they wanted their voices to be

heard!

Thus students from each of the 6

colleges came together to form

the first national organization

dedicated to the representa-

tion of all Osteopathic

medical students in order

to offer a unified voice on

all issues pertinent to the

current healthcare atmos-

phere. As Jay M. Wolkov,

of the KCOS class of 1973

stated: “While those who

have gone before us were

reluctant to voice their

( Story continued on p. 3)

The year 2010 marks the 40th

anniversary of SOMA‟s existence

as an organization. To com-

memorate the founding of our

SOMA Family those 40 years ago,

let‟s take a look back at how we

got our start!

In 1970, there were but 6

colleges of Osteopathic medi-

cine in existence: the Chicago

College of Osteopathic Medi-

cine; the College of Osteo-

pathic Medicine and Surgery

(now DMU-COM), The Kan-

sas City College of Osteopa-

thy and Surgery (now

KCUMB); Kirksville College of

Osteopathic Medicine, Michi-

gan College of Osteopathic

Medicine and Philadelphia

College of Osteopathic Medi-

cine. In the midst of the politi-

cal turmoil of the time, young

Americans in all walks of life

were being inspired to take a

stand and become more proac-

tive and involved in shaping the

future of this nation. So was the

atmosphere among the Osteo-

pathic medical students of the

time. They felt passionately that

they had much to share with the

greater medical community and

An exciting new format was im-

plemented at the Student Osteo-

pathic Medical Association Fall

Convention in New Orleans this

past October. The SOMA lead-

ership was proud to offer a vari-

ety of break-out workshops for

all registered participants on both

days of the gathering. The assort-

ment of sessions touched upon

many topics relevant to osteo-

pathic medical students, including

advocacy, education, and re-

search. Invited speakers, SOMA

chapter leaders, and SOMA Na-

tional Board members presented

the material in a variety of inter-

active settings. Here is a recap of

the workshops:

Graduate Leverage: Debt

Advisory: Presenters offered an

overview of the debt advisory

services and tips for students on

debt management in the years

following graduation

Preventive Health Initia-

tives: Lauren Brankle, OMS III

lead an Interactive session which

stimulated idea exchange con-

cerning student-led SOMA pre-

ventive health initiatives in school

communities

Going Green Campaign:

WVSOM Green Committee lead

a presentation and idea exchange

about making green initiatives on

osteopathic campuses

Counsel of Interns and

Resident Q&A Session: Free-

form question and answer ses-

sion about the process of transi-

tioning from student to intern/

resident,, including boards, clerk-

(Story continued on p. 2)

The Origins of SOMA

I N S I D E

T H I S I S S U E :

OP&P 2

Presidential

Message

4

Unity Project 5

Foundation

Update

6

Medically

Underserved

7

Disease of

the Day

7

New Convention Format a Success!

Inside SOMA J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 0 C E L E B R A T I N G 4 0 Y E A R S

We are what we

repeatedly do.

Excellence,

therefore,

is not an act

but a habit.

-Aristotle

Keith L. Hansen,

Inaugural SOMA President

P A G E 2

Continued: New Convention Format

Are you down with OPP? In the early years of SOMA,

there was widespread concern

being expressed by the students

over the quality of their educa-

tion, particularly in the field of

Osteopathic Principles and Prac-

tices. As Dr. Magen expressed

in the first edition of the SOMA

Newsletter “Currently, our

greatest problem curriculum-

wise lies with manipulative ther-

apy and principles. This is an

area that is filled with emotion.

At times, there is difficulty sepa-

rating fanaticism and religion

from clinical medicine, science

and therapy. Our instructors, all

part-time, unpaid, and volun-

tary, are excellent clinicians

and marvelous technicians.

Unfortunately, none has ever

taught previously. Most are

years away from their school

days. We have given them the

hardest and most difficult area

in which to play. The trauma

to these well-motivated indi-

viduals is greater than it is to

our tough, sophisticated, cyni-

cal students…the primary

source of trouble lies with a

profession that considers itself

expert in the area, but has

proven to have drawn a blank

in its attempt to teach.”

Forty years later, SOMA would

like to check in with our mem-

bers and see how far we as a

profession have come in our

educational approaches, particu-

larly in the area of Osteopathic

Principles and Practices. Please

provide us with your feedback

by completing the online survey

at the following link:

SOMA OP&P Survey .

Also feel free to email additional

comments to Crystal Lenz at

Membership@StudentDO.com

search being done at our own

institutions

Fetal Heart Rate Moni-

toring and Tocometers:

Courtney Steller, OMS IV with

Dr. Teresa Hubka, D.O., and

Dr. Robert Debbs, D.O. facili-

tated this session in which

participants learned specifics

about reading and understand-

ing fetal heart tone monitors

and tocometers

The addition of workshops

was a great success and a

notable improvement on the

overall structure of our bi-

annual conventions. SOMA

leadership looks forward to

hosting similar workshops in

ships and interviews.

OMT Workshop: Dr. Le-

vine focused on OMT from a

sports medicine perspective

Political Debate on Health

Care Reform: Matt Weigand,

OMS IV hosted an interactive

exchange on differing perspec-

tives on health care reform with

the help of AMSA and COSGP

representatives

Developing and Executing

a Research Project: Joe Prin-

sen, DO-PhD candidate pre-

sented an introduction to the

process of implementing re-

search and provided a forum for

sharing information about re-

the Spring in Washington, DC.

We hope to see you all there!

If you have any ideas about fu-

ture workshops or have any

questions or comments, please

feel free to contact Lauren Bran-

kle at

Convention@StudentDO.com

-By Owen Speer, OMS-IV

Preventive Health Initiatives

Workshop Lead by Lauren

Brankle, OMS-III

I N S I D E S O M A

“Education must be

flexible, it must be

responsive to social

change, it must be

questioning and it

must contain within

itself the dynamism to

affect those around

it.”

-Myron Magen, DO

Right: Inaugural SOMA House of Delegates meeting at the Drake Hotel, Chicago. March of 1970.

Left: Saturday afternoon lunch-eon at the Drake Hotel, Inaugural SOMA conven-

tion, 1970

Representatives of one of the newest

SOMA chapters at PNWU

Continued: The Origins of SOMA

P A G E 3 C E L E B R A T I N G 4 0 Y E A R S

opinions, I feel that the time has come not

only for us to criticize but also for us to be

constructive and help improve our educa-

tion. Therefore by improving our education

we can improve our profession, for only by

traveling a road can one truly report it‟s

condition.”

Keith Hansen served as the first SOMA

President in 1970. At the opening of the

inaugural SOMA convention that Spring in

Chicago, Hansen stated SOMA‟s role to be

simply “Communication among, and repre-

sentative of Osteopathic medical students”.

Hansen went on to describe how SOMA has

“brought about a unity, while maintaining an

autonomy.”

From the beginning, SOMA has been a melt-

ing pot of student ideas and enthusiasm; a

place for open communication about con-

cerns with current practices and ideas for

improvement of our profession and the

healthcare system at large. As Allan H. Mor-

ton of KCOS class of 1973 said of the first

SOMA convention, “Each of us experienced

a sense of responsibility not only to other

Osteopathic medical students, but to the

Osteopathic profession and also to the im-

provement of health care delivery to the

public. It was with this sense of responsibil-

ity and a growing sense of enthusiasm that

the convention proceeded.”

In it‟s first year of existence, SOMA was able

to persuade the AOA to approve Military

and select AMA residency programs for joint

accreditation in order to expand opportuni-

ties for all Osteopathic students. In fact,

SOMA was striving to evoke change on all

fronts! As Myron Magen, D.O. and Dean of

MCOM stated: “Look about you and see the

lack of strong self-expression in the profes-

sion relative to the social changes that are

taking place about us. You will look in vain if

you look for strong AOA policy statements

relative to the poor, the disadvantaged, the

dispossessed, the black, abortion, Medicare,

national health insurance, and so forth. It is

apparent that our present policy appears to

be one of “don‟t rock the boat and maybe no

one will notice that we are here”.”

But rocking the boat is precisely what the

early members of SOMA had set out to do!

They were not only ready to see change in the

profession, they were ready to lead that

change! However, as SOMA VP Keith Hind-

man pointed out in 1970 as he called on his

colleagues to become involved, “SOMA is not

a student rebellion . We are an integral part

of the Osteopathic profession cooperating

fully with the other members of the profess-

ion to obtain our mutual goals. To this end,

we as students contribute our unique assets

which are so essential to our profession at

this point. These assets: energy, enthusiasm

imagination and influence….So what are YOU

doing? What are YOUR ideas? Will YOU

help?”

In the early days of the SOMA newsletter, it

was used as a truly open forum for students

and physicians to share their ideas with the

larger community and respond to one an-

other‟s concerns. The very first issue of

SOMAP, as it was called at the time, was an

impressive 40 pages long, most of which was

filled with letters to the editor. From Osteo-

pathic students across the nation as well as

practicing DO‟s and leaders in the AOA, eve-

ryone‟s voice was heard in SOMAP. This

newsletter was an open forum in the truest

sense of the word.

With the progression of technology, such

forums can now take place in real-time

through conference calls, webcasts and online

chat rooms, as well as the most important fo-

rum which is still at the core of our organiza-

tion, our national conventions.

The inaugural SOMA convention took place in

Chicago at the Drake Hotel. It was called to

order on Friday, March 27th and there were

175 people in attendance, representing the 6

schools open at that time. J. Scott Heathering-

ton, D.O., President of the AOA addressed the

HOD and expressed his enthusiasm for this

unified student voice to be expressed through

SOMA, and he declared SOMA the “official

voice of the students in the Osteopathic medi-

cal schools.”

Friday night was resolution night, guided by the

5 committees that had been established to

guide SOMA‟s progress in the following areas:

1. Education and Grant, headed by Ronald

Blonder, CCOM 2. State and National Affairs,

headed by Doug Larson, COMS 3. Interna-

tional Affairs, headed by Olen D. Amerson,

KCCOS 4. Public Relations and Community

Service Projects, headed by Sam Strauss, PCOM

5. Publications, headed by Wayne Bizer,

CCOM,

Saturday, after updates from each committee,

there were symposiums on “Human Health

Rights” and “Environmental Pollution”.

As noted in the other front-page article, SOMA

is currently revamping our national conventions

to broaden the scope and make them more

interactive. This new format was a big hit in

New Orleans and we are looking forward to

the 2010 Spring convention in conjunction with

DO Day on Capitol Hill from April 29th

through May 2nd. We have many more inter-

active workshops planned and will also be ap-

pointing a new National Board for 2010-2011!

We hope that you will join us and consider

running for a National Board position (see web-

site for details: www.StudentDO.com). We

also welcome your feedback and suggestions

with regard to convention format or any other

aspect of YOUR Student Osteopathic Medical

Association! Please email such input to

Membership@StudentDO.com

-by Crystal Lenz, OMS-III

“Dynamic changes must

occur to maintain the viability of our

profession, and we must work to-

gether for the continued health of the

patient”

-R. Alan Miller, PCOM

P A G E 4

“Passion and

compassion are

the keys to

your

extracurricular

experiences”

Message from the President: Get Involved! It becomes the mantra of

every 2nd year chapter leader

to all incoming 1st years,

“Getting involved is important.

It will help you more than you

know in the long run.” While

these 2nd years have good

reason to say this, every year

1st years resist the urge to get

involved. Some eventually come around and find a niche

to volunteer, lead, work or

organize. Still countless others

fall through the cracks and

wind up in 4th year trying to fill

out their ERAS application and

trying to morph some lone

volunteer day into 2 years

worth of volunteering to

„impress‟ program directors

nationwide.

This unfortunate trend can

hurt some highly qualified

students heading into competi-

tive specialties or applying at

competitive institutions. The

majority of students heading

into primary care and less

competitive specialties may

have no problems getting the

residency spot they desire.

However, the lack of leader-

ship and volunteer experience

may prove detrimental later in

residency.

As a fourth year heading into

Internal Medicine, I‟m about

half way through the interview

cycle at both allopathic and

osteopathic residencies. The

resounding theme I hear from

several of my interviewers is

how impressed they are with

my volunteer experience. It

often spawns questions that

carry much of the interview

and lead to great stories about

past conventions, fellow physi-

cians we mutually know, or

political advocacy in Washing-ton. The main reason I got

started with SOMA was not to

fill a resume. If that were the

case, I would have burned out

awhile ago and quit. I did it

because I wanted to learn

more about healthcare advo-

cacy and to further my interest

in leadership and community

service.

In doing so, I learned more

about giving back to my local

community as well as the im-

portance of being involved in

the administrative side of our

profession (something I think

our predecessors have been absent from). I have also met

numerous contacts in the os-

teopathic world and have got-

ten to speak in front of nu-

merous osteopathic mentors

at the AOA convention. The

experience has been incredible

and instilled in me the confi-

dence to put my best foot

forward with my patients and

with my interviews. My edu-

cation has been strengthened

by my commitment outside

the classroom. I now have a

more knowledge of the busi-

ness world of medicine that I

never learned in the class-

room.

I have even encountered class-

mates of mine on rotations

that have expressed to me

their own frustration with a

lack of their own volunteer/

extracurricular experience as

they were filling out their

ERAS forms. The main point I

express to my classmates is

that the type of activity is

moot as long as you were

passionate about the experi-

ence and you followed

through with it over time (i.e.

not a one-time deal). I‟ve had

friends work as EMT‟s part-

time, do basic science re-

search, volunteer to teach

Sunday school, tutor under-

graduate students, organize

mission trips, etc. All are

great examples; some require intense participation for 1-2

years, and others may only be

a 1-hour/week commitment

for 4 years.

Some specialty programs may

require more specialized re-

search or volunteering within

their field but overall, passion

and compassion are the keys

to your extracurricular experi-

ences. These directors want

to know that they have resi-

dents who are willing to give

back and that have an outgoing

personality. I have not once

been asked to recall my favor-

ite class or my best grade on a test, but I have been asked to

share why I give back to

SOMA and what I love about

internal medicine.

To sum things up, getting in-

volved will pay dividends both

in the immediate search for

the right residency and the

long-term goal of being a com-

passionate physician. Any type

of experience within the com-

munity is good experience.

Once boards are passed, per-

sonality goes a long way to

impress residency programs.

Listen to your 2nd counter-

parts; they are not trying to

trick you so you do poorly on

your exams. If nothing else,

get involved because it makes

you feel good and relieves the

stress of the classroom. You

will not regret it. You will

regret reaching 4th year and

not having any extracurricular

experience to talk about. -By A.J. Stefani, OMS-IV

Current SOMA President

A.J. Stefani, OMS-IV

I N S I D E S O M A

SOMA leaders

Matt Reynolds & Nathan Hale

with “SOMA Sam”

SOMA Unity Project 2009 I recently organized and attended

the SOMA Unity Project in Kissim-

mee, Florida. The project’s mission

was to form unity within the osteo-

pathic profession while providing

service to the Give Kids the World

Foundation. This foundation works

in collaboration with the Make a

Wish Foundation. Over sixty D.O.

students from nearly every osteo-

pathic school volunteered their time

and energy to create a stress free

vacation for terminally ill children

and their families. This vacation

provides the family with a brief

escape from the harsh reality of

their existing situation.

Each day we would report to the

Give Kids the World volunteer of-

fice where they would assign us our

responsibilities. These responsibili-

ties would vary from gardening to

carousel conductor. Each of the

volunteers performed a variety of

tasks each day.

Here is a brief description of one of

my experiences which depicts what

a unique and rewarding service

opportunity we had. One evening, I

conducted the carousel. I watched a

sweet five year old Brigit ride the

carousel for three hours. I joked

with her parents that she was going

to set a new world record. Her

parents were obviously tired of the

carousel but didn’t have the heart

to end her fun. It was a very mov-

ing site to see the little girl’s excite-

ment as she waved to her parents

each time the carousel went

around. As I watched her, I realized

what this vacation meant to her,

and I was thankful that our simple

service was contributing to her joy.

I learned from this project that

there exist many opportunities to

make a difference. I was impressed

by the osteopathic community’s

readiness to volunteer and give

back to the community. I feel hon-

ored to have been a part of this

project and thank the American

Osteopathic Foundation for making

it all possible.

-By Nathan Hale, OMS-IV

P A G E 5

P A G E 6

2009 SOMA Foundation Reception:

A Masquerade Ball Pink, green, black, silver, gold, blue, yellow, and any other color you could imagine made

their grand appearances with SOMA at this year‟s SOMA Foundation Reception. With

the theme of “A Masquerade Ball,” SOMA Foundation members came dressed to im-

press! There were almost 100 SOMA members in attendance with special guests Dr.

Daniel Deavers and his family, Dean William Strample from Michigan State University,

Dr. Karen Nichols, president-elect of the AOA, several scholarship winners, and many

more. Overall the event was a huge success. Members enjoyed some tasty New Or-

leans snacks while mingling and showing off their debonair masquerade masks, many of

which were provided by the generous donations from Linda Adams, the outgoing presi-

dent of the AAOA.

Dr. Daniel Deavers received this year‟s honor of the Northup Educator of the Year and

was able to bless the crowd with a heartfelt and inspiring speech. Nominated by his own

students at Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine, this award is the

highest honor SOMA can offer to educators nationwide. Everyone enjoyed the opportu-

nity to hear from such an inspirational teacher and mentor.

The following scholarship winners were recognized and granted awards during the reception:

Student Doctor Network Community & Preventative Medicine Scholarship:

Tamar Nazerian (WU-COMP)

Ed & Melissa Loniewski Medically Underserved Scholarship (fall winner): Catherine Clark

(WV-SOM)

Humanism in Medicine Scholarship:

Brett London (Touro-CA)

SOMA New Member Scholarships:

Stephen Eickermann (KCUMB)

Rung chi Li (Touro-CA)

Sierra Coartney (VCOM)

Dustin Paul (LECOM-Erie)

Hallie Pobanz (LECOM-Bradenton)

The night was capped with a surprise appearance from John Crosby, Executive Director of the AOA, and his wife, both

dressed as glow-in-the-dark skeletons. Overall, the event was a

glamorous, entertaining, and memorable event. New friendships

were made and old ones were renewed. SOMA members showed

off their elegance, paid respect to some wonderful mentors and

scholarship winners, and had a blast in the process. We look forward to next year‟s event and hope

you can join us in the celebration of the SOMA Foundation.

The New Orleans Convention featured a silent auction hosted by the SOMA Foundation. The auction

hosted items donated by various COMs and some local businesses. Grand prizes included a massage

table, a signed AC/DC record and an original photograph of

A.T. Still from 1893. The Foundation was able to raise almost

$2500 from the silent auction, which will help the foundation

continue to fund scholarships, grants and volunteer projects

throughout the country.

For more information about the events that the SOMA Founda-

tion promotes, please visit www.SOMAFoundation.org and con-

sider making a donation to our Foundation. Your single founda-

tion can benefit osteopathic students across the country, and

we appreciate any generosity you

may be able to offer.

-By Courtney Stellar, OMS-IV I N S I D E S O M A

Foundation Silent

Auction raised

almost $2 ,500!!

P A G E 7 C E L E B R A T I N G 4 0 Y E A R S

From the beginning, SOMA members have had a passion for human rights and equality in healthcare. One of the 2 symposia at the inau-

gural convention in the Spring of 1970 was focused on just that. Lead by Dr. Quentin Young, past chairman of the Medical Committee

for Human Rights and editor of Health Rights News, this symposia included discussions of the irresponsible spending of healthcare dollars

in the U.S., the “oppressive pyramid” structure of the U.S. healthcare system, and the underserved populations in the U.S. from the in-

ner city “ghettos” to Appalachia, to the Native American Indian reservations. Young called upon the students to continue to fight for

equality in healthcare, stating that the way this nation would finally meet the healthcare needs of the underserved communities would be

“...with students, many, many students, I would not suggest overall or even a majority but an important minority, the ones that are going

to change the world, turning their back on the country-club rewards that medicine has to offer...returning to the original purpose of

their education and profession: to serve the people.”

Additionally, an article in the first edition of SOMAP, written by Mike Brown, CCOM ‟71, continued this focus on the underserved

communities by exploring the Black Panther Clinic in Chicago, called „The Peoples‟ Medical Care Center‟ and dedicated in honor of sur-

geon “Jake” Winters, a member of the Black Panther Party who lost his life to police bullets in the Winter of 1969. This clinic was lo-

cated in the West side ghetto of Chicago, part of the “medical wasteland” that characterized the inner cities of America. The center

was “bright, warmly decorated and well-equipped”, with over 150 nurses, technicians, physicians and health science students volunteer-

ing every evening and all day on Sundays to provide care to this neglected population.

One key thing that this clinic showed the country was that an effective healthcare system must be tailored to the community it aims to

serve. The same structure does not work for every setting. The National Government and Health Department had made previous

attempts to provide care to this particular West Chicago community, but had failed due to their “top down” approach. As Brown

stated in his 1970 article, “People do not understand their health and how to maintain it. But there has never been any pride by the

community in their own health unit before. Here they are decisive in the policy making, surely fundamental to success in adequate

health in the future for medically void areas.”

To this day, SOMA strives to reach out to the underserved communities across the country and abroad through programs such as our

annual Unity project, participation in the Better World Books campaign and monetary donations to various populations in need due to

natural disaster or tragedy. As we work to expand our impact at home and abroad, SOMA needs your help to reach out to those in

need! If you have ideas or suggestions or simply wish to get more involved, please contact our International health program director at

InternationalHealth@StudentDO.com or our Public Health director at PublicHealth@StudentDO.com.

SOMA’s History With the Medically Underserved

Disease of the Day: NEUROFIBROMATOSIS

Most common disease of neurocutaneous syndromes (Phakomatoses)

Autosomal Dominant inheritance; 1/2 of new cases due to spontaneous mutations

Type I (NF1) = Von Recklinghausen disease, affects cells of neural crest origin

Type II (NF2) = Bilateral Acoustic Neurofibromatosis

DX:

NF2: Family Hx of NF2 + Unilateral 8th nerve mass OR Family Hx + 2 of the following:

-Neurofibroma -Meningioma -Glioma -Schwannoma

-Juvenile posterior subcapsular lenticular opacity **Bilateral vestibular schwannomas = pathognomonic

NF1: 2+ of the following:

-6+ Café-au-lait (light brown) macules 5+ mm in prepubertal or 15+ mm in adults -2+ neurofibromata or 1 plexiform neurofibroma -Axillary or inguinal freckling

-2+ Lisch nodules -Optic glioma by MRI -1st degree relative with NF1

-Characteristic osseous lesions: sphenoid dysplasia, long bone cortical thinning, ribbon ribs

or angular scoliosis

Clinical: sensorineural hearing loss, disturbed balance / altered gait, vertigo +/- nausea/vomiting, tinnitus, facial weakness / sensory impair-ment

TX: ¹Anticonvulsants for seizure control ²Medications for ADHD

-Annual neurologic exams, ophthalmologic exams, hearing exams

-Hearing augmentation and Speech therapy as needed

-Surgery as indicated for scoliosis, plexiform neurofibromata or malignancy -Brainstem auditory implants in select populations

From your National SOMA Officer team, Thanks for a great year in 2009!

We’re looking forward to growing success in 2010!

Interested in becoming a National SOMA officer? Visit our website for information

on available positions and email your CV & Letter of Intent to Crystal Lenz & Nick Perkins at:

Membership@StudentDO.com and Webmaster@StudentDO.com

Deadline for applications = Friday, April 9th 2010

SAVE THE DATES!! Thursday, April 29th 2010: DO Day on Capitol Hill

Friday-Saturday (evening), April 30th-May 1st: Spring SOMA Convention