ATSU-KCOM Strategic Plan

This Strategic Plan provides faculty, staff and students with a guide to establish long range strategic goals and objectives.

As the founding College of Osteopathic Medicine, KCOM assumes the responsibility to maintain leadership in osteopathic medical education. This plan has been assembled through a collaborative process involving administration, faculty and students. The plan will remain a fluid document, subject to review and revision on a yearly basis. This plan will also proceed in concert with the A.T. Still University Strategic Plan and contribute in a meaningful manner toward the attainment of the vision set out by the Board of Trustees.

The mission of A.T. Still University-Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine is to educate and train students to become highly competent osteopathic physicians and healthcare leaders. KCOM is committed to providing a quality osteopathic medical education in a research environment that prepares students for graduate medical training and clinical service.

In the constantly changing world of healthcare, KCOM will provide leadership to anticipate and respond to changes in healthcare delivery and medical education

As part of our strong commitment to the education of the most competent osteopathic physicians, the strategic plan will focus on how to provide students with the highest quality of preparation for their success in healthcare delivery. This direction will be realized through an innovative academic program that promotes student learning, professionalism, compassionate care, scholarly activity, and faculty development.

The plan will work to provide a learning centered environment that maintains our osteopathic heritage while linking opportunities across the continuum of predoctoral and graduate medical education.

Utilize faculty development to anticipate and respond to changes in healthcare delivery and osteopathic medical education

Strategic Goal I.A: Create and nurture a culture that values faculty excellence by actively promoting professional and career development.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Provide adequate resources to maintain a faculty development program from the Dean’s office.
   Performance Measure: Yearly line item budget for faculty development.
   Performance Target: Funds available to implement faculty development program.
   Responsible Authority: Dean.
 
2. Maintain a professional development plan for new faculty.
   Performance Measure: Implementation and completion of the new faculty scholars course.
   Performance Target: Training of all new faculty including new regional faculty greater than 0.1 FTE.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs; Department Chairs; ATSU Teaching and Learning Center (TLC).
 
3. Provide ongoing faculty development and mentoring resources to ensure professional development for faculty members.
   Performance Measure: Yearly faculty development calendar of offerings.
   Performance Target: Minimum of 6 faculty development offerings per year.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Faculty Development Committee.
 
4. Use an annual performance evaluation system to meter faculty progress toward professional and institutional goals.
   Performance Measure: Establish evaluation system and monitor faculty progress.
   Performance Target: Annual review and demonstration of sustained faculty performance.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Department Chairs.
 
5. Provide faculty development offerings in professionalism including diversity, equity and inclusion.
   Performance Measure: Number of faculty development offerings on professionalism.
   Performance Target: At least 1 annual offering.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Faculty Development Committee.
 
6. Continue development of the Assessment Subcommittee process, including linkage to the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) Core Competencies and the University Core Professional Attributes (CPA).
   Performance Measure: Provide annual reports on assessment and data-based decision making.
   Performance Target: Produce assessment plan summaries for every class year.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Curriculum Committee; Assessment Subcommittee; ATSU Teaching and Learning Center (TLC).

Strategic Goal I.B: Promote and commit to the expansion of knowledge through research and scholarly activity.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Assess and develop resources to sustain and grow needed research and scholarship.
   Performance Measure: Assign and charge faculty to Interdisciplinary Research Committee (IRC).. Collaborate with the IRC.
   Performance Target: Review KCOM focus within University research strategic plan
   Responsible Authority: Faculty Representatives; Dean; Vice President for Research, Grants and Information Systems.
 
2. Recognize faculty research and scholarly activity through the ATSU website and the annual faculty evaluation process.
   Performance Measure: Maintain and update research and scholarship webpage. Review annual faculty activity reports for research and scholarly activity.
   Performance Target: Annually review.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Department Chairs.

Anticipate and respond to changes in healthcare delivery and the osteopathic medical education environment through enhanced student learning

Strategic Goal II.A.: Provide students the highest quality academic preparation for their success in all aspects of healthcare delivery.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Support and promote continuous quality improvement of the curriculum.
   Performance Measure: Continuous course self-study process completed and improvement plans implemented.
   Performance Target: Progress on improvement plan action steps reported annually. Utilize end of semester course reviews. Strategic focused integration within blocks.
   Responsible Authority: Course Directors; Department Chairs; Associate Dean for Medical Education; Curriculum Committee.
 
2. Provide ongoing faculty development programing to ensure teaching faculty have the skills and attitudes to maximize student learning.
   Performance Measure: Faculty development offerings focused on teaching and learning.
   Performance Target: Minimum of 3 faculty development offerings annually.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Faculty Development Committee; Curriculum Committee.
 
3. Curricular integration of health policy and emphasis of the physician’s influence on the changing healthcare delivery system.
   Performance Measure: Provide health policy and healthcare delivery system topics in the curriculum, including experiential activities.
   Performance Target: Dedicate curricular time to topics and activities across the predoctoral educational continuum.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Curriculum Committee.

Strategic Goal II.B: Create and sustain an academic environment that promotes innovative programs and scholarly activities.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Integrate interprofessional team learning opportunities to graduate practice-ready physicians for a changing healthcare environment.
   Performance Measure: Number of interprofessional and team development activities.
   Performance Target: Develop and expand programs and opportunities in each year of the curriculum.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Deans; Regional Deans; Clerkship Directors; Course Directors (as appropriate); Human Patient Simulation Lab Medical Director; Curriculum Committee.
 
2. Promote and develop student learners who are knowledgeable about scientific research components and the applications of evidence-based practice.
   Performance Measure: Support scholarly activity. Provision of opportunities pertaining to scientific research and/or the applications of evidence-based practice.
   Performance Target: Promote the inclusion of learning objectives related to research components and evidence-based practice. Integrate plans resultant of KCOM Research Strategic Planning Committee assessment.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Curriculum Committee.
 
3. Continue to develop advanced technology training to enhance student learning.
   Performance Measure: Number of student experiential activities utilizing human patient simulators and ultrasound. Number of additional activities incorporating the use of applied clinical technology in the curriculum.
   Performance Target: Continue to offer experiential activities and opportunities for open human patient simulation and ultrasound labs. Monitor the use of applied clinical technology in the curriculum.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Director of Simulation and Performance Assessment; Clinical Imaging Coordinator; Course Directors, as appropriate; Curriculum Committee.
 
4. Continue to enhance the use of technology in the clinical learning environment.
   Performance Measure: Number of live or asynchronous educational programs offered to clinical rotation sites.
   Performance Target: Use of interactive communication technology to deliver cross site learning
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Medical Education; Director of Simulation and Performance Assessment; Clinical Imaging Coordinator; Course Directors, as appropriate; Curriculum Committee, NCOPPE.

Strategic Goal II.C: Maintain osteopathic heritage of preparing physicians who serve their communities with a focus on professional and compassionate care.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Recruit and support a well-prepared, diverse student body that meets the needs of society for highly competent healthcare professionals.
   Performance Measure: Meet annually with admissions committee and staff to review admissions criteria, recruitment efforts, and outcomes.
   Performance Target: Process reviewed annually.
   Responsible Authority: Dean; Associate Vice President for Admissions; KCOM Prescreening and Admissions Committees.
 
2. Educate all students and faculty on the history of osteopathic medicine and osteopathic tenets in each year of the curriculum.
   Performance Measure: Infuse learning activities focusing on osteopathic history and heritage. Incorporation of osteopathic tenets across the curricular continuum.
   Performance Target: 1-2 Annual offerings focusing on osteopathic history and heritage. Annual curricular review.
   Responsible Authority: Curriculum Committee; Assistant Dean for Osteopathic Integration; Faculty.
 
3. Implement curricular and faculty development topics focused on diversity, health disparities, cultural competence, and needs of the underserved.
   Performance Measure: Infuse learning activities focusing on diversity, health disparities, cultural competence, and needs of the underserved.
   Performance Target: Measure number of curricular and faculty development offerings related to these topics.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Curriculum Committee.
 
4. Implement curricula regarding professional identity formation and provide faculty mentors to guide this process.
   Performance Measure: Develop curricular activities regarding professional identity formation. Identify and train faculty mentors.
   Performance Target: Develop professionalism milestones.
   Responsible Authority: Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs; Curriculum Committee; Department Chairs; Faculty Development Committee.
 
5. Implement career advising processes to assist students in evaluating career options and applying for graduate medical education (GME).
   Performance Measure: Develop career advising process.
   Performance Target: Process reviewed annually.
   Responsible Authority: Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs.
 
6. Implement mental wellness programming that provides education on prevention and self-care.
   Performance Measure: Develop wellness programs and mental health task force.
   Performance Target: Review annual report from task force. Annually review wellness programs.
   Responsible Authority: Dean; Mental Health Task Force.

Cultivate strategic relationships that anticipate and respond to changes in healthcare delivery and the osteopathic medical education

Strategic Goal III.A.: Commit to appropriate relationships that link opportunities across the continuum of recruitment, admissions, pre-doctoral training and graduate medical education, while addressing these rapidly changing environments.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Link recruitment and admissions to predoctoral and graduate medical education.
   Performance Measure: Create review process evaluating recruitment and admissions.
   Performance Target: Annual analysis and follow-up plan.
   Responsible Authority: Dean; Director of Admissions; Chair of Admissions Committee; Associate Deans.
 
2. Develop long-term, high-quality undergraduate medical education (UME) and graduate medical education (GME) partnerships to provide distinctively osteopathic physicians.
   Performance Measure: Number of UME and GME sites developed and maintained.
   Performance Target: Create baseline data for number of partnerships and student placements, increase number of partnerships for UME and GME. Update annually.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs; Associate Dean of Postgraduate Training.
 
3. Support National Center for Osteopathic Principles and Practice Education for resident education and faculty development, particularly in the areas of osteopathic recognition, manipulative medicine, and osteopathic principles and practice.
   Performance Measure: Budget allocation for NCOPPE support and faculty development. Allocation of faculty resources for osteopathically focused education and recognition programs.
   Performance Target: Annual review of budget; Provide 1-2 resident and faculty education programs per year for each site.
   Responsible Authority: Associate Dean of Postgraduate Training; NCOPPE

The Committee members appointed by the Dean include:

• Margaret Wilson, DO – Dean, KCOM
• Richard LaBaere, DO – Associate Dean for Post-Graduate Training/OPTI Academic Officer
• Saroj Misra, DO – Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs
• Patricia Sexton, DHEd – Associate Dean for Medical Education
• Kristin Blunk – Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs
• William Brechue, PhD – Professor, Physiology
• Peter Kondrashov, PhD – Chair and Professor, Anatomy
• Eric Snider, DO – Chair and Associate Professor, OMM
• Lance Evans – Fellow, Medical Education
• Travis Hansen – OMS II

Also contributing and providing assistance was:

• Valerie Hamlin – Curriculum Coordinator, Medical Education

ATSU Mission: ​A.T. Still University of Health Sciences serves as a learning-centered university dedicated to preparing highly competent professionals through innovative academic programs with a commitment to continue its osteopathic heritage and its focus on whole person healthcare, scholarship, community health, interprofessional education, diversity, and underserved populations

ATSU Vision: ​THE PREEMINENT UNIVERSITY FOR THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS

   
• Leading innovator in health professions education
 
• Superior students and graduates who exemplify and support the University’s mission
 
• Osteopathic philosophy demonstrated and integrated (i.e., whole person healthcare)
 
• Pioneering contributions in healthcare education, knowledge, and practice

ATSU Core Institutional Values:

   
• Innovation
 
• Whole person healthcare
 
• Scholarship
 
• Leadership in community health
 
• Diversity

   
• Critical thinking
 
• Cultural proficiency
 
• Interprofessional collaboration
 
• Interpersonal skills
 
• Social responsibility

Six ATSU Strategic Plan Themes:

 
1. Education Excellence
 
2. Continued Commitment to Scholarly Activity
 
3. Cultural Proficiency, Diversity, and Inclusion
 
4. New and Expanded Partnerships
 
5. Effective Branding and Marketing
 
6. Fiscal Health, Affordability, and Compliance

Theme 2: Continued Commitment to Scholarly Activity

CONTRIBUTING TO KNOWLEDGE, HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONS, AND SOCIETY

We are a teaching and learning university that values scholarly activity supportive of our heritage, mission, and vision. ATSU is fortunate to have a strong foundation of faculty and student scholarly activity.

Scholarly activity at ATSU encompasses Boyer’s​^1​ definition allowing participation from all interested faculty. Forms of scholarly activity include scholarship of teaching and learning, engagement, discovery, application, and integration.

Scholarship of teaching and learning is the process whereby conditions relating to both instruction and learning are studied in a systematic manner based on results of previous studies.²​ Scholarship of teaching helps learners transform and extend the knowledge they possess.

Scholarship of engagement is a response to local community needs provided by the expertise of faculty where results are then utilized to solve community problems.​³

The most recognizable form of scholarship is that of discovery. In scholarship of discovery, faculty are expected to pursue knowledge for its own sake.

Scholarship of application focuses on applying results of previous scholarship, both within and outside of academia, leading to new knowledge.

Scholarship of integration requires an understanding of an interdisciplinary approach and synthesis of information from a variety of sources.​⁴

Goals and Objectives:

Goal 1​: Contribute to healthcare education, knowledge, and practice through all forms of scholarly activity.

   
• Increase support and promotion of scholarly activity among faculty.
 
• Encourage student engagement in both faculty-guided and independent scholarly activity.
 
• Establish partnerships providing additional resources for scholarly activity.
 
• Increase recruitment and retention of faculty with a strong potential for securing extramural funding.

Goal 2​: Maximize sponsored program funding and sources.

   
• Increase number and percent of faculty applying for and receiving external and internal funding, in the context of federal/external support levels.
 
• Establish an enhancement fund for new external grants received.

1. Boyer, Ernest L. ​Scholarship Reconsidered: Priorities of the Professoriate​. A Special Report. Princeton, NJ: The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1990. Print.

2. Meyers, Renee A. ​Guidelines for Human Subject Research Participants in Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Research: UWS Leadership Site for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning​, 2007. Web. 05.30.14 http://www4.uwm.edu/sotl/steps_to_success/uplead/LS-IRB-white-paper-dec7.pdf.

3. Commission on Community-Engaged Scholarship in the Health Professions. ​Linking Scholarship and Communities: Report of the Commission on Community-Engaged Scholarship in the Health Professions​. Seattle: Community-Campus Partnerships for Health, 2005. Print.

4. Hofmeyer, A, Newton M, and Scott C. ​Valuing the Scholarship of Integration and the Scholarship of Application in the Academy for Health Sciences Scholars: Recommended Methods.​ Health Research Policy and Systems, 2007. Web. 05.30.14 ​http://www.health-policy-systems.com/contents/5/1/5​.

ATSU Strategic Plan public weblink: ​https://www.atsu.edu/about-atsu#strategic-plan

Purpose: ​ Consistent with the tenets of osteopathic medicine, the mission of the A.T. Still Research Institute is to advance whole person healthcare and wellness through development and support of premier clinical and translational research.

Goal:​ The goal of the Still Research Institute is to explore and advance the scientific evidence base of osteopathic medicine and associated health professions within A.T. Still University.

Objectives:

 
1. Establish an infrastructure and culture that promotes interprofessional research relevant to whole person healthcare.
 
2. Support clinicians, scientists, and students in conducting clinically-relevant research.
 
3. Facilitate the dissemination and translation of research outcomes via publications, teaching, and conferences.
 
4. Collaborate with strategic external research centers/entities, both nationally and internationally.
 
5. Provide research training and mentoring to develop preeminent clinician researchers.
 
6. Develop ideas and prioritize research within the affiliated healthcare community promoting synergy within the changing environment.
 
7. Focus research and become preeminent in selected clinical research areas.

Research Centers:

The Institute has three research centers including the ​Center for Research in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine.

Mission

The Center for Research in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine mission is to advance the use of objective feedback methods in educational programs that train learners in the performance of diagnostic and therapeutic manual skills.

General Areas of Research

   
• Assessing Palpation Skills of Osteopathic Medical Students and Clinicians
 
• Developing and offering programming that incorporates objective measures of palpation within osteopathic curricula to increase the accuracy and validity of palpatory diagnosis and treatment

Longterm Goals

   
• Pilot training programs with local faculty and residents using instrumentation, models, and procedures established within the Center’s research program.
 
• Training a pool of national clinical D.O. researchers who can document the reliability and accuracy of their palpatory skills.
 
• Pilot training programs with groups of undergraduate students to utilize methodologies and models as objective feedback during OMM skill development.
 
• Develop similar training programs at other osteopathic medical schools.

Center for Research in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine weblink: https://www.atsu.edu/research/about/crome.htm

A.T. Still University’s Department of Research Support is a university-wide resource, available for all faculty members, fellows, and residents affiliated with ATSU. The Department of Research Support includes staff with experience in biostatistics; scientific writing; and research development, coordination, and management. ATSU’s Department of Research Support has a strong track record of assisting and directing campus research events and studies.

Strategic Plan of the Division of Research, Grants, and Information Systems to Support Research and Scholarship at ATSU 2015 - 2020

The overarching aim of this plan is to promote excellence in health care and educational research/scholarship thereby achieving preeminence as a health science university.

The three strategic priorities of this plan include:

 
1. Develop an effective, University-wide, integrated and integral research and scholarship governance structure.
 
2. Build academic and scholarship capacity in the health professions (that includes all forms of scholarship).
 
3. Further develop and enable individual research and scholarly activity and specifically develop interdisciplinary and translational research.

Strategic Plan for Research, Grants, and Information Systems: https://www.atsu.edu/pdf/Division_of_Research_Grants_and_Information_Systems_Strategic_Plan.pdf

A.T. Still University’s Sponsored Programs team advances ATSU’s mission, strategic directions, and priorities through the acquisition of extramural grant awards that support innovative research; service outreach, training, and educational projects; and related health-care delivery initiatives.

Purpose: ​Sponsored Programs serves all ATSU schools, programs, and campuses, providing customized assistance to administrators, faculty, staff, and trainees (with faculty sponsorship) in proposal development, post-award implementation, fiscal monitoring, and compliance. Extramural funding allows the University to investigate, demonstrate, and/or implement innovative scholarly ideas focused on clinical and basic science research, health professions education, service delivery, and community outreach.

Goal: ​The goal of Sponsored Programs is to secure extramural federal, state, foundation, and other public/private funding to develop and implement innovative scholarly activity and thereby help elevate ATSU as a pre-eminent health sciences university.

Objectives:

 
1. Identify and evaluate highly compatible funding opportunities for ATSU leadership and faculty.
 
2. Assist project leaders with proposal development, including grant planning, budget preparation, and quality assurance reviews.
 
3. Negotiate award acceptance terms and act as University-wide, centralized clearinghouse for all grant activity.
 
4. Monitor grants for programmatic and fiscal compliance throughout the grant’s lifecycle.
 
5. Assist project leaders with programmatic and fiscal report preparation/submission to funders.

Learn more about ATSU Sponsored Programs: https://www.atsu.edu/sponsored_programs/

Strategic Goal I.B: Promote and commit to the expansion of knowledge through research and scholarly activity.

Strategic Initiatives/Action Items:

 
1. Participate in University Research Committee (Interdisciplinary Research Committee-IRC) to advise the dean on College research and scholarship.
      
   • Performance Measure​: Assign and charge faculty committee on research.
    
   • Performance Target​: Annually review committee assignment and activities.
    
   • Responsible Authority​: Faculty representatives; Dean; Vice President for Research, Grants and Information Systems.
    
   • Current Status​: 5 KCOM faculty members are current members of the IRC.

    

2. Recognize faculty research and scholarly activity through the ATSU website and the annual faculty evaluation process.

      
   • Performance Measure​: Maintain and update research and scholarship webpage. Review annual faculty activity reports for research and scholarly activity.
    
   • Performance Target​: Annually review.
    
   • Responsible Authority​: Associate Dean for Curriculum; Department Chairs.

    

Strategic Goal II.B: Create and sustain an academic environment that promotes innovative programs and scholarly activities.

 
1. Promote and develop student learners who are knowledgeable about scientific research components and the applications of evidence-based practice.
      
   • Performance Measure:​ Number of curriculum offerings pertaining to scientific research components and the applications of evidence-based practice. Number of students engaging in research opportunities.
    
   • Performance Target:​ Promote the inclusion of learning objectives related to research components and evidence-based practice.
    
   • Responsible Authority:​​ Associate Dean for Curriculum; Curriculum Committee.