the U.S. Department of Education for accrediting agencies. In approving this structure, the Board officially acknowledges completion of the transition from the former Bureau of Professional Education (BPE) to the newly structured COCA as the recognized accrediting agency for colleges of osteopathic medicine. The responsibilities of the former BPE have been divided between COCA and the new Bureau of Osteopathic Education (BOE). The BOE is responsible for oversight of continuing medical education and postdoctoral education councils and committees.

The AOA Department of Educational Affairs recognized a need for this change due to an evolving osteopathic medical education environment. A surge of new osteopathic medical schools developed at a time when the U.S. Department of Education was requesting more stringent oversight on the part of higher education accreditors. Changes in osteopathic graduate medical education (OGME) also contributed to the creation of COCA. The closure of community-based osteopathic hospitals resulted in a shift of OGME programs from solely osteopathic or mixed-staff hospitals to some larger hospitals more accustomed to training allopathic students. In addition, the AOA began requiring that OGME be offered within accredited Osteopathic Postdoctoral Training Institutions (OPTIs).

Additional Items Approved
Students and D.O.s can learn more about the items approved by the Board of Trustees by clicking on the “AOA Actions from Midyear Board Meeting” link located on DO-Online. Other approved items include:

• The establishment of a task force to facilitate ACGME-trained D.O.s in obtaining AOA certification.
• A pilot program for a divided internship year for married osteopathic interns.
• An osteopathic history paper contest for students, interns and residents.