Two years ago, the Greenbrier East High School Spartans men’s varsity soccer team won a state championship. Dan Hussion, a West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) fourth-year student, may not have been a player, but he was just as much a part of the team’s victory.
Hussion was one of the team’s coaches. Having spent most of his life playing soccer, he decided to volunteer when he became a first-year medical student in Lewisburg.
“In all my days playing as a competitive athlete, the coaches would engrain in us that we were only there because a former player wanted to give back and spread the knowledge of the game,” he said. “It was second nature to volunteer throughout my time in medical school. Studying can get stressful and you can get in your own head or frustrated with the way things are going. But having soccer practice would release all that.”
Hussion had an interest in soccer from as early as he can remember. He sustained many injuries throughout his playing days, one of which took place during his first home game as an undergraduate at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
“My mom saw me get my head bashed into a goal post and wheeled off in an ambulance,” he said.
He ended up having major surgery, and a physician ruled that his career as a college and semi-professional soccer player had ended. But through all the injuries he became acquainted with the physicians who treated his broken bones and performed surgeries. Hussion’s interest in surgery grew as he shadowed two orthopedic surgeons: WVSOM alumni Joseph Cincinnati, D.O., and Troy Foster, D.O., of Valley Health Center for Orthopedic Excellence in Martinsburg, W.Va.
“They were how I learned about WVSOM because they were incorporating osteopathic manipulative medicine in their clinic. If someone came in with back pain, they would fix it rather quickly and I was curious as to why these doctors were pulling on these older patients’ legs. I asked them about it, and they said, ‘Let me tell you all about OMM,’” he said. “I wanted to be just like these doctors. The physical manipulation was a game changer for me. I didn’t even apply to any other medical school after that.”
The West Virginia Eastern Panhandle native began medical school in 2020. He completed a full year as an Osteopathic Principles and Practice graduate teaching assistant. He is set to graduate in May 2025 and hopes he can find a residency in orthopedic surgery.
“I was such a Lego kid and liked shop classes in middle school. I liked using tools and working with my hands to see instant results,” he said.
Hussion said one of the things he appreciates about the medical school is the local support. He said the same goes for the support he and the soccer team were shown during their state championship run.
“We packed the bleachers. Each game we won, in the semifinals and finals, we had a police and fire escort in and out of town. That was incredible and something I told the coaching staff and the boys that, being from a more populated area, that sort of thing doesn’t happen. Seeing the connection of community was one of the most heartwarming things I’ve been part of,” he said. “A lot of people will say medical school is one of the hardest things someone will have to go through, outside of residency. But now I’ve got nothing but rose-tinted glasses about medical school because of those boys, the program and the coaching staff.”
Hussion will not only be tied to green and gold through his medical school alma mater, he will forever have those colors wrapped around his finger with the Greenbrier East High School championship ring.