The field of medicine is an ever-evolving quest to improve the life of individual patients and in extension all of humanity. The longitudinal successes of this quest can be easily demonstrated when looking at objective measures such as life expectancy. Worldwide average life expectancy has doubled over the past century, from about 35 years to above 70 years (Roser, M et al., 2013). Biomedical research in all its forms is largely responsible for this drastic improvement in the health of the world’s population. Nonetheless, discrepancies in access to health care still result in significant differences in patient health. At the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific (COMP), significant research efforts by faculty and medical students contribute to the advancement of evidence-based medicine and thus patient health.
Nearly all of COMP’s 80 full-time faculty engage in some form of biomedical research, from laboratory-based research over translational research to clinical research. Laboratory-based research aims to establish the foundations of knowledge that are needed to develop new treatments. At COMP, there is an emphasis on infectious, neurobiological, and metabolic disease research. Translational research carries advances from laboratory to bedside and COMP efforts emphasize cardiovascular and musculoskeletal health. Clinical research focuses on the recruitment of patients to measure the benefits of novel or established approaches in health care settings. Collaborations between these different approaches to research at COMP are common. A fruitful example of such a collaboration between clinical and laboratory researchers is a current clinical trial lead by Jesus Sanchez, DO and a team of Osteopathic clinicians together with basic science PIs Sebastien Fuchs, MD PhD and Hendrik Szurmant, PhD (Sanchez, J. et al., 2021). The project addresses the ability of osteopathic interventions to augment the immune-response to the COVID-19 vaccination. Dr. Sanchez reports on this collaboration: “COMP has a unique culture, where clinicians and laboratory scientists work hand in hand to deliver the best possible medical education we can envision. The clinical trial shows how those close connections between faculty of different backgrounds lend themselves well to exciting research collaborations, where the differing types of expertise are necessary to the success of biomedical research.”
To impact the future of medicine, medical student involvement in research endeavors by COMP faculty is essential. With a fulltime enrollment of over 1300 medical students across its two campuses in Pomona, CA and Lebanon, OR, COMP is the largest medical school in the western USA and a very significant contributor to Oregon and California physician populations (Morse, R. et al., 2023). Training medical students in research thus guarantees future involvement in the advancement of knowledge towards an impact on the future of medicine. A shining example is Rebecca Kuan, DO class of 2025, who is continuing her COMP medical training following a dedicated research year at the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland. On the importance of research in the training of medical students, Rebecca explains: “Getting involved in research projects has allowed me to not only develop the skills necessary for the career in academic medicine I am aiming for, but also better understand how existing guidelines used to make decisions in medicine are established.”
In conclusion, the continued quest to improve human health requires biomedical research at academic institutes such as COMP, involving researchers and medical students alike. Through such efforts, it can be envisioned that in another century, historians looking back at objective measures of human health will be just as astonished at the advances that have been made, as we are when reflecting on the doubling of life expectancy in the past century.
References
- Robert Morse, Eric Brooks, Kenneth Hines and Sam Wellington (2023)-“2023-2024 Best Medical Schools”. Published online at USNews.com. Retrieved from: ‘https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-medical-schools’ [Online Resource]
- Max Roser, Esteban Ortiz-Ospina and Hannah Ritchie (2013) – “Life Expectancy”. Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: ‘https://ourworldindata.org/life-expectancy’ [Online Resource]
- Jesus Sanchez, Eric Martinez, Sebastien Fuchs and Hendrik Szurmant (2021)- “Augmentation of Immune Response to COVID-19 mRNA Vaccination Through Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment Including Lymphatic Pumps”. Published online at ClinicalTrials.gov. Retrieved from: ‘https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT04928456’ [Online Resource]
