by Kirsten Brown

Second-year student Eric Beck was one of the thousands of volunteers in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina. For four days the trained paramedic went house to house searching for survivors, while helping transfer the sick from shelters to hospitals.

Those unselfish actions were just one of the reasons the Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents (COSGP) honored Beck by naming him OU-COM’s 2006 Student D.O. of the Year.

“Eric stands out as a leader,” says Sharon Zimmerman, director of alumni affairs. Zimmerman, Beck’s mentor, nominated him for the award. “He sets his aspirations high and makes things better for others.”

Along with his medical school studies, Beck takes time to tutor, and volunteers at local fire department and the emergency room at O’Bleness Memorial Hospital.

“He has outstanding commitment in service of individuals and the community,” she says. “He has excellent leadership skills as a student and a teacher.”

COSGP created the Student D.O. of the Year Award in 1992 to honor outstanding osteopathic medical students.  This annual award is sponsored by COSGP, but each college of osteopathic medicine selects a recipient.  Any first- through fourth-year medical student is eligible for the award, and nominations can be made by students, faculty and administrators. 

A committee selects one recipient for the award.  The winner at each school will be selected on the basis of service to school, community and the osteopathic profession. Each student chosen receives a plaque. Beck was an ideal candidate for the award this year, says Zimmerman, and was chosen OU-COM’s All-Around Great Classmate and the Outstanding Tutor last year.

Beck says his experience in the Gulf Coast region was “humbling.”

“A lot of people found themselves having to choose either life or saving their personal belongings,” he says. “There were many people from all across the country who came to help. I have great respect for them. I saw the news and what was happening. I felt compelled to help.”

“I was very honored by the recognition,” he says, adding OU-COM has such a community-oriented atmosphere it has encouraged him to give generously of his efforts. Beck began his career in medicine as a paramedic.

He started out to become an attorney, but life took a different path when he worked with several osteopathic doctors in the Cleveland area. They persuaded him pursue medicine. After that he received critical care flight training at the University of Maryland in Baltimore Country and took classes in critical care and nursing.

While attending John Carroll University in Cleveland, he continued working for his hometown, Russell Township in Geauga County, fire department . In 2004, Beck graduated with bachelor’s degrees in biology and philosophy.

Since coming to Athens, he has stayed busy working for emergency response in the city of Athens as well as for Jackson and Lawrence townships. He also participates in the emergency cardiology vascular care program at Ohio University. The first two years of medical school, he says, have helped him hone his skills in emergency care, in part, because of his volunteer service here.

Now he’s headed to Cuyahoga Falls General Hospitals for two years of Center for Osteopathic Research and Education clinical rotations, but he still plans to continue working with Russell Township while completing the clinical clerkship.

“I think OU-COM has a tradition of prepping physicians for service in the community,” he says. “I am excited to be joining a legacy of service.”

When he graduates two years from now, he doesn’t know on which medical specialty he will focus, but he plans to continue being a part of fire and EMS services. “I hope to teach paramedics and mentor medical students,” says Beck.

Zimmerman adds, “Eric is a person I believe we will remember long after he graduates. I can hardly wait to see what he will have accomplished over the next 10 years.”

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