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Two students from the 51Ʒ�� College of Osteopathic Medicine have been recognized for their geriatrics research. They participated in the Learning by Living 48 Hour Hospice Home Immersion Project, in which second-year medical students spend two full days living and providing care at the Gosnell Memorial Hospice House for terminally ill patients.

The SciFed Journal of Geriatrics and Palliative Care published an article authored by students William Brown and Sonia Marcello and Professor and Director of Geriatrics and Research in the 51Ʒ��College of Osteopathic Medicine Marilyn Gugliucci, Ph.D. The article, titled, “Patient-Centered Care: Medical Students Engagement Through Immersion Learning,” demonstrates how this experiential learning project helps medical students learn vital communication skills that allow practitioners to understand the needs of their patients, skills they might otherwise not learn through their medical training.

The research has garnered further attention among student leaders in osteopathic medicine. The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents published Brown’s firsthand account of his experience in its newsletter, “The Pulse.” He described the tasks he and Marcello performed, "such as assisting with toileting, bathing, feeding and sitting with patients and family members for hours to hear about their life and their end of life decisions.” These tasks were unlike anything they are likely to do when they become physicians, but are important to participate in to advance understanding and learning.

He wrote, “This immersion experience has completely changed the way I plan to practice medicine when I graduate. I will try to take a step back from all of the science and try to remember the lessons of compassion that I learned during my time in the hospice home.”

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