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ACOM is pleased to announce that Leah McKnight-Haas, DO, will serve as keynote speaker for the Class of 2024 White Coat Ceremony.

Dr. McKnight-Haas is a board certified family medicine physician with a specialty in Obesity Medicine. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from Judson College and went on to study medicine at the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine (formally known as Pikeville College of Osteopathic Medicine). She completed residency at the University of South Alabama where she served as Chief Resident.

Dr. Leah McKnight-Haas is currently a partner in private practice at Southern Clinic and serves as a clinical faculty preceptor for the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine. She also serves as Medical Director for Encompass Hospice and Southeast Alabama Home Health Care. Dr. McKnight-Haas is a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians, Alabama Medical Association, and the Obesity Medicine Association. She is dedicated to providing quality, individualized care for her patients.

White Coat Ceremony is an annual celebration that represents a rite of passage for a first-year medical student and an important step in the journey toward becoming an osteopathic physician. This year’s event will be presented virtually to promote the health and safety of our students, their families and the ACOM community in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual pre-recorded ceremony will include footage of students being coated by ACOM faculty members. The virtual White Coat Ceremony will air on ACOM’s Facebook page and YouTube channel on Sunday, November 8, 2020, at 2 p.m. CT.

The Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) will hold its annual Simulation Competition (SimComp) on campus hosted by ACOM’s chapter of the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) on November 20 and 21. Eight teams of first- and second-year medical students will compete against each other in a race to save the patient, with preliminary, semifinal and final rounds to determine one winning team to advance. Student teams have been training for SimComp during the fall 2020 semester. This year, the majority of qualifying teams are composed of first-year students, a unique outcome that demonstrates the growing value of simulation among incoming students.

SimComp is an event designed by ACOM to prepare students to compete in the national SimChallenge competition. Each team is presented with an emergent clinical scenario, which requires medical knowledge, clinical skills, teamwork, communication, and calm nerves to overcome the challenges. One ACOM team advances to the national competition each year. ACOM has risen to success through its students’ participation in simulation competitions beyond the College, earning recognition on both national and international stages.

In 2017, a team of second-year ACOM students won the national SimChallenge event and represented the United States at the international competition in Paris, defeating the French team in the final round to become international champions. Last year, the ACOM team won the first national Virtual Patient Challenge hosted by AMSA and those students were invited to compete in the first International Virtual Patient Challenge at the Somesics – Sociedad Mexicana de Simulación en Ciencias de la Saludon conference. ACOM hopes to continue its storied success and capture another title in spring 2021, with this local tournament serving as an important step in that journey.

In accordance with social distancing guidelines this event will not be open to the public. Masks will be required for entrance into the building and those participating must wear gloves.

The Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) is pleased to announce that Stephen L. Fernandez, MD, has been appointed to the college’s board of directors as an at-large member.

Dr. Fernandez is a board-certified physician in Diagnostic Radiology and he specializes in Vascular and Interventional Radiology. He has practiced for more than 20 years at Radiology Associates of Dothan. Dr. Fernandez is a past president of the Southeast Health medical staff. He has also served on Southeast Health’s medical executive committee as chairman of the Department of Radiology.

Dr. Fernandez earned his medical degree from the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville and completed his residency and fellowship at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C.

A Message from the Dean of ACOM:

I believe that I speak for the entire ACOM community in expressing the pain and sadness we all share in the death of George Floyd.  We recoil from the images of his death because they are directly contrary to our core values as humans – the core values proclaimed in ACOM’s mission statement.

At ACOM, we strive for a life of integrity, compassion, and positive action. Our core values include Respect and Diversity. ACOM stands strong in support of all people who face discrimination because of the color of their skin, or on any other basis.

I stand with the entire ACOM community now in reaffirming our core values. Thanks to all ACOM students, faculty, and staff for your ongoing and unwavering commitment.

James C. Jones, DO, FACEP

Dean, Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine 

A team of ACOM students competed recently competed in and won the 2020 national Virtual Patient Challenge hosted by the American Medical Student Association (AMSA). The team, Cotard’s Delusionals, won the ACOM simulation competition in the Fall and was selected to move forward to represent the college at the AMSA event.  SIM competition was transitioned to a Virtual Patient Challenge. The national event transitioned to a virtual format, requiring a restructuring of teams, which two teams of three students each. The teams were Cotard’s Delusionals, with Kyle Cohen, Jessica McLean and Alyssa Pace-Patterson, and Still Cotard’s Delusionals with Sophia Jaffri, Alexandra Sappington and Joseph Bernhard. The two teams competed on Friday, April 17th against 14 other teams from around the country. The first round consisted of completing two 20-minute cases, with scoring based on the accuracy of examination, diagnosis and management of a virtual patient. Cotard’s Delusionals qualified for the final round, competing against three other teams, again with two 20-minute cases.  Following the case completion and a debrief, AMSA announced the winners, with Cotard’s Delusionals taking top honors.

ACOM OMS-II student Amir Khiabani was elected as Region II Trustee and appointed into his role onto the National Board of Trustees for the Student Osteopathic Medical Association (SOMA): the student branch of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA).

As Region II Trustee, Khiabani will oversee one of the largest SOMA regions nationally, comprised of 11 medical schools from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana and Mississippi. He will help newly-chartered Osteopathic medical schools have a presence at their respective campuses while also serving as a resource to provide pre-existing chapters with anything they need to improve their presence on campus. The Region Trustee also acts to guide chapter leaders in implementing national and regional initiatives on their campuses, as well as be involved in voting regarding the policies and the operations of the organization on a National level.