| A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona | |
|---|---|
| Established | 2007 |
| Provost | Craig M. Phelps, D.O., FAOASM |
| Dean | Thomas E. McWilliams, D.O., FACOFP |
| Academic staff | 153 Physicians[1] 204 Adjunct Faculty[1] |
| Students | 400 |
| Location | Mesa, Arizona, USA |
| Website | [1] |
The A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona (SOMA) deals exclusively with training physicians. Established in 2007 and located in Mesa Arizona, the university is intended to serve the community by training medical school students devoted to the community.[2] As a campus of the larger A.T. Still University network it embodies the same ideals. The school accepts approximatively 100 new students each year. SOMA is accredited by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA).[3] The first class, composed of 90 students, graduated in June 2011.[4]
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"A.T. Still University of Health Sciences serves as a learning-centered university dedicated to preparing highly competent professionals through innovative academic programs with a commitment to continue its osteopathic heritage and its focus on whole person healthcare, scholarship, community health, interprofessional education, diversity, and underserved populations."[5]
The campus operates in a portion of a 100,000-square-foot (9,300 m2) building on the 22 acre (89,000 m2) campus of A.T. Still University in Mesa. The Campus is the anchor of the Arizona Health & Technology Park, a 132 acre (0.53 km2) education, healthcare, and technology triangle owned by ATSU and Vanguard Health Systems. The master plan for the new park includes hospitals, long-term care facilities, professional offices, and product development research facilities. The campus is also home to the Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health and a 32,000-square-foot (3,000 m2) East Valley Family YMCA.[6]
SOMA uses the Clinical Presentation Educational Model which teaches that there are about 120 different ways that a patient can present themself to a physician. The teaching method was based on a method developed in 1994 by the University of Calgary.[7] Basic sciences are coupled with clinical sciences so that the students have a more comprehensive and practical foundation for each medical discipline.[8] The curriculum design emphasizes clinical competencies. which allows students to enter residency programs with greater experience with chronic disease than students educated in the majority of tertiary care-oriented academic health centers.[7]
SOMA is unique in that the first year is spent at the Mesa campus and the last three years at one of many community clinics. As of 2010 SOMA offers 11 community clinic opportunities in such locations as:[9]