Virginia

Anyone who has been to medical school knows how challenging it can be, both intellectually and physically. So, when Casey Harvey reached the beginning of Block 4 of her first year at VCOM-Virginia—in April 2023—and started feeling a little run down, it was easy to brush the symptoms off as being related to the stress of her academic program. But the symptoms got progressively worse and by the middle of Block 4, she realized she needed to do something. 

On Sunday, May 19, the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM) in Blacksburg, Virginia, will celebrate the graduation of its Class of 2024, consisting of 176 new physicians.  

VCOM-Virginia is home to some pretty amazing faculty, which makes it difficult to choose just one each year for Researcher of the Year. This year’s recipient, Harsha Bhagtani, MD, is the discipline chair for pediatrics and is devoted to making sure her students have ample opportunities to engage in research with her.

Both Amar Mukhtar, DO, and Sonul Gulati, DO, are first-generation medical students whose families hail from different parts of the globe: Dr. Mukhtar’s family is from Sudan, and Dr. Gulati’s family is from India. VCOM’s commitment to international outreach was a key part of their experience as students, and now they are paying that commitment forward through their MedDreams Foundation. 

All types of healthcare professionals are in short supply—including doctors, nurses, technicians and home health aides. The reasons for the shortages vary and are often interrelated. They include burnout, changing demographics, difficulty in recruiting and retaining adequate medical personnel, and the rigors of the medical profession.

Giles County students visit VCOM’s Simulation and Technology Center in Blacksburg through SWVA AHEC’s high school pipeline program. Recognizing those trends and a need to respond, the Virginia General Assembly established the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority (VHWDA).

Each year in March, future physicians across the globe experience Match Day, a milestone when they learn where and in what specialties they will continue their training in residencies. VCOM students did particularly well on Match Day, as they always do.

Low back pain (LBP) is a condition that affects millions of people each year. It is the leading cause of disability worldwide and the condition for which the greatest number of people may benefit from rehabilitation. 

Kristin Lynch Grimes, DO, VCOM-Virginia 2013, is a woman of faith who knew from the age of seven that she wanted to be a physician.

In fact, one of her defining childhood memories is of her previously healthy grandmother being admitted to a hospital on a Friday afternoon and dying just two days later. “I remember observing what was going on and listening to my mom and her siblings talking, but the voice of my family wasn’t being heard by the medical professionals,” she recalls.