Still OPTI receives full AOA accreditation and prepares for single accreditation system
Posted: March 9, 2015
At the July 30, 2014, meeting of the Council on Osteopathic Postdoctoral Training Institutions (COPTI), Still OPTI received the maximum, five-year approval for continuing accreditation with zero deficiencies. This accreditation renewal ensures that Still OPTI will continue to serve as the academic sponsor for its member institutions, providing resources for faculty development, research mentorship, scholarly activity, curriculum, osteopathic philosophy and principles (OPP) and osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) training. Still OPTI includes A.T. Still University’s Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (ATSU-KCOM) and School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona (ATSU-SOMA) as part of a consortium of colleges of osteopathic medicine, hospitals, teaching health centers, physicians, teaching faculty, interns, and residents. Beyond the educational resources, Still OPTI offers leadership, helping its members navigate the ever-changing environment of osteopathic graduate medical education.
One of the most significant changes in the history of osteopathic graduate medical education occurred in July 2014 with the decision of the American Osteopathic Association and American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine to move to a single graduate medical education accreditation system and become part of a new Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Still OPTI’s Governing Board made the decision on Feb. 9, 2015, to move forward in the new system by pursuing accreditation through ACGME as an institutional sponsor for graduate medical education. On Feb. 18, 2015, Still OPTI signed and submitted to ACGME a letter of intent to apply for this accreditation.
ACGME leadership encouraged osteopathic programs to pursue accreditation by emphasizing the innovative approaches to graduate medical education they already have in place, but which may not be common in the allopathic world. Still OPTI will apply for institutional sponsorship from its unique position as a consortium model, providing accreditation assistance to teaching hospitals and community health centers across the nation. With the move to a single accreditation system, ACGME is in the process of appointing osteopathic physicians to its institutional and specialty review committees.
Still OPTI is pleased to announce that in February 2015, Richard J. LaBaere II, DO, MPH, FAODME, associate dean of postgraduate training at ATSU-KCOM and Still OPTI academic officer, was the first osteopathic physician to be appointed to the ACGME Institutional Review Committee.
In the single accreditation system, Still OPTI will offer membership options to continue to provide value at varying levels of need. Current members and new teaching hospitals that do not require institutional sponsorship may look to Still OPTI for curriculum and training in OPP to assist with osteopathic recognition through ACGME. Still OPTI resources will also be available at a fee-per-service level.
You can keep up-to-date with Still OPTI, its members, and all things graduate medical education by visiting stillopti.com.