Midwestern University Students Participate in Blackfeet Volunteer Medical Corps

Eight second-year students from Midwestern University’s Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine (CCOM) participated in a week-long medical service project organized by the Blackfeet Volunteer Medical Corps in Browning, Montana. Browning is located on the Blackfeet reservation near Glacier National Park.

Students were paired with either a volunteer or a hospital physician and had the opportunity to observe specialists in cardiology, family medicine, and emergency medicine as they treated Blackfeet patients at the federally-funded Blackfeet Community Hospital. The CCOM students participating in the volunteer corps included Victoria Andros, Bridget Haley, Samantha Breen, Jenny Bhatt, Rabia Jawed, Eli Geller, Karisa Falden, and Jim Brophy.

“It was very similar to the type of clinical exposure we get at CCOM,” said Jim Brophy, a second-year medical students. “It was hands-on shadowing. For example, a doctor we were paired with might say, ‘This patient has A-Fib. Listen to the heart and tell me if you hear any murmurs, as well.’”

Midwestern University alumni on the trip included Joseph Matheu, D.O., CCOM ’69, founder of the Blackfeet Volunteer Medical Corps; Joseph Stella, D.O., CCOM ’88; and Paul Bulow, D.O., CCOM ’85. Michael Ksycki, D.O., CCOM ’01, is the general surgeon and chief of emergency medicine at the Blackfeet Community Hospital.

In addition to clinical experiences, students participated in a 10-mile hike to Iceberg Lake, an alpine lake at the base of one of the many glaciers in the park. There also was a cultural presentation by tribal elders at the Chewing Black Bones Campground.