Teams of PCOM Georgia DO students competed to successfully execute simulated trauma cases.
Six second-year Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) students were presented with “SIM Battle Belts” to symbolize their team’s reign over other DO students as the champions of PCOM Georgia’s Simulation Center scenarios.
In SIM battles, a team of six students is presented with trauma cases and work together to save the “patients’” lives. Patients may include life-like mannequins and patient actors. These cases occur at the Simulation Center located at PCOM Georgia in Suwanee, a college with a student body of more than 1,100 that offers the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Doctor of Pharmacy and Doctor of Physical Therapy degrees, along with Master’s degrees in Biomedical Sciences and Physician Assistant Studies.
A member of the winning team, Thom Drew (DO ’21) said, “As much as I wanted to win the belt, I equally wanted to learn how to approach as many different clinical scenarios as possible, learn from excellent faculty and be better prepared for the next two clinical years.”
Simulation Center Medical Director Michael J. Sampson, DO, FAOASM, a former World Wrestling Entertainment ringside doctor, introduced the belt award to the competition where student teams compete against each other. He congratulated the students.
“You did an awesome job. Hopefully you not only had fun, but you’re now better prepared for clinical rotations during the next two years.”
Aside from competing for the belt, top teams were able to experience Trauma Day, an interprofessional education event where area EMT, nursing and medical students worked together on case scenarios.
Sampson said, “It’s about teamwork—you all did so well on Trauma Day—working together, establishing a team and paying attention to the little things. The scenarios solidified what you had just learned through textbooks.”
Drew said, “It helps to get your nerves out before the real thing. Reading a case presentation and answering a multiple choice question are one thing, but seeing it unfold in front of you and making the right diagnosis is definitely a different experience.”
“My team gradually developed a good degree of clinical suspicion given the history and exam findings which helped us go down the right treatment path more consistently,” he added.
“I didn’t mind waking up early for morning SIM battle experiences. It was totally worth it.”
Besides Drew, other winning team members included: Kyle Dajac (DO ’21), Tyler Kimball (DO ’21), Zac Owens (DO ’21), Brandon Quintana (DO [’21) and Robert Snyder (DO ’21).
PCOM Georgia has been serving students and the community for 20 years as a branch campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM), a private, not-for-profit, accredited institution of higher education established in 1899. Located in Suwanee (Gwinnett County), PCOM Georgia offers doctoral degrees in osteopathic medicine, pharmacy and physical therapy. Graduate degrees are offered in biomedical sciences, medical laboratory science and physician assistant studies. The campus joins PCOM South Georgia in Moultrie in helping to meet the healthcare needs of the state. Emphasizing "a whole person" approach to care, PCOM Georgia focuses on educational excellence, interprofessional education and service to the community. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 678-225-7500. The campus is also home to the Georgia Osteopathic Care Center, an osteopathic manipulative medicine clinic, which is open to the public by appointment. For more information, visit pcomgeorgiahealth.org.
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