|Student Notes| Class of 2011
transplant fellowship.
Nathan Aardsma, D.O., took second place and won a $200 prize in the 2011 UPMC Hamot Research Day Oral Presentation held in April.
Rebecca Bollinger, P3, attended the PPA’s Fourth Annual Government Relations Advocacy for Student Pharmacists (GRASP) program in February in Harrisburg, Pa. She was one of 21 pharmacy students from across Pennsylvania to attend the conference. Participants learned about legislative side of the pharmacy profession and the regulatory process.
Kevin Dankert, D.O., co-authored an article published in the March 2011 issue of The AAO Journal (American Academy of Osteopathy). The article was titled, “Evaluating the perception of motion in medical students, residents, and physicians.” Craig Chappell, D.O., LECOM Sports Medicine Fellow, was the article’s primary author. Ronak Gor, D.O., published several articles in the December 2010 and April 2011 editions of the Journal of Pediatric Urology. Over the past two years, he has been published in the journal five times as either the primary author or co-author. He also came in first place and took home a $300 prize in the 2011 UPMC Hamot Research Day Poster Presentation in April. James Lamberg, D.O., was selected as LECOM’s 2010-2011 Student D.O. of the Year. He also led a group of LECOM students that created an iPhone application called “OMM Guide.” The app is a free medical resource for osteopathic Dr. Lamberg displays the iPhone medical students App ‘OMM Guide.’ and residents. The app was released on Dec. 15, 2009, and has been downloaded more than 50,000 times. John Leuenberger, D.O., was elected to the board of the Student American Academy of Osteopathy/Postgraduate American Academy of Osteopathy (SAAO/PAAO). He will serve as a liaison between students and residents, oversee the Student Mentor Program and develop new ways to recruit new members to the PAAO. Lucas McCaffrey, D.O., married Laura Wolfe, D.O., on June 11. They are both starting an internal medicine residency at Winthrop University Hospital in Long Island, N.Y. Kathleen Pitterle, D.O., completed a sports medicine rotation this spring at the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Sports Medicine Clinic in Colorado Springs, Colo. She was the first LECOM student selected for the rotation. She worked with Olympic athletes, physicians, athletic trainers and physical therapists. She is currently enrolled in an internal medicine/pediatrics residency at Penn State Hershey Medical Center.
Class of 2012 Ali Abtahi, OMS4, received the Nils Pfenning Diversity Award from the Centers for Organ Recovery and Education (CORE). He wrote an essay titled, “Motorcycles and Music,” which is geared toward increasing organ donor designation and awareness in the Erie area. Abtahi hopes to pursue a general surgery residency and organ
Jed Duensing, OMS4, won first place and a $500 prize in the Eighth Annual Natural Supplements Research Competition in January in San Diego, Calif. The conference was sponsored by the Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine. His poster presentation abstract — “The effect of L-carnitine on lipoprotein levels and its role in cardiovascular disease therapy” — was also published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. Rochelle Forsyth, P4, was named as a Trustee for the Florida Pharmacy Association in Tallahassee, Fla. She is the first LECOM School of Pharmacy student to serve on the Foundation’s Board of Trustees. Erika Gould, P3, traveled to India in February with Devon Swancer, P3. They gave polio vaccines to approximately 2,000 children. They also helped volunteers and Gould, left, and Swancer provided laborers build a vaccines to 2,000 Indian children. dam in a remote village to improve irrigation and crop yields. The trip was organized by Rotary International. Celestine Ichoku, P3, spoke at a Black History Month event at East High School in Erie. As a Nigerian-born American, he spoke about African-American history from a native African perspective. He told the audience that education is the key to success in America, adding that there are many opportunities for African-Americans to succeed in this country. Kunal Kanani, P4, received a $3,000 scholarship from the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation. He was one of 58 pharmacy students nationwide to receive a NACDS scholarship. Kelsey Laks, P3, attended the PPA’s Fourth Annual Government Relations Advocacy for Student Pharmacists (GRASP) program in February in Harrisburg, Pa. She was one of 21 pharmacy students from across Pennsylvania to attend the conference. Participants learned about legislative side of the pharmacy profession and the regulatory process. Gina Petrakos, OMS4, was awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the Sun Coast Osteopathic Foundation in Largo, Fla. James Toldi, OMS4, co-authored a poster, The Use of Venting Slit Sutures as a Modification of Glaucoma Drainage Implants to Prevent Early Postoperative Hypertension and Hypotony.” He
44 | LECOM CONNECTION | SUMMER 2011
presented the poster in May at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology national conference in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Amy Wilds, P4, received a $500 Medco Health Solutions Scholarship from the Florida Pharmacy Foundation. In applying for the scholarship, she wrote a 300 word essay, “The Advantages of Providing Patient Care with a Pharmacy Benefit Management/Mail Service Pharmacy Setting.”
Class of 2013 Adam Allan, OMS3, was awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the Sun Coast Osteopathic Foundation in Largo, Fla. Liza Brown, OMS3, received a $1,000 scholarship for the 2011-12 academic year from the Blake Medical Center Auxiliary in Bradenton, Fla. Caroline Davis, OMS3, received a $500 scholarship from the Florida Osteopathic Medical Association (FOMA). She was honored with FOMA’s Student Leadership Award at the FOMA convention in Weston, Fla. Michael Groover, OMS3, was awarded a $10,000 scholarship from the Colorado Springs Osteopathic Foundation. Matthew Hallanger, OMS3, presented “Recognition and Field Management of Traumatic Brain Injuries” to the Lakewood Ranch Community Emergency Response Team. Colton Hutton, P2, attended the PPA’s Fourth Annual Government Relations Advocacy for Student Pharmacists (GRASP) program in February in Harrisburg, Pa. He was one of 21 pharmacy students from across Pennsylvania to attend the conference. Participants learned about legislative side of the pharmacy profession and the regulatory process. Dustin Paul, OMS3, spent six weeks in India on a medical mission in the summer of 2010. He went with members of St. Gregorios Indian Orthodox Church in Philadelphia. He worked six days a week at a clinic at St. Gregorios Hospital in Parumula. He traveled by elephant through the jungle to help patients in need of medical attention. As the only medical student in the group, he talked to Indian physicians about osteopathic medicine and osteopathic manipulative therapy. After leaving India, Paul spent two weeks in Nicaragua on another medical mission.
Class of 2014 Kinsey Bernhard, OMS2, Ben Bumgarner, OMS2, Rachel Johnson, OMS2, Florence Lee, OMS3, Maryann Salib, OMS3, and Amit Sharma, OMS2, have been working with older adults at the Greensburg YMCA. The students use interactive exercises and show seniors ways to look up accurate health information online. The teaching materials were developed by the National Institute on Aging. Jill Eysaman, OMS2, co-authored an article that was published in the February 2011 issue of Clinical Pediatrics. The article was titled, “Screening obese students for acanthosis nigricans and other diabetes risk factors in the urban School Based Health Center.”