"I Wanted to Pay It Forward"
For the 135 members of TouroCOM Harlem’s Class of 2022, July 23 marked the next step in their journeys to becoming doctors as they officially began their first week of medical school.
Orientation week included lectures about coping with the stress of first year studies, introductions to faculty members and programs and even a tour of Harlem. On the last day of the orientation, TouroCOM Harlem’s Student Government Association hosted a water fight and pizza lunch for the new students. We caught up with eight members of the new class and spoke to them about their backgrounds, why they considered a career in medicine and what their hopes are for the future. The Class of 2022 is a diverse group including athletes, artists and researchers and even a nationally ranked fencer. Despite their diverse backgrounds and history, each members of the class new class shared a similar goal: moving the medical profession forward.
“I’ve Been Waiting for This Moment Since High School”
On July 23, TouroCOM Middletown’s Class of 2022 donned their white coat as they began their medical school journey to become doctors of osteopathic medicine. Before the ceremony began, we spoke with Stephen Hongach, Lea Saliba, Karolina Bezdickova, Shanice Samuels, Joshua Kolb, and Meyling Zuniga, newly minted first years, about their backgrounds and what led them to choose medicine. Before the ceremony began, we spoke with Stephen Hongach, Lea Saliba, Karolina Bezdickova, Shanice Samuels, Joshua Kolb, and Meyling Zuniga, newly minted first years, about their backgrounds and what led them to choose medicine.
“Stand Tall in Your White Coats”
The 135 members of TouroCOM Middletown’s class of 2022 began their medical school experience by donning their white coats at a ceremony at the Paramount Theater in Middletown on July 23.
Providing Streamlined Healthcare
Three TouroCOM students participated in a prestigious internship program run by the Kaiser Permanente, an integrated managed care consortium in California.
Building a Sense of Community
Whether it’s his weekly volunteer sessions at a nearby homeless shelter, organizing student discount for board prep resources, raising funds for holiday toys for homeless children, making study guides or giving tours to prospective students, OMS II Johnny Truong has managed to make service to his peers and the community at large a priority during his time at TouroCOM Middletown. Which made him the obvious choice for this year’s TouroCOM Middletown Student DO of the Year.
"He Never Wanted to Retire"
Dr. Robert Stern, one of TouroCOM Harlem’s founding faculty members and a pillar of the school, died on May 3 from complications of leukemia.
OMS II Oyinlola Oshinowo is Inaugural Recipient of Tracy Tam Memorial Alumni Award for Compassion
TouroCOM Harlem student Oyinlola (Lola) Oshinowo is the recipient of the inaugural Tracy Tam Memorial Alumni Award for Compassion.
“I Made a Vow to Serve Poor, Underserved Communities”
Weeks before their graduation, two TouroCOM Middletown DO students spent a week in April helping the poor in El Salvador.
"Who Wants to See a Brain?”
“Who wants to see brains? Lungs?” Dr. Sushama Vallabhajosyula Rich called out, a question to which a remarkable number of hands answered by shooting up into the air.
