Spring is in the Air

Welcome to another issue of the Osteopathic Family Physician. Spring is a time of renewal and rebirth and should be upon us soon given the recent groundhog revelation. The springtime traditions of Hanami in Japan, Whuppity Scoorie in Scotland, Baba Marta Day in Bulgaria to the burning of the Böögg on Sechseläuten in Switzerland all remind us of the coming seasonal change and perhaps give us pause to consider a virtual spring cleaning of our life and mind. Heavy stuff for an Editor’s Message, I know.

On the “out with the old, in with the new” theme, this is the last year that there will be separate match systems for osteopathic medical students. Starting in 2020, there will be only one combined match program for all medical students in the United States applying for residency. This combined with changes in the Board certification process has created an air of excitement within the osteopathic family medicine community. I hope to have informational articles in the future to address these issues.

Speaking of issues, the articles within this month’s issue bring to light some of the unique practices related to being an osteopathic physician and a medical student. Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is the most visible unique aspect of being a D.O. and our cover article helps provide some assistance in the use of OMT in patients with abdominal pain. The article on a patient-centered, holistic approach to eye conditions as well as the patient education handouts further demonstrates features making D.O.’s unique. Enjoy this issue and have a great start to your spring!

Burning of the Böögg on Sechseläuten. GNU Free Documentation License