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Fast friends: Lisa Mementowski, D.O., &
Melanie Bortell, D.O.
Graduating seniors—and longtime best
friends—Mementowski and Bortell brought new
meaning to peer support at the College of
Osteopathic Medicine
  By
Mary Reed
When
Lisa Mementowski, D.O. ('08),
and Melanie (Kozlowski) Bortell,
D.O. ('08), were seniors at Holy Name
High School in Parma Heights, Ohio, they
both enrolled at Miami University and
decided to room together. Little did they
know that they would be on the buddy system
for the next six years and support each
other through their parallel journeys to
becoming doctors of osteopathic medicine.
“(Lisa) is obviously a caring person or she
wouldn’t be in the medical profession. She’s
an excellent friend to have,” says Bortell
of Mementowski. “I think her patients will
love her.”
From their days playing on competing
elementary school basketball teams to
dressing up as cowgirls for Halloween in
Athens to Mementowski serving as a
bridesmaid in Bortells’s wedding, the two
have been friends as well as study buddies.
“It’s good to have a study buddy,” Bortell
says. “Some things really lend themselves to
cooperative learning.”
Mementowski says that OU-HCOM can resemble a
larger buddy system, one that promotes
student success. “One thing that
distinguishes the medical school is that we
don’t get grades; it’s a strictly pass/fail
system (that) allows students to help one
another,” she explains. “The atmosphere (is)
very conducive to helping one another, which
is very important, because we’re all going
to be colleagues.”
Bortell echoes that sentiment, explaining
that OU-HCOM’s emphasis on group learning
instills collegiality into its students.
“Some schools are a lot more competitive,”
she says. “But we will have to work
together. There are going to be times when
you need information from other physicians.
I think starting with that (mindset) from
the beginning is essential.”
After six years of rooming together, the two
went their separate ways on rotations.
Following graduation, Mementowski began
a family practice residency at Fairview
Hospital in the Cleveland area while Bortell
began a family practice residency at
Akron City Hospital.
The two say they sometimes joke about going
into practice together. Separate cities will
likely keep that from happening, but they
stay in touch as closely as they can. “I
think we’ll be friends forever,” Mementowski
says.
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Hometown:
Parma Heights, Ohio
On their mentors:
Mementowski:
David Tolentino, D.O.,
CORE assistant dean, St. John West
Shore Hospital, Cleveland
“From the moment you come into your
third year, you’re overwhelmed. He
made us feel welcome and like we
were a part of the hospital
community and had an important role
there.”
Bortell:
Ron Russ, D.O., CORE
assistant dean, Cuyahoga Falls
General Hospital.
“He’s a family practice doctor and I
had my first clinical rotation with
him. He’s an advocate for students
and helped me to reinforce that
(becoming a physician) is what I
wanted to do.”
On the challenges and rewards of
medical school:
Mementowski:
“I was amazed at how much
information you had to learn so
quickly. I was also surprised how
supportive and how willing to help
the faculty is.”
Bortell:
“I loved moving from our first and
second years into
our clinical years. You’re able to
apply what you’ve learned in those
classes to diagnose and treat
patients.” |
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