Dean's Update 2024-01

January 30, 2024

I am writing this, my final update as dean of your college, literally on the six-year anniversary of my taking on the role. Before I reflect on that, I would like to first note we are all eagerly awaiting the “taking of the helm” by our new dean, Dr. Joyce deJong (D.O.), who I have no doubt will do a fantastic job, and I do wish her all the best!

I hope you noticed that I have purposely attempted to keep the “COM deans updates” focused squarely on the college and its multiple leaders and efforts, and not the dean’s antics per se, but in this update I’ll break that streak, and briefly share some final personal thoughts with you.

It has been my highest honor to serve you as dean of your college. It is almost unimaginable to me how this came to be, given the circumstances of my past, but turns out these types of outcomes are not uncommon to many of you who also have been graced by being at MSU or the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine. In my case, I was the first in my family to go to college, nonetheless medical school.

I am forever grateful to the additional supports (financial, counseling, networking opportunities, etc.) that I received from MSU that put me in a position to be accepted into the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine. I owe so much to this institution, and being dean during a particularly challenging time for the college was one way I could give back to an institution that had given me so much. Also, my matriculation to MSU was over 40 years ago, (gulp!), and since then I can assure you that MSU, and MSUCOM in particular, have greatly expanded their capacities to support students facing similar if not more challenging backgrounds than what I experienced, and we will continue to do so going forward. This is why I have so strongly supported our college’s multiple scholarship efforts and hope you can also do the same.

One regret I do have is that due to the vastness of our colleges reach, (coupled with a pandemic) I was prevented from being able to interact more regularly and in person with not only our entire campus faculty, staff and students, but also our thousands of community partners and alumni throughout the state and nation. Despite that, during my years as dean I have had the pleasure of meeting countless COM faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends who continue to give support back to our college, including financially. In particular, their dedication to our college bolstered my spirits during some particularly challenging times for me, both professionally and personally, and for that I am forever grateful to you - you know who you are!
 
I don’t think its hyperbolic of me to state that my greatest fear when I became dean was that we would see a dramatic decrease in both the numbers and quality of applicants to our medical school given the leadership failings uncovered at MSU and MSUCOM at that time, coupled with the evils caused by the Nasser tragedy. That’s why I want to thank those students who have been applying to our college’s D.O. and PA programs in record numbers. I’ve always felt that one of the best independent metrics we have, in regard to assessing our college’s reputation, is revealed by the number of applicants to our college. In particular, I note that applicants to our D.O. program have steadily increased since 2016 and have consistently been at record numbers for the past several years - while some other medical schools in Michigan have seen over 35% decreases in their applicant numbers over similar time frames. This is what I feel is one of our greatest achievements (of many) during my tenure as dean.

I attribute this accomplishment to our college’s cumulative and continued efforts dedicated to the integration and promotion of osteopathic medical practice approaches and principles in every and all aspects of our clinical, educational, research and outreach efforts. In fact, it’s my opinion that the only path to achieving significant improvement in the healthcare outcomes of our country will be through expansion of the osteopathic approach throughout the healthcare enterprise. The record numbers of applicants to our college (and osteopathic colleges nationally) serves as proof to me that tomorrow’s physicians agree that the osteopathic way IS the way forward.

Sincerely, Your Dean

Dean Andrea Amalfitano, D.O., Ph.D.