OGME Corner

Donald B. Kaveny and Susan L. Rall

Annual Resident Reports and Completion Letters


The Resident Evaluation and Standards Committee (RESC) will meet August 28-29, to review annual resident reports and program completion along with the continued approval of accredited programs. ACOS has received over 600 annual resident reports and verified completion of approximately 400 at present. This verification process is arduous, but all reports that were received by August 1 will be reviewed. Residents whose annual reports are incomplete will be notified. Please do not contact ACOS for “program complete” letters. Residents whose annual reports are incomplete will be notified. Resident annual report approval letters and program completion letters will be sent to residents upon completion of that meeting, usually by mid-September. The AOBS will accept the program’s verification that a resident has completed the training in order to apply for certification by the resident. Residents are urged to not contact the ACOS for your “Program Complete” letter. The AOBS will be notified of residents’ completion of their programs after the RESC meeting.

Surgical Educators Seminar/ACGME Accreditation


On July 19, 2014 the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) sent out press releases announcing that the AOA House of Delegates had voted to support the creation of a single, unified accreditation system. AOA accredited programs began to apply to the ACGME for accreditation in July 2015 and several have already received dates for their site visit!

The final resolution passed by the AOA House of Delegates assured the membership that the AOA will continue to evaluate and report to the membership annually, between 2015 and 2020, concerns on the following issues, but not limited to:

  • The ability of AOA-training and certified physicians to serve as program directors in single GME accreditation system;
  • The maintenance of smaller, rural and community based training programs;
  • The number of solely AOA certified physicians serving as program directors in each specialty;
  • The number of osteopathic identified GME programs and number of osteopathic identified GME positions gained and lost;
  • The number of osteopathic residents taking osteopathic board certification examinations;
  • The status of recognition of osteopathic board certification being deemed equivalent by the ACGME; and
  • The importance of osteopathic board certification as a valid outcome benchmark of the quality of osteopathic residency programs.

To help assist programs in the transition process, the 2015 Surgical Educators Seminar, taking place during the Annual Clinical Assembly in Chicago on Tuesday, October 6th from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., will be devoted to the process of ACGME accreditation, ACGME requirements and the ACGME process as osteopathic programs apply for ACGME accreditation. Program directors, directors of medical education (DMEs) and program coordinators are encouraged to attend this highly informative session. Program directors are required to attend a Surgical Educators Seminar at least once every two years.


Presentations will include:


An Overview of ACGME Accreditation for AOA Programs
Presented by: John R. Potts, III, MD, FACS, ACGME, Senior Vice-President for Surgery Accreditation

The AOA/ACGME Joint Education Committee was appointed to facilitate the transition of AOA accredited programs to ACGME accreditation. John Potts, M.D., serves on this committee, along with Gregory Heath Smith, D.O., FACOS, Past Chair of the ACOS Residency Evaluation and Standards Committee. Dr. Potts has presented many sessions to the osteopathic community. In this session, he will discuss the history of the ACGME and its structure and process, which vary greatly from the AOA structure and process which most of us are used to. He will also share how the process appears to be progressing since its beginning on July 1, 2015 as well as comments regarding the applications received by the ACGME thus far.

ACGME Executive Directors Panel Discussion
Donna L. Lamb, MBA, BSN, Executive Director for Surgery, Plastics and CT; Mary Joyce Turner, RHIA, MJ, Executive Director for Urological Surgery, OBGYN, Ophthalmology and Council of RC Chairs; and Pamela Derstine, PHD, MPE, Executive Director for Neurological Surgery, Colon and Rectal Surgery, Orthopedics and Otolaryngology will give overviews on how their review committees operate and reinforce their commitment to answering questions and assisting the AOA programs as they transition to ACGME accreditation.

Registration fees for DMEs and program directors are $325. The registration fee for program coordinators is $150. ACOS members can register for the 2015 Annual Clinical Assembly of Osteopathic Surgeons (ACA) and the Surgical Educators Seminar on-line here. Registration forms have been sent to coordinators and M.D. program directors for submission by mail. For more details including hotel and travel information please click here .

If you have any questions or need additional information, please don’t hesitate to contact Susan Rall or Don Kaveny.

Nominations for 2015 – 2016 Residents Section Governing Council


Residents who would like to become more involved in the ACOS and the Residents Section should consider serving on the 2015-2016 Governing Council. Elected positions include chair, secretary/treasurer, and one member-at-large. To be eligible, you must be a resident member of the ACOS enrolled in a resident program during the term of service. Current officers of the Residents Section Governing Council for term year 2014 - 2015 are: Chair, Matt Schultzel, D.O. – PCOM; Chair-elect, Sean Henderson, D.O. – Albert Einstein; Secretary/Treasurer, Nick Madden, D.O. – PCOM; Member-at-Large, Omid Hariri, D.O. – Arrowhead; and Member-at-Large/Resident Member RESC, Lee Sandquist, D.O. – St. John Providence. In addition to contributing to the governance of the ACOS Resident Section, council members receive a small stipend to attend the ACA and participate in the Annual Resident Section Business Meeting.

The Nominating Committee of the Residents Section Governing Council will finalize a slate of nominees for election in late August. If you are interested in serving on the council, please send an e-mail expressing your interest along with an endorsement from your program director to Don Kaveny, Susan Rall or one of the following Nominating Committee members:

Nick Madden, D.O. – 2014-2015 Secretary/Treasurer
PCOM (GS, OGME-4)
e-mail: [email protected]

Omid Hariri, D.O – 2014-2015 Member-at-Large
Arrowhead (NS, OGME-5)
e-mail: [email protected]

Lee Sandquist, D.O – 2014-2015 Member-at-Large/Resident Mbr RESC
St. John Providence (NS, Program Complete)
e-mail: [email protected]

Elections will be held at the Residents Section Annual Business Meeting scheduled during the Annual Clinical Assembly in Chicago on Sunday, October 4th, 2015 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. If nominated, you are highly encouraged to bed present and attend the meeting. Sean Henderson, Chair-elect will assume the duties of Chair at the conclusion of this meeting. The newly appointed member-at-large will assume duties as Resident Member of the RESC at the end of the ACA on October 7.

To learn more about the Residents Section and the Residents Section Governing Council, click here . Questions may be directed to Don Kaveny or Susan Rall.