Medical school sees growth
The College of Osteopathic Medicine builds new research facility and clinic
Expansion — LUCOM’s new research lab was designed to expand the school’s resarch capabilities. Photo credit: Leah Seavers
During the planning stages of Liberty University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine (LUCOM), Liberty had been preparing to open a medical clinic next to Kmart on Wards Road. The clinic would provide a place for students to shadow and learn from LUCOM physicians, thereby gaining experience while learning from faculty and staff of the medical department.
The new medical clinic will be operational in the coming months, according to Dr. Ronnie Martin, dean of LUCOM, and it will offer services capable of providing care to families, athletes and children.
“(The clinic) will offer preventative and primary services in family medicine, pediatrics, women’s health, sports medicine, internal medicine and Osteopathic manipulative medicine,” Martin said. “It will have X-Ray, laboratory, ultrasound and cardiac diagnostic services on site.”
Martin highlighted the fact that future plans for more clinics will depend on demand and the opportunities offered with regional partners.
“We anticipate opening additional clinic sites for the training of our students in partnership with these groups and others to expand access to health care,” Martin said. “The decision to expand into more extensive medical clinics, diagnostic centers, surgical or birthing centers will be made in conjunction with these partners and based on the needs of the community.”
Another expansion of LUCOM is the new 7,500-square-foot research lab. According to Martin, the research facility can handle “Level II Bio Hazard requirements to support the medical research of the students’ faculty.”
According to Martin, the new facility will provide students the chance to further their education and allow them the opportunity to specialize in their unique field of study.
“All students will have access to education in research procedures and protocol as well as the opportunity to engage in state-of-the-art research projects based on their interest and ability,” Martin said. “Although smaller in scope than many mature facilities, it contains state-of-the-art equipment and capability and the potential for expansion as the research mission and capability of the COM grows over the next decades.”
Partnerships with regional medical establishments have furthered the mission of LUCOM, according to Martin.
“We are committed to being a good partner to the physician groups and institutions in the region, and we have worked hard to put our actions in alignment with our words,” Martin said. “The college is working with local physician and institutional groups, among which are Central Virginia Family Practice, Medical Associates of Central Virginia, Centra Health Systems, Orthopedic Associates and Johnson Health, etc. to expand clinical services in the region.”
Since LUCOM began its inaugural class in the fall of 2014, the growing school has seen development in several forms, one of which was an agreement with Centra Health Services. The agreement, according to Lynchburg News & Advance, benefits both parties while maintaining a lasting partnership.
“Centra … has signed a 30-year affiliation agreement with Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine, a substantial change from the five-year, non-exclusive agreement initially signed in 2013, prior to the college’s opening,” the News & Advance reported. “Dr. Ronnie Martin, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine, said such lengthy affiliation agreements between health care systems and medical schools are uncommon, and this one benefits both parties.”
According to the report, before the college had officially opened, Centra was more conservative with the original agreement, which was signed in 2013. When the school opened its doors and filled its inaugural class with 162 students, Centra formed a more lasting partnership with Liberty that continues to benefit both parties.
VAN DYK is the news editor.