A.T. Still University of Health Sciences history
For more than 120 years, A.T. Still University of Health Sciences (ATSU) has educated highly competent, compassionate healthcare professionals dedicated to treating the whole person – body, mind, and spirit. Students receive the knowledge and hands-on experience necessary to succeed in an ever-changing healthcare environment. Additionally, ATSU encourages its graduates to not only serve people and communities with the greatest need, but also to positively impact the future of healthcare education, research, and practice.
ATSU was established in 1892 by Andrew Taylor Still, DO, the founder of osteopathic medicine. Since then, the University has grown from a single-discipline school on one campus in Kirksville, Missouri, to a multidisciplinary university on two campuses in Kirksville and Mesa, Arizona. Today, ATSU offers more than 20 health profession programs, each integrating the principles of whole person healthcare into its curriculum.
ATSU-MOSDOH was founded to address the disparities in oral healthcare in Missouri and across the nation. By graduating dentists who have an in-depth understanding of and a desire to serve populations in need, ATSU-MOSDOH will help increase access to and services for vulnerable populations.
ATSU’s first school, the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, is the founding college of osteopathic medicine. In 1995, the Arizona School of Health Sciences was added, creating a second campus in Arizona. The College of Graduate Health Studies was established in 1999 on the Missouri campus, followed by the Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health in 2003 and the School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona in 2006 – both on the Arizona campus. ATSU’s sixth school, the Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health (ATSU-MOSDOH), was established in 2013 on the Missouri campus.
Offering a doctor of dental medicine, ATSU-MOSDOH’s dental program features an innovative curriculum, simulation technology, state-of-the-art facilities, service education, and leadership training. Students spend their first and second years studying basic sciences and clinical introductions in the classroom and complete dental simulation exercises in the campus simulation clinic. Third-year students work under the supervision of licensed dentists in the St. Louis Dental Education and Oral Health Center, and fourth-year students spend half of the year in the St. Louis center and the other half in community-based clinics in St. Louis and throughout the Midwest. Additionally, students who do not already have either a certificate or master’s degree in public health earn a certificate in public health while enrolled at ATSU-MOSDOH.
Affinia Healthcare
In the early Spring of 2015, Grace Hill Health Centers Inc. (GHHC)
underwent a name change to Affinia Healthcare as the organization looked
to the future and how best to reflect its mission. Affinia’s
connection and solid relationship with the St. Louis community along
with its dedication to whole person healthcare served as key attractors
in its pioneering partnership with ATSU. The organization earned a
proud history along with its sister agency, Grace Hill Settlement House
(GHSH), as a trusted and reliable community partner in St. Louis. Each
organization is controlled by a separate governing body. Grace Hill
Settlement House was founded in 1903 by the Episcopal Diocese to help
immigrant families "settle into their new neighborhood" on the
near north side of St. Louis. Now it serves neighborhoods throughout the
City of St. Louis and St. Charles County with its MORE system.
Affinia was founded to provide high quality healthcare and exceptional service, while promoting healthy lifestyles.
Grace Hill Health Centers Inc. began in 1906 with a small community health and pharmaceutical service. Today, Affinia Healthcare operates five health centers and a community health program in the city and serves neighborhoods throughout the St. Louis region with a combined population in excess of 100,000 people.
ATSU-MOSDOH and Affinia Healthcare:
A pioneering collaboration
The St. Louis Dental Education and Oral Health Center will serve those most in need of oral healthcare in the St. Louis community. ATSU-MOSDOH officials will be solely in charge of the educational aspects regarding third- and fourth-year student training while Affinia officials will run the day-to-day operations of the center. As the first partnership of its kind, this pioneering collaboration between ATSU and GHHC will have an overwhelmingly great result for years to come – consistently providing high-quality, diversified student educational experiences while administering oral healthcare treatment to a community in need.