At the age of seven, Claire Becker, DO ’23, attended Bring Your Child to Work Day
at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM). This was also the day her
dad, Michael Becker, DO ‘87, MS, FACOFP, associate dean of clinical education and professor, knew she would become a doctor.
“Claire wanted this from the time she attended,” he shared. “While her older sister, Katie, was frightened seeing a glimpse of the Anatomy Lab, Claire was absolutely elated and thought it was cool.”
Growing up, she became inspired by the numerous patients and communities her dad went out of his way to help. She wanted to make a difference in people's lives just like he did. As a PCOM alum, Michael was excited his daughter would begin her own journey at the institution he had grown to love so much.
“I had a fantastic four years at PCOM from 1983 to 1987,” he said. “Working here and knowing how committed our faculty are and how the curriculum works, I knew she would thrive and receive a great education.”
After seeing the community of students, faculty, and administrators for herself, Claire felt the inviting and encouraging atmosphere at PCOM would become home for her, too. Medical school didn’t come without its fair share of challenges. During those difficult times, she knew she had her father’s guidance to keep her on track.
“Through medical school, he was always my greatest supporter,” she said. “At times,
I would doubt myself, but he was always a voice of reason, bringing me back to consider
the bigger picture and my goals for pursuing this career.”
Some of her favorite memories at PCOM are running into her father on campus. Many times, he would be headed home for the day while she was gearing up for a full night of studying at the library.
Those long nights paid off as she received her Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree in May. Next up, Claire will begin her residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
“I hope that Claire easily and peacefully navigates the huge transition from graduate to first year resident,” Michael said. “Those first six months for any resident are very hard, and starting over is never easy. However, I’m confident that her PCOM education gave her the tools to crush it!”
Claire wants to pursue physiatry to become an advocate for her patients. Hoping to
guide patients back to a path of functionality, she wants to restore them to their
everyday lives. “I want to discover new ways to advance rehab medicine as well as
educate others on the importance of restorative and integrative medicine to aid in healing.”
Reflecting on that seven-year-old girl who is now on her own path, Michael can’t help but be in awe of how far she has come. “I hope she can continue carrying on to be the amazing human being she already is,” he said.
For Claire, her journey to medicine wouldn’t have been possible without her father. “I like to say there are a million reasons I chose medicine, but the first one is because of my dad.”
For the past 125 years, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) has trained thousands of highly competent, caring physicians, health practitioners and behavioral scientists who practice a “whole person” approach to care—treating people, not just symptoms. PCOM, a private, not-for-profit accredited institution of higher education, operates three campuses (PCOM, PCOM Georgia and PCOM South Georgia) and offers doctoral degrees in clinical psychology, educational psychology, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy, and school psychology. The college also offers graduate degrees in applied behavior analysis, applied positive psychology, biomedical sciences, forensic medicine, medical laboratory science, mental health counseling, physician assistant studies, and school psychology. PCOM students learn the importance of health promotion, research, education and service to the community. Through its community-based Healthcare Centers, PCOM provides care to medically underserved populations. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 215-871-6100.
Brandon Lausch
Executive Director, Strategic Communications
Email: brandonla@pcom.edu
Office: 215-871-6312 | Cell:
717-371-0609
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