It has been a banner year for the Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine’s student chapter of the American College of Osteopathic Pediatricians (ACOP). Last October, just two months after the student club formed, the national ACOP named them the club of the month. At the annual ACOP conference in April, BCOM student and club president Roxanne Waggoner accepted the award for National ACOP Student Chapter of the Year.
“The club has been extremely busy with many projects that have had a positive impact on the community over this past year. The students have gone into the community to show the college, high school, and elementary students about osteopathic medicine all the while encouraging and modeling to the students a career in medicine,” said Scott Cyrus, DO, the faculty advisor and founder of the BCOM club.
Some of the projects have include visiting Jardin de Los Ninos, an early childhood program for homeless and near homeless children, and hosting a trivia night fundraiser benefitting the American Childhood Cancer Association. The group also held several “Mini Med School” days at public schools and on the BCOM campus, during which students rotated between health-related stations covering topics like first aid, nutrition, and anatomy.
“I am most proud of our incredibly supportive leadership team and awesome members. We all work together to make every event a success and that has played a huge role in our club accomplishments this year,” said Waggoner whose future career goals include practicing pediatric medicine and providing community outreach in a rural community.
The ACOP student club hopes to kick off the next school year with a community health fair and they are looking to develop new community partnerships. Waggoner is also hoping to bring in more guest speakers and find local pediatricians for club members to shadow.
Dr. Cyrus said that clubs like these are important because they demonstrate the immediate impact the opening of BCOM has had on the community. He added, “I’m so fortunate to have been associated with these tremendous students and BCOM can be proud that the college has these fine ambassadors in the community reflecting such a positive image of osteopathic medicine.”
