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by
Kirsten
Brown
It isn’t
every year that the Distinguished Service Award is awarded by
the Ohio State Society of the American College of Osteopathic
Family Physicians. It’s an honor bestowed only upon a family
physician who has made particularly significant contributions to
osteopathic medicine, someone who exemplifies
commitment to osteopathic
philanthropy, strong leadership, community involvement,
compassion and quality in health care.
But when
such a physician is nominated, the ACOFP Luncheon is the
occasion to celebrate such an individual.
At the 2006
luncheon in June, as Dean Jack Brose, D.O., listened to
the organization’s president describe the life-long
contributions of this year’s recipient, Brose says he thought to
himself, “That fellow has done a lot of the same things that I
have.”
Then he
heard his name announced.
“My next
thought was, ‘Oh, dear, now I have to say something!’” Brose
says with a laugh.
As Ohio
ACOFP President William Burke, D.O., said in his
speech praising Brose’s accomplishments, Brose is considered by
his colleagues “a true leader of the Ohio profession who has
made an indelible mark on medical education in a relatively
short time-frame.”
As a student
at OU-COM, Burke first met Brose in 1984, where he says Brose’s
zeal for his subject matter proved to be contagious.
“We took an
EKG course from him,” Burke explains. “It’s not necessarily the
most exciting topic, but he made it extremely interesting and
fun to learn, because of how passionate he was about it.”
By all
accounts, Brose has acted as a mentor to, well, thousands of
students.
“Dr. Brose
has spent many years at OU-COM and has touched the lives of
many, many students who have gone on to practice,” Burke says.
“His enthusiasm for teaching and passion for medicine has likely
had an impact on all of those individuals.”
Burke counts
himself as one such individual.
“His love
for family medicine was so evident in his teaching,” he adds, “a
love which many of us gravitated toward and admired him for
having.”
After so
many years of knowing Brose, Burke says he relished the chance
to present the award to his former mentor.
“It was
quite an honor and very exciting for me to be able to do that,”
he says. “Having had the opportunity to work with and know Jack
for 22 years, it was a privilege to be able to recognize his
accomplishments and his contributions to family medicine and
osteopathic medicine.”
In return,
Brose was equally pleased to receive the award from Burke.
“Coming from
him, it was particularly gratifying getting the award and
hearing him deliver the introduction, because he’s one of my
heroes,” Brose says. “Dr. Burke is a shining example of our
college’s success in training outstanding physicians. He’s a
superior physician and the director of the successful family
practice residency program at Doctors Hospital. He’s as good a
graduate as one could ever wish for.”
Burke
remarked that Brose seemed to be surprised, and appeared to be
“truly humbled” while showing a “great deal of gratitude.”
Brose admits
he was indeed caught unawares. “I had planned on leaving the
convention a day early, and they told me that might not be a
good idea,” he says. “I didn’t know about the award until they
were reading the speech.”
He adds that
the award meant a great deal to him because it came from an
organization of osteopathic family physicians.
“It’s
wonderful, as a family physician myself, to be recognized by my
own organization,” he says.
Brose also
points out that the award signifies a bond between the college
and the professional osteopathic community.
“More than
an award for me specifically, I think it recognizes the close
relationship between the physicians around the state and
OU-COM,” he says. “For that, I’m extremely grateful, because we
couldn’t exist without them.”
Brose joined
the ranks of the faculty at OU-COM in 1982. Since then, he has
worked on a number of grants and published articles covering a
medley of medical and health-care subjects, as well as a
textbook. Additionally, he has served as the principal
researcher for many clinical studies. In addition to all these
undertakings, Brose continues to see patients in the free
clinic, while also serving for a time as the medical director of
community service programs.
Burke
emphasized Brose’s prominence in the field as one of many
reasons the dean deserves the award.
“Not only do
the folks at OU-COM and the university as a whole recognize his
accomplishments over these many years,” Burke says, “but he is
recognized statewide by family physicians for the various
contributions he has made as a teacher and as an educator, and
more recently, as an administrator and as a dean.”
In total,
Brose has received 25 outstanding instructor awards, including
being chosen as “Family Practice Educator of the Year” by the
Ohio Academy of Family Physicians in 2001. This year alone,
Brose received a Commendation award from OU-COM’s Class of 2008
as well as an award for excellence as a clinical presenter from
first-year Patient-Centered Continuum students.
Entering his
third year as chairman of the Ohio Council of Medical School
Deans, Brose periodically testifies before Ohio House of
Representatives and Senate committees in his ongoing support of
the medical profession and funding for medical education. Most
recently, Brose served as the medical school representative on
the Ohio Higher Education Funding Study Council.
Burke
credits these elements of Brose’s leadership with cultivating
support for osteopathic education and research in Ohio.
“He has
partnered with hospital administrators, volunteer clinical
faculty, foundations and others to advance the infrastructure
and the environment that promotes excellence in the osteopathic
medical education continuum,” Burke said in his address. “This
partnership has made Ohio the leader and model for other states
to emulate.”
This standard of quality sought
by Brose aligns perfectly with ACOFP’s organizational purpose in
promoting and preserving higher expectations in the field of
family practice. Recognizing individuals who further the cause
is just one of the ways the association seeks to encourage the
osteopathic family physician as a professional extension of the
family.
“What a
tremendously satisfying specialty it is to be in,” Brose says of
family practice. “There is no specialty where you have a closer
relationship with your patients. As a physician treating all
family members, you almost become a part of the patient’s
family. This relationship is not seen in any other specialty.
It’s a very special area to be in.”
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