LMU-DCOM
E-Newsletter
Summer 2012 Issue
www.LMUnet.edu/dcom/
Summer Greetings from
LMU-DCOM!
As the month of August
is rapidly coming to a
close, it seems as if the
summer months flew by
and it is hard to fathom
that the beginning of yet
another academic school year is already upon us!
A lot of things and exciting events have taken place
here at Lincoln Memorial University—DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine since my last newsletter
from late April, and I am happy to share with you in
this summer edition of our Admissions Newsletter all
of LMU-DCOM’s important news and highlights that
occurred during the last four months.
I hope you will enjoy the contents of the newsletter
and as always, please do not hesitate to contact me
with any questions or inquiries.
Wishing you all a wonderful fall!
Sincerely,
Juliette Egnatz
Admissions Recruiter
(423) 869-6478
juliette.egnatz@lmunet.edu
LMU-DCOM Celebrates Class of
2012 Graduation!
Saturday, May 14, 2012, marked another historic day
in LMU-DCOM’s history as the entire LMU-DCOM
family celebrated its second DO graduating class. Following a commencement address from Dr. Norman
Gevitz, professor of the history and sociology of medicine at New York Institute of Technology/New York
College of Osteopathic Medicine, all 151 members of
the Class of 2012 walked across the stage for their moment of glory as they received their hard-earned diploma and the symbolic graduate-hood placed around
their neck by one of our faculty members or by a physician related to the graduating student.
During the ceremony, LMU Chairman of the Board of
Trustees, Autry O.V. “Pete” DeBusk, received the inaugural Honorary Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine.
The Honorary Doctorate is presented to an individual
who has not completed the traditional requirements of
osteopathic medical school but who has nonetheless
made substantial contributions to the profession of
osteopathic medicine. DeBusk was honored for the
impact he has had on the health care of the region and
the world through his company, DeRoyal Industries.
For information about the Class of 2012 residency
matches, please see the bottom-left corner of our website’s home page ( www.lmunet.edu ).
LMU-DCOM Military Graduates
Promoted
A couple of days prior to walking the graduation stage,
13 members of LMU-DCOM’s Class of 2012 and participants of the Military Health Professions Scholarship
Program received their military promotions at a ceremony held on May 12. Of the 13 promotions, two were in
the United States Air Force, six were in the United
States Army and another five were in the United States
Navy.
For more information about the Military Health Professions Scholarship Program and other scholarship and
financial aid opportunities, please click here.
LMU-DCOM Graduating Class
Honors Dean and Faculty Member
Left: LMU-DCOM Dean, Ray E. Stowers, DO
Right: Howard S. Teitelbaum, DO
During the LMU-DCOM awards ceremony held on the
day before graduation, members of the Class of 2012
honored the school’s dean and a faculty member.
Dr. Howard S. Teitelbaum, professor of preventive
medicine at LMU-DCOM, was the recipient of the Bob
Jackson Service Award, an award that was established
by the LMU-DCOM inaugural class to recognize those
whose life and community service clearly exemplify a
true spirit of love and helpfulness to others. The Award
is meant to recognize those who demonstrate qualities
such as a significant contribution to public service,
giving of themselves regardless of compensation,
providing services without expectation of remuneration, going above and beyond a job description and
giving a great service to LMU-DCOM. This award is
just one more of an already impressive list of honors
and awards earned by Dr. Teitelbaum throughout his
illustrious medical career (if you wish to see Dr. Teitelbaum’s resume, please click here).
In addition, on behalf of the LMU-DCOM Alumni
Association, Dr. David Heath, alumni association president, presented Vice President of Health Sciences and
Dean of LMU-DCOM Ray E. Stowers with the inaugural Dr. Ray E. Stowers Legacy Award. The Dr. Ray
E. Stowers Legacy Award serves to recognize academic teaching excellence in medical education at LMUDCOM. The award was established by the Inaugural
LMU-DCOM Alumni Association and is presented
annually to a recipient who has dedicated themselves
to serving the underserved of rural Appalachia and
“Continuing the Legacy” of the institution, as stated on
the LMU-DCOM seal (for more information about Dr.
Stowers, please click here.)
LMU-DCOM Welcomes Largest
Class to Date
Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine (LMU-DCOM) welcomed its largest
class to date, the Class of 2016, on July 24. The larger
class size is a result of LMU-DCOM receiving approval from the American Osteopathic Association (AOA)
Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation
(COCA) to increase its incoming class size from 150
students to 225 students.
“This class size increase will allow LMU-DCOM to
better fulfill its mission of training quality osteopathic
physicians committed to service,” said Ray E. Stowers,
vice president of health sciences. “Because we are situated in the underserved Appalachian region, the more
opportunities we have to enroll and train osteopathic
medical students in this environment, the more likely
we are to grow physicians who will be dedicated to the
region.”
LMU-DCOM has one of the largest medical school
enrollments in the state of Tennessee. It is also one of
the least expensive private medical schools. Earlier this
year LMU-DCOM was named to the “U.S. News”
Short List of Top Ten Least Expensive Private Medical
Schools in the United States. LMU-DCOM ranked 6th
on the list. Tuition and fees for LMU-DCOM for 20112012 were $37,419.
LMU-DCOM Dean
Installed as 116th
President of the
American osteopathic
On Saturday, July 21, 2012, LMUDCOM Dean Ray E. Stowers, DO,
was sworn in as the 116th president of
the American Osteopathic Association
in a ceremony held in Chicago, IL,
where the AOA headquarters are located.
As Dr. Stowers addressed his peers
shortly after he was sworn in, he encouraged all osteopathic physicians to
be innovative as they look toward the
future of health care and osteopathic
medicine.
“Nearly 140 years ago the osteopathic
medical profession was built on a new
concept of how to improve upon the
current approach to medicine,” said
Stowers. “And today we must continue to initiate new ways of thinking—
from helping patients learn to make
better choices for their health to taking
the lead in promoting new health care
delivery systems.”
He also promised the more than 500
osteopathic physicians and osteopathic
medical students gathered at the
AOA’s Annual Meeting of the House
of Delegates that the AOA will be
there for them advocating for important issues such as fair Medicare
physician payments and expansion of
osteopathic graduate medical education training.
“I look forward to spending the next
year advocating on behalf of the more
than 100,000 DOs and osteopathic
medical students that make up this
profession, and the patients we serve,”
stated Stowers.
Although Stowers has been helping to
groom future generations of DOs as
the vice president for health sciences
and founding dean of Lincoln Memorial University-DeBusk College of
Osteopathic Medicine since it was
established in 2005, he fondly recalls
his time practicing medicine in rural
Oklahoma after graduating from what
is now the Kansas City (Mo.) University of Medicine and Biosciences College of Osteopathic Medicine.
“After earning my osteopathic medical
degree, I established my practice in
north central Oklahoma, and during
most of the 25 years I spent there, I
was the only physician in the 300square mile county,” recalled Stowers.
Prior to joining LMU-DCOM, Stowers was an associate professor of family medicine and director of the Division of Rural Health at the Oklahoma
State University Center for Health
Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine in Tulsa. He then served as the
founding director of the Oklahoma
Rural Health Policy and Research
Center.
A longstanding member of the AOA,
Stowers has served on the Board of
Trustees since 2000. In addition, he
has been involved with several other
osteopathic medical organizations. He
is a past president of the Oklahoma
Osteopathic Association, which also
honored him with the A.T. Still Award
of Excellence in 2008, and a Board
member of the Tennessee Osteopathic
Medical Association (TOMA). In
2006, he was named Family Physician
of the Year by the American College
of Osteopathic Family Physicians. In
2011, TOMA honored Stowers with
the Paul Grayson Smith, Sr., Physician of the Year Award.
Advocating for the osteopathic medical profession at the national level,
Stowers advised Congress on health
care issues through his appointments
to the Medicare Payment Advisory
Commission, better known as MedPAC, and the Physician Payment Review Commission. He was also a policy board member of the National Rural Health Association and still serves
as a member of the Rural Health
Works National Advisory Council.
The American Osteopathic Association (AOA) proudly represents its professional family of more than 100,000
osteopathic physicians (DOs) and osteopathic medical students; promotes
public health; encourages scientific
research; serves as the primary certifying body for DOs; is the accrediting
agency for osteopathic medical
schools; and has federal authority to
accredit hospitals and other health
care facilities.
More information on DOs/osteopathic
medicine can be found at
www.osteopathic.org . You may also
view more on Dr. Ray E. Stowers’
AOA presidential inauguration by
clicking here.
LMU-DCOM’s First
Gross Anatomy Boot
Camp a Success
This summer,
LMU-DCOM
launched its first
-ever gross anatomy boot camp,
a three-week intensive anatomy course
open to incoming DO students and
designed to give these upcoming firstyear medical students a “short and
sweet” introduction to human anatomy
prior to the first-semester gross anatomy course. A total of 40 members of
our new Class of 2016 participated in
this summer’s program. During the
three-week course, these students began at 8am and ended at 4pm every
day. Course material was presented
through small group discussions and
time in the anatomy lab. Each morning, a test was give covering all previous days’ material. Each test was cumulative in order to encourage longterm mastery of medical gross anatomy. Clinical aspects of anatomy were
emphasized so that students would
equate various physical signs and
symptoms with anatomical pathology.
The course was taught by Dr. Jonathan Leo, professor of neuroanatomy
and associate dean of students.
Due to the positive response and the
success of this program’s first round,
LMU-DCOM has decided to offer 70
seats for next summer’s boot camp.
Further information about this program can be found by clicking here.
LMU-DCOM Admissions
Office Welcomes New
Staff Members
As a result of the class-size expansion,
LMU-DCOM’s Admissions Office
has also grown. Two new positions
were added, one in the student services area and the other in the financial services area, resulting in one
promotion for a current admissions
staff member in addition to welcoming two new staff members. Please
join us in congratulating and welcoming our new team members highlighted below!!
Megan Mars
Student Services
Activities
“Keeping the cost down while still offering a quality
education is an essential part of our mission,” said Dr.
Jonathan Leo, associate dean of students for LMUDCOM and assistant vice president for admissions and
student services in the Division of Health Sciences.
“Students with less debt are more likely to work in
medically underserved regions.”
Coordinator
(former Admissions
Administrative
Assistant)
Rebecca Barnett
Since its founding in 2007, LMU-DCOM has had a
rigorous and competitive application process. For the
Class of 2015, there were approximately 17 applicants
for each seat in the class. LMU-DCOM received more
than 3,300 applications for the Class of 2016, a 17%
increase in applications in one year.
Admissions
Administrative
Assistant
One hundred and three students – or 44% of the Class
of 2016 – hail from the immediate tri-state region of
Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia. The remaining
56% of the class members come from all over the United States. The class is 61% male and 39% female and
the average age is 25.
LMU New Math & Science Building
Opens its Doors
The much-anticipated new LMU Math & Science
building has finally opened its doors and is already a
bustling place on campus. The first three floors of the
massive 145,000-square-feet structure houses all undergraduate math and sciences, while the fourth floor
is home to the LMU-DCOM first-year medical students, featuring a state-of-the-art anatomy suite divided
into four large pod-rooms separated by windows and
glass doors and equipped with top-notch technology
that will certainly enhance LMU-DCOM students’
learning environment. Additionally, the building has
complete wireless internet integration and full highdefinition and digital classrooms and study rooms, as
well as a 400-seat lecture hall, also with highly interactive technology. Furthermore, acting upon a universitywide mission to develop more research opportunities
for faculty and students, the building also accommodates a microscopy suite and over 4,600 square feet of
research labs.
The entire LMU community is very proud and excited
to have begun making use of this wonderful building
and the top-notch and high-tech resources it will offer
our faculty, staff and students. There is no doubt that
combined with our current LMU-DCOM building,
these added facilities will provide our medical students
with a very enhanced educational environment.
Robin Mace
Student Insurance
Coordinator
& Financial Aid
Counselor
LMU-DCOM Hosts
Another Osteopathic
Medicine Awareness
Conference
On Saturday, August 11,
a total of 48 guests from
many different locations
as far away as 8 hours, joined some of
LMU-DCOM’s faculty and staff for
the second Osteopathic Medicine
Awareness Conference & Open House
this year. The event is open to anyone
interested in learning more about our
DO program and about osteopathic
medicine in general and has attracted
many prospective students, premedical/pre-health faculty advisors
and others.
The event agenda included the following items:
- Osteopathic Medicine Overview
- Curriculum Overview
- Application and Financial
Services processes
- OMM (Osteopathic Manipulative
Medicine) Demonstration
- Tour of facilities lead by current
students
- Lunch with students, faculty and
staff
A tentative
date of
Saturday,
November 10,
has been set for
our next OMAC so be sure to pencil it
in your calendar. Once the date is confirmed you will be notified by e-mail
so stay tuned!
LMU’s Sixth Remote Area Medical Clinic
Serves Nearly 900 People
During the first weekend of June, LMU and the RAM (Remote
Area Medical) Clinic joined together once again to hold the sixth
RAM Health Expedition at LMU. The expedition was held inside
LMU’s Tex Turner Arena and provided free medical, dental and
optical care to a total of 884 individuals in just two days. Additionally, 244 animals were served at
the veterinary clinic also held on the LMU campus in the Schenck Center. The services rendered
over this weekend equaled $294,485.00 in free medical services and a total of 404 volunteers came
together to lend their help for this great event, including many LMU staff, faculty and students, as
well as our own LMU-DCOM physicians and DO students.
RAM is a non-profit organization that travels around the nation, as well as to certain international
locations, with the mission of serving mankind by providing free health, dental and optical care, as
well as veterinary services to those in remote
areas.
For more information about RAM, please
click here.
PA Program News

PA Program Welcomes Class of 2014
On Saturday, May 14, the LMU-DCOM PA Program opened its
doors to its fourth class of students. A few weeks later, the 90
members of the Class of 2014 were officially welcomed into the
profession during a their White Coach Ceremony, which was held
on Saturday, June 30.
The PA Class of 2014 is 66% female and 34% male. The average
age is 25 and the average GPA is 3.4. Approximately 64% of the
class hails from the Appalachian region, with the majority of those coming from Tennessee,
Kentucky and Virginia.

PA Program Graduates its Second Class
After 27 months of hard work, the 57 graduating members of the PA Class of 2012 officially
became Physician Assistants during their commencement ceremony held on Saturday, August
4, on the LMU campus. Dr. P. Eugene Jones, distinguished teaching professor and chairman
at the department of physician assistant studies at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, TX, gave the keynote address prior to the graduates being called on stage
to receive their hard-earned diploma. The beautiful ceremony concluded with a message from
Mr. Rex Hobbs, Assistant Dean and Director of LMU-DCOM’s PA program, after which he
asked all Physician Assistants in the audience to stand up and recite the PA oath along with
him and all 57 graduates.

For more information about the LMU-DCOM PA Program, please click here.
The Post-Baccalaureate Medical Sciences Program

What Is the PMSP?
The Post-Baccalaureate Medical Science Program is a 12-month certificate program of study
designed for college graduates who want to pursue a career in medicine and who need to receive additional academic training or wish to improve their academic credentials in order to
develop a successful application portfolio for admission into medical school.
The PMSP follows a rigorous curriculum of upper-level biology courses and medical gross
anatomy, which they take at LMU-DCOM with LMU-DCOM faculty and alongside LMUDCOM students.
One of the biggest advantages for students in the PMSP is that they will be guaranteed an interview at LMU-DCOM for admission into the DO program. In fact, 80% of this past year’s
PMSP students were accepted into the DO class of 2015, adding cultural diversity to the LMU
-DCOM student population. LMU’s PMSP faculty is dedicated to continue to produce successful medical school applicants.
For more information on the PSMP’s curriculum, overview, admissions and more, please visit
www.lmunet.edu/academics/pmsp/index.shtml or contact Dr. Ryan Stump at
frank.stump@lmunet.edu or at 423-869-6328.