Geisinger College of Health Sciences

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's student organization, Pediatric Outreach Group for Students (POGS), spearheaded an effort to make sure children in Head Start programs and foster care will have gifts to open this holiday season. The students sponsored a Holiday Giving Tree that collected donations for Dunmore Head Start and Lackawanna Family Care for Children and Youth. More than 140 children will receive gifts thanks to the effort.

Two Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) students are authors of a paper published in Vol. 8, Issue 1 of Pharmacy, an international scientific peer-reviewed open access journal on pharmacy education and practice published quarterly online by MDPI. The students, Sara Graham and John Wroblewski, are both members of the MD Class of 2022.

Student leaders at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine recently planned and organized the school's second Indigenous/First Nation People cultural bazaar to celebrate is Indigenous/First Nation People Heritage Month, an observance that occurs in November.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) held its annual National First-Generation College Celebration on Nov. 8. The event included a first-generation meet and greet reception where student leaders shared their experiences with attendees, including faculty, staff and fellow students.

Preserving health and having fun were the twin goals of the eighth annual Steamtown Health Fair recently hosted by second-year medical students from Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) in partnership with Scranton Primary Health Care Center. The free, family-friendly event featured free screenings for blood pressure, hearing and mental health. In addition, attendees received information on a variety of health-related topics, from diabetes management to substance use disorder education, as well as education on emotional resilience and organ and tissue donation. All event proceeds were donated to the Meals on Wheels of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Student organizers said 250 people attended or volunteered at the event.

A group of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) students have dedicated what little spare time they have to mentoring undergraduate students and preparing them to be competitive applicants. Since its founding in 2018, the Pre-medical Mentoring and Advising Program (PMAP) has helped 17 students get into medical school and was recognized by GCSOM students as "organization of the year" for the 2018-2019 academic year, based upon student votes.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine recently held an election for Graduate Student Council (GSC) for the Master of Biomedical Sciences (MBS) program. GSC represents the united voice of graduate students and provides programs and activities which support the college's mission and core values. The elected officers of GSC will work to strengthen existing bonds between students, faculty, staff and administration and to enrich the college's educational excellence and student affairs programs.

On Oct. 19, several members of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) master of biomedical sciences (MBS) Class of 2020 traveled to Wilkes-Barre to participate in Wilkes University's third annual diversity & inclusion conference, entitled, "Understanding & Addressing Social Inequalities." The purpose was to raise awareness of and develop competency in diversity and social justice topics. Wilkes University awarded certificates of completion at the end of the conference.

Three Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) students joined a Geisinger Health Foundation team working to address the problem of childhood obesity. The students' poster presenting the program, Pediatricians Prescribing Play: A Unique and Scalable Approach To Combat Childhood Obesity, won third place in the Pennsylvania Medical Society's 2019 Student, Resident and Fellow Poster Contest.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) recently held elections for Medical Student Council (MSC). MSC was established to advance the interests and well-being of the medical school and its current and future students. MSC represents the united voice of medical students and provides programs and activities, which support the school's mission and core values. The elected officers of MSC work to strengthen existing bonds between students, faculty, staff and administration and to enrich the school's educational excellence and student affairs programs. MSC is composed of an executive board, senate and general assembly.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) Doylestown campus recently held an election for Graduate Student Council (GSC). GSC represents the united voice of Doylestown graduate students and provides programs and activities which support the college's mission and core values. The elected officers of GSC will work to strengthen existing bonds between students, faculty, staff and administration and to enrich the college's educational excellence and student affairs programs.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) students will host their 10th annual Turkey Trot 5K/10K run in downtown Scranton on Sunday, Nov. 3. Proceeds will benefit the nonprofit charitable organization, Friends of the Poor.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) chapter of the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) recently participated in LMSA's Policy Summit held in October in Washington, D.C. Fourth-year student, Yoseph Aldras, who served as president in his second year, served as the conference co-chair of LMSA's national Policy Committee. In that position, he helped plan the summit, developed promotional materials, worked with invited speakers and reviewed policy resolutions drafted by attendees at the three-day event.

Kristina Borham of Oxford, a fourth-year medical student at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM), has been invited to share her experiences building awareness of human trafficking among medical students at the 2020 Medical Symposium on Human Trafficking to be held in February in Richmond, Virginia.

Three Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) students and two faculty members had a paper accepted for publication in the September edition of the journal, Forensic Science International. Forensic Science International is an international journal dedicated to the applications of medicine and science in the administration of justice. The co-authors are Kevin Simpson, Matthew Moran and Dipam Shah, all members of GCSOM's MD Class of 2021 and faculty members Brian Piper, Ph.D., assistant professor of neuroscience and Olapeju M. Simoyan, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of family medicine and epidemiology.

The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) notified four medical students at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine that their research, "Identifying and Increasing Palliative Care Consults in the Medical ICU," has been accepted for poster presentation CAPC's national seminar, scheduled for Nov.14-16 in Atlanta.

The Pennsylvania Medical Society Alliance has bestowed an Alliance Medical Education Scholarship (AMES) upon Amelia Mackarey of Clarks Summit, a fourth-year medical student at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM). The scholarships will be awarded at the Pennsylvania Medical Society House of Delegates Meeting in Hershey on Saturday Oct. 26.

Two student leaders at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) announced that "Concussions and Head Injuries," the inaugural offering of a new Sports Medicine Lecture series at GCSOM, will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 17 at 6:30 p.m. Michael Pheasant of East Stroudsburg and Bradley Garcia of Doylestown, both second-year medical students, are members of GCSOM's Student Musculoskeletal Society (SMS). Together they and Mark Seeley, MD, SMS club advisor and faculty sponsor, developed the concept for sharing information on safety, exercise and health for free with the community.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) held its 11th annual White Coat Ceremony for the Class of 2023 on Aug. 2. The Class of 2023's future doctors participated in a ceremony, held in common with virtually every other medical school in the nation, designed to welcome new medical students into the profession. Students recited an oath acknowledging their responsibilities as future physicians and their obligations to future patients. Then they were cloaked with the white coat -- the mantle of the medical profession.

Samuel Mellits, a member of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) MD Class of 2020, delivered remarks at GCSOM's White Coat ceremony welcoming the new MD Class of 2023. It is the first time a GCSOM student has addressed attendees of the ceremony. Mellits spoke to students, their families and others gathered at the event about Geisinger Commonwealth's chapter of the Gold Humanism Honor Society to underscore how the values of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation are prioritized at GCSOM.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) has announced that 10 new doctors-in-training have committed to staying in the region to practice medicine by becoming part of the innovative Abigail Geisinger Scholars Program. Abigail Geisinger Scholars pay no tuition in exchange for an obligation to work at Geisinger once they finish residency.

The American Medical Association (AMA) announced that Vanessa Thiel, a member of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) MD Class of 2021, was appointed chair of AMA's Committee on Bioethics and Humanities in the Medical Student Section.

Brian Velasco is still just a medical student at Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine, but he has already accumulated more than 30 research experiences in publications, abstracts and presentations. He has also been invited to deliver podium presentations at the prestigious American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society's (AOFAS) annual meeting in Chicago, but had to decline the invitation because his preceptor at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a Harvard teaching hospital, suggested his fourth-year clinical rotations took precedence. However, his work will still be presented in September by his fellow co-authors.

Amelia Mackarey and Victoria O'Brien, both members of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine's (GCSOM) MD Class of 2020 have been selected to present a poster at the 2019 Gold Humanism Summit describing their work creating, developing and publishing the newsletter, Grateful at Geisinger.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine bestowed its annual end-of-year awards upon deserving students and faculty at a ceremony in May. During the event, Dr. Bruce Saidman presented the Dr.Lester Saidman Award for Excellence in Emergency Medicine, to GCSOM fourth-year student, Thomas Sewatsky.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine students at the Guthrie Campus participated in the second Stanley Conklin Research Day, an event which will be held annually. The purpose of the event is to showcase resident and student research and quality improvement projects conducted within the Guthrie system. Oral and poster presentations were judged by a panel of physicians and awards were announced at the end of the event.

In April, Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine students at the Guthrie Campus participated in the second Stanley Conklin Research Day, an event which will be held annually. The purpose of the event is to showcase resident and student research and quality improvement projects conducted within the Guthrie system. Oral and poster presentations were judged by a panel of physicians and awards were announced at the end of the event.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) bestowed its annual end-of-year awards upon deserving students and faculty at a ceremony in May. During the event, Maureen Pesavento presented the John R. & Maureen J. Pesavento Community Service Award to fourth-year GCSOM medical student, Elizabeth Boyle.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) bestowed its annual end-of-year awards upon deserving students and faculty at a ceremony in May. During the event, several GCSOM students were recognized with a Jennifer A. Sidari, MD '13 Global Health Educational Award.

Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine (GCSOM) bestowed its annual end-of-year awards upon deserving students and faculty during a ceremony in May. At the event, the Lackawanna County Medical Society Alliance (LCMSA) bestowed the Excellence in Women's Health Field award to two GCSOM students.