"Roll those bones, and they'll go home!" -A.T. Still

PCOM SAAO members reppin' in Louisville! 

While some students spent Spring Break 2012 relaxing (::cough::M1s) and some students spent it bitterly writing blog posts about the PCOM curriculum, some students donned their cowboy boots and traveled down to Louisville, KY for the 75th Annual American Academy of Osteopathy Convocation. One of the attendees was this year's SAAO (OMM Club) President and a dear friend of mine (who patiently works out my numerous somatic dysfunctions caused by hours of being hunched over books), Tom (OMS-II), who was also elected national SAAO Vice-Chair (shoutout to fellow OMS-II Sean, who was elected the National OPTI Rep). I bugged Tom for a statement about convo, and this is what he wrote: 

From March 20 – 25^th PCOM’s Student American Academy of Osteopathy (SAAO) chapter (formerly UAAO) traveled to Louisville, Kentucky for the 75^th annual American Academy of Osteopathy (AAO) convention, or "Convocation."

As a student, Convocation is exciting because it provides an opportunity to interact directly with students from every osteopathic medical school in the country.  The students that attended had the opportunity to meet, talk with, and learn from role models in the osteopathic community that they would normally only read about in books or hear about in class when faculty members discuss the history of techniques. Within just the past few years, famous osteopathic physicians such as Viola Fryman, Harold Magoun, Robert Fulford, Larry Jones, Eileen DiGiovanna, Paul Kimberly, and Stanley Schiowitz have attended and given lectures at Convocation.  In addition, many of them also gave hands-on demonstrations of osteopathic techniques they felt were important to pass on.  What better way to learn a Still technique, than from the person who rediscovered it and wrote the osteopathic textbook so many of the schools use?

Over the past few years the focus of Convocation has shifted to include a separate schedule designed specially for students.  This schedule does include classes similar to those offered to physicians, however attendance is limited to only students.  This allows for a slower pace that focuses on introducing basic concepts and techniques, which facilitates students starting to use them immediately.  The skills highlighted at Convocation also help students to look at what they are taught in school, such as counterstrain and HVLA, in a different way in order to better apply them during their clinical years.  Perhaps they will even return as physicians to participate in more advanced courses, or even teach these important skills themselves to the next generation of osteopathic physicians!

Convocation made me proud to one day have a “DO” after my name and truly is the type of event that all PCOM students could benefit from. Every new technique or concept learned will undoubtedly aid in the development of a new way of looking at disease and injury, which may one day allow me to notice something other physicians have been unable to see in a patient.

More photos can be found on the SAAO's Facebook page, which you should definitely "like," because it provides a glimpse of why they won Outstanding Student Organization of the Year. Another reason why SAAO rocks: they're providing a 4-hour comprehensive OMM review for our national boards/our final next week (!), and lemme tell you, with all the  classes/boards/activities craziness going on, I'm going to need all the help I can get.