Where is the osteopathic medical profession now in terms of osteopathic distinctiveness? In 2015, the AOA launched a national awareness compaign for the profession with the following key messages incorporated throughout the campaign
42:
These points are intended to increase awareness of the profession, but other than OMT, they do not exhibit the necessary outcome data that demonstrate why DOs are unique.
One of the characteristics not highlighted in these bullet points is the social mission and accountability that the osteopathic medical profession provides toward an overall public good. In 2010, an analysis of the social mission of medical education in 124 allopathic (17 community based) and 17 osteopathic medical schools was conducted.
43 For this analysis, the definition of social mission was based on 3 factors: (1) percentage of graduates who practice primary care, (2) percentage who work in health professional shortage areas, and (3) percentage who are underrepresented minorities. In this study,
43 COMs produced relatively more primary care physicians and practiced slightly more in underserved commmunities but trained a smaller percentage of underrepresented minorities. The authors concluded that medical schools with a strong social mission were generally best prepared to produce primary care for the underserved.
43
Osteopathic medicine's foundation was based in primary care and rural medicine.
44 Although not explicitly stated, it could be inferred that the osteopathic medical profession continues to follow its roots as manifested by opening new schools that are predominantly located in rural and underserved communities. The new schools’ missions are to a great extent focused on producing primary care physicians for the communities in which they reside. However, for more than a century, the osteopathic medical profession has steadfastly proven it can produce high-quality physicians, with a majority practicing primary care and at a fraction of the cost of its allopathic counterparts. This outcome begs the question, what is unique, distinctive, and distinguishing about osteopathic medicine to allow this pheneomena to persist for 140 years?
At TUCOM, we appreciate the opportunity offered by the
JAOA ENGAGE Initiative, which allows COMs to showcase their scholarly activity.
45 In this issue, TUCOM shares findings from a few of its programs and efforts, with GROUPIE representing just one of vast possibilities that may distinguish osteopathic medical students, COMs, and the profession. As with most COMs, TUCOM ranks near the top for the percentage of students selecting a career in primary care.
46 However, a focus on primary care and community-based practice, even when adding osteopathic principles and practice, is inadequate to truly define TUCOM or osteopathic medicine's unique contributions to health care. As stated by Chen and Mullan in 2009, “The structure of today's osteopathic medical schools may be hard to distinguish from that of their allopathic counterparts, but the output of osteopathic medical schools remains clearly distinctive, and the nation's health care system benefits as a result.”
27 If all COMs could find their particular “GROUPIE,” the osteopathic medical profession could individually and collectively demonstate an evidence-based approach detailing public benefits that are unique, with distingishing characteristics and distinctive outcomes that represent and define osteopathic medicine for this millenium.