Postdoctoral Study

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Consortium Goals

The Osteopathic Postdoctoral Training Institute of Kirksville (OPTIK) is a consortium of teaching hospitals and private practitioners who have partnered with the founding school of osteopathy—the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (KCOM)—in pursuit of excellence in internship and residency training. Each member organization is concerned with the enhancement of housestaff training and obligated to strive beyond the basics by providing well-rounded, coordinated and conscientious osteopathic education.

OPTIK is about quality: measuring quality performance, sharing quality experiences, and continuously improving the quality of our training programs. OPTIK internships and residencies are located in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and New York and offer applicants a variety of training opportunities.

OPTIK shares the AOA’s vision of a seamless seven-year curriculum and the need for mechanisms that preserve the future stability and funding of our osteopathic training programs.

OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE is our prime concern and therefore we must “focus” our energies toward optimizing the teaching of osteopathic principals and practice throughout the postgraduate years. OPTIK pools faculty resources and shares the abundant skills and attitudes found in our hospitals, communities, and medical school. Together, we are able to provide hands-on teaching from a fine group of osteopathic academic clinicians.

CURRICULUM provides the cornerstone for a solid training program. OPTIK members believe that standardization of teaching practices is important for implementing reliable methods of curriculum delivery. On-site OMM workshops help our trainees and faculty “get back to their roots.” Distance education helps us share our “best practices” and construct a stronger network of collaborative programs than any of our member programs could accomplish alone.

EVALUATION is as key to patient care as it is to medical education. Just as we holistically evaluate our patients, we, too, must examine the overall quality and performance of our trainees, rotations, and faculty. OPTIK achieves this via the Performance Excellence Evaluation Record (PEER) system, which is designed to longitudinally track and evaluate performance across multiple programs and infinite miles. PEER guides the OPTIK Education Committee on issues of consistent curriculum delivery, methods of instruction and ever-improving educational standards. PEER also provides reassurance to residents that they have mastered the content expected in the program.

FACULTY ENRICHMENT opportunities are geared toward both becoming better clinical instructors as well as teaching in an ever-changing health care industry. Enrichment opportunities are offered based on the needs of each teaching hospital and in concert with local resources.

CLINICAL RESEARCH in the academic health center helps trainees and faculty become increasingly aware of the needs of their patient population while also infusing principles for life-long learning. KCOM assists members in the implementation of coordinated research activities and provides mentors in the areas of research planning, grant writing, data analysis, and formal presentation.