Adapting to a rapidly evolving health landscape and ensuring students are adequately prepared is a persistent challenge faced by medical schools nationwide. At Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM), an innovative approach to providing medical education is changing the way the College is responding to these challenges.
Art Sesso, DO ‘81, interim dean of the Doctor of Osteopathic (DO) Medicine program at PCOM and senior associate dean of osteopathic curricula innovation and accountability,
joined PCOM President and CEO Jay S. Feldstein, DO ‘81, on a recent episode of PCOM Perspectives to discuss the first-in-the-nation Medical Education Center of Excellence (MECOE).
“Centers of excellence are not something new in medicine…but the concept comes from the idea that if you do something repetitively and constantly refine how you do it, you can do it faster, better, more economically,” said Sesso. “The result comes out to be more consistent, so applying that concept to education seemed to be something that could produce tremendous benefits.”
As part of its charge, MECOE is designed to also address issues of health equity, cultural humility, and social determinants of health.
“We have a very diverse society,” said Feldstein. “We need to have a student body that reflects society so patients will see physicians and healthcare providers that look like them.”
Both Feldstein and Sesso highlighted the role MECOE has the potential to play in keeping the College competitive with peer institutions, in part, by better positioning students to obtain desirable residencies through an overall increase in board scores. MECOE aligns PCOM’s curriculum with material covered in board examinations, allowing students to focus their efforts on completing their coursework while also effectively and efficiently preparing to take their exams.
To this point, Sesso is bullish on the prospects for the future through the development of MECOE. “PCOM is going to be at the forefront of medical education,” he said.
To hear the full conversation or listen to past episodes of PCOM Perspectives, visit Spotify, Soundcloud or the Office of the President.
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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