“The mission of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) is to educate students from diverse backgrounds as lifelong learners in osteopathic medicine and complementary health related programs; to support and develop graduate medical education training; to advance scientific knowledge through academic, clinical and basic science research; and to promote patient-centered, evidence-based medicine. WVSOM is dedicated to serve, first and foremost, the state of West Virginia and the health care needs of its residents, emphasizing primary care in rural areas.”
The first year of the Patient Presentation Curriculum (PPC) begins with an integrated basic science foundation course, Foundations of Osteopathic Medicine (FOM). This course provides a basic understanding of how to communicate with patients, the structure and function of cell and tissue types and the roles of the endocrine, immune and autonomic nervous systems in the healthy individual. The PPC then uses the most common ways patients present to a physician to form the framework around which the curriculum content is taught. These presentations are organized around organ systems and focus on the basic science disciplines. These disciplines are integrated throughout the curriculum in association with the cases being presented. Throughout the first year, students begin their clinical instruction in the Clinical Skills I Lab (communications and physical diagnosis), Osteopathic Principles and Practice I Lab (OP&P) and Early Clinical Encounter courses (time in the clinic with clinical faculty).
In Year 2 the courses of the PPC curriculum are made up of 2‐3 patient centered cases, each based on common patient presentations. The cases become progressively more complex and include multisystem presentations that incorporate previous presentations to form a spiral curriculum that reinforces and builds on past learning. The Clinical Skills II Lab introduces students to the skills needed by physicians and places them in offices where the student may practice these skills. The OP&P II lab includes 10 weeks of simulated patient care in the Student Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine (OMM) Clinic in which community members are recruited to receive Osteopathic Manipulation from a pair of students under the supervision of OP&P faculty.
All of the courses use a mix of large and small group instructional methods including traditional lecture and laboratory approaches, as well as, interactive team-based learning, directed studies and application exercises. In addition, standardized patients, high fidelity simulators, electronic medical records and medical informatics are incorporated as part of the learning experiences.
The goals of the presentation curriculum are for the students to be able to:
The course is designed to introduce basic topics in clinical sciences, biochemistry, cell biology, physiology, pharmacology, microbiology, immunology, epidemiology, anatomy, and pathology. Mastery of these topics will be needed to allow student success in the patient presentation courses to follow.
This course is designed to provide biomedical science and clinical science foundations needed for diagnosing, understanding the underlying disease mechanisms and treatment options for diseases and injuries of the musculoskeletal system, within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of the skin and integumentary system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of the cardiovascular system within the context of common patient presentations
The course is designed to provide basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of the respiratory system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide the basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the central nervous system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injuries of the blood and lymph system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide the basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury of the gastrointestinal system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide the basic clinical science and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury of the renal system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide the basic clinical and biomedical science foundation needed for the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the endocrine system within the context of common patient presentations.
The course is designed to provide the basic clinical and biomedical science foundation needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury to the reproductive system within the context of common patient presentations.
Physician shadowing experiences at the Robert C. Byrd Clinic.
Students receive instruction in physical diagnosis and evaluation skills such as auscultation, use of diagnostic equipment and physician-patient communication in a laboratory setting as preparation for early clinical contact. These labs include experience with standardized patients and human patient simulators.
This course provides an introduction to the principles of osteopathy, emphasizing diagnostic palpation methods and multiple corrective procedures for structural abnormalities. Integration of osteopathic principles and practice with organ systems is maintained throughout the course of instruction. This hands-on course provides the foundation for practice of osteopathic manipulative treatment.
Culinary Medicine is the utilization of a unique combination of nutrition and culinary knowledge to assist patients in achieving and maintaining optimal health. This course is intended to expand students’ comfort in counseling patients in successful behavior change around nutrition and cooking.
Exercise is Medicine elective trains student on the appropriate use of physical activity for disease prevention and health promotion. By the end of the course, students are able to construct an evidence-based, achievable, specific, written action plan and develop exercise prescriptions.
The Behavioral Medicine Course provides an overview of biomedical and clinical science regarding normal and abnormal human psychosocial-behavioral development as well as psychiatric classification and diagnosis of mental illness, within the context of common patient presentations.
The BLIB Course is designed to provide the basic clinical and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury of the blood, immune and bone systems. This is accomplished via participation in lectures, workshops, team-based learning and directed studies that apply pertinent anatomy, physiology, microbiology and pharmacology to clinically relevant case presentations.
This course is divided into three sections:
Opening scheme is dyspnea, presenting adverse group of pulmonary pathologies including interstitial, occupational, restrictive and vascular lung disease. Secondly, working off a scheme of chest pain, ischemic and valvular heart disease is presented including EKG interpretation, pharmacology, pathophysiology and an auscultation exercise. Finally, the scheme of syncope is presented and includes cardiac arrhythmias. Team-based learning is presented to support knowledge of ischemic and antiarrhythmic pharmacology.
Clinical preparation is emphasized throughout the curriculum in the second year of instruction in the lab-based course. Clinical instruction and practice are provided via lab and clinical experiences in the Robert C. Byrd Clinic and other medical facilities in the region including clinics, private physician offices, nursing homes, physical therapy, ambulance services and other allied health services. Clinical experiences include labs with standardized patients and with Human Patient Simulators. Additional training in casting/splinting, suturing, ophthalmology, ultrasound, community-based patient education, end-of-life conversations and other medical procedures.
The Neuro II Course explores the basic clinical and biomedical foundations of osteopathic medicine centered around patient presentations involving nervous system medicine.
The Neuromuscular Course explores the basic clinical and biomedical foundations of osteopathic medicine centered around patient presentations involving nervous system and muscles. It provides an overview of biomedical and clinical science related to motor weakness, stroke, localization of neural function, pain and addictions; as well as the medical and societal response to the phenomenon of the opioid crisis in the U.S., within the context of common patient presentations.
Training in osteopathic principles and practice continues during the year. The osteopathic concepts of the integrity of the body, the interrelationships of structure and function and osteopathic manipulative treatment in health and disease are central to the curriculum. One of the highlights of the second year is a student driven free clinic for osteopathic structural diagnosis and osteopathic manipulative treatment under the supervision of OPP clinical faculty that provides students with hands-on experiences with actual patients.
The Renal and Gastro II Course focuses on the structural, functional and integrative aspects of the kidney that underlie the pathologic mechanisms of the disease process. It is also designed to provide the biomedical and clinical science foundation needed for the diagnosis and management of foundations of diseases and injury of the gastrointestinal system. It begins with a review of the basic physiologic mechanisms that underpin renal function and continues to evolve around the differential diagnosis of kidney diseases and therapeutics through case presentations of hematuria and chronic kidney disease. The basic clinical science and biomedical science concepts encompassing diabetes mellitus type II is integrated in this module, as it is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease.
The Reproductive and Urinary Course covers the foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury to the male and female reproductive system including abnormal uterine bleeding, contraception, menopause, osteoporosis and pregnancy, using the context of common patient presentations. It also covers diseases of the male and female urinary system. The content is presented via participation in lectures, workshops, team‐based learning and directed studies that apply pertinent anatomy, physiology, microbiology and pharmacology to clinically relevant case presentations.
The Genitourinary Course is designed to provide the basic clinical and biomedical science foundations needed for the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and injury of the genital-urinary system. This is accomplished via participation in lectures, workshops, team-based learning and directed studies that apply pertinent anatomy, physiology, microbiology and pharmacology to clinically relevant case presentations.
The Skin Course is designed to provide the basic understanding of pathophysiology, typical presentations, pathologic features, diagnostic and management options associated with rashes and skin lesions. The Medical Professionalism components will expose the student to professional responsibilities of a physician including participating in activities related to compassionate care, the safety of patients and commitment to ethical issues in research and patient care. Additional training in Basic Life Support (BLS) and Interprofessional Education (IPE) is provided.
Years 3 and 4 of the curriculums consist of clinical rotations in a variety of medical settings. The first clinical rotation is generally a preceptorship with a primary care physician. During this training period in a primary care physician’s office, students continue to develop the basic skills necessary for the practice of osteopathic medicine. This course serves as the foundation for all future clinical rotations. Concentrated clinical training follows through the remainder of the third year and continues until graduation.
8 weeksRequired/Core
4 weeksRequired/Core
4 weeksRequired
10 weeksRequired
The courses/rotations may be outpatient, inpatient or both. The Dean’s Selective rotation in the 3rd year is a rotation that is based on the interest of the student and areas not required during the academic year otherwise. The selective rotations in the 4th year provide the student the flexibility to rotate in the sub-specialties in the specific discipline. The student has 44 weeks of rotations in the 3rd year and 38 weeks of rotations in the 4th year.
The Core Clerkships are community based providing students insight into Community vs. Academic based patient care. This is important in meeting the mission of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in emphasizing primary care in rural areas. This community-based model is organized into seven regions in the state of West Virginia. Emphasis is placed on experiences in both large and smaller community hospitals in order to provide the students with a broad exposure to health care that they will be providing following residency.
Grades for courses and clinical rotations are calculated on a percentage basis with 70 or higher considered a passing grade. All students must pass an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) at the end of year two to move on to Year 3 and another at the end of Year 3 to move on to Year 4. In addition, students must successfully pass COMLEX Level 1 prior to moving to Year 3 and COMLEX Level 2 CE and PE to graduate. WVSOM uses the NBOME COMAT exams as end of rotation exams which count for forty-five percent of the rotation grade.
The MSPE is composed by members of the Dean’s staff using information gathered from the student, the student’s file, their Statewide Campus Regional Assistant Dean and the Registrar. Comments made by preceptors during Clinical Rotations and by their Statewide Campus Regional Assistant Dean are reported as written. Once composed the MSPE is reviewed and approved by the student prior to posting.
Please note that passage of Levels 1 and 2 CE of the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensure Examination (COMLEX) administered by the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME) is required for graduation from this institution. Scores are reported with the official NBOME transcript.