Probative Inquiry Flourishes During LECOM Research Day 2024

Wednesday, 17 July 2024

Rounding out the deeply penetrating purpose of a superlative education, unmatched clinical care, and unflagging community service, Research comprises a key pillar of the LECOM mission.

The LECOM Bradenton Interprofessional Research Day 2024 was held on April 25, 2024, with a total of 278 student research projects submitted and representing each of the LECOM campuses. More than 1,000 projects have been completed since 2016.

The theme of Wellness for an Aging Population was central to the 2024 event.

Narrated Research Poster Presentations were officially judged using LECOM Media Suite or via in-person presentations.

More than 730 LECOM students, from across the program disciplines, completed the virtual Research Day activities. Evaluation of two research projects using the official rubric, a viewing of the Keynote Presentation offered by LECOM School of Health Services Administration (SHSA) Professor Harry Hobson, and the taking of a 10-question quiz on that presentation summarized the Research Day mission.

Prize monies of $6,400 were awarded to first-, second-, and third-place winners in each school.

The Research Day allowed those participating in the event to showcase their work, as well as to provide an educational experience for their co-contributors.

Research Day constitutes the culmination of medically-based investigations and in-depth studies that seek to greatly advance and enhance the abilities and capabilities of those in the medical community. Research is increasingly important as the current generation of Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine students view research differently than have their predecessors. Current Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine students are more focused upon research, in part because research is key to supporting competitive residencies, such as those in radiology or neurosurgery. Many students apply for the same residencies; thus, with all else being equal among the multiple applicants (such as academic record and board scores), those who possess an active research record maintain a decided advantage over their dissimilarly situated counterparts. Those students who have participated in research studies gain invaluable experience in cognitive and critical thinking, problem solving, and writing.

In addition to the many student benefits, Research Day allows the faculty to become better acquainted with the participating students, research also can be a source of estimable note for a hospital and for other institutions as advancements in the field are developed in and through communal exchanges of critical information.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine stands in the vanguard of the promise of our time, having grown with each passing year to become an inscrutable and unmatched healthcare leader - superb in education, solidly in the forefront of clinical care, a champion of community outreach, and ever advancing profound, meaningful, and developing research.

LECOM congratulates the winners of the 2024 Research Day:

First Place - $500 Prize

• Natasha Doshi and Andres Salvador, Class of 2026

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Jeungwoon Lee

Title: Utilizing UV Light-Induced GABA Release from Engineered Pluripotent Stem Cells for Precision Pain Modulation

Second Place - $300 Prize

• Tianna Sasher, Michael Wallace, Adam Bobak, Class of 2026 and Luis Alvarez, Class of 2025

Faculty Mentors: Drs. Anupam Bishayee and Tania Flink

Title: Impact of a Summer Research Internship Program on Research and Scholarly Activities of LECOM Osteopathic Medical Students

Tie Third Place - $100 Prize

• Shweta Zinzuwadia, Charvi Sunkara, Olivia Johnson, Joachim Kavalakatt, Class of 2026 and Taylor Collignon, Class of 2025

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Anupam Bishayee

Title: Litchi and Its Phytoconstituents: A Critical Review of Anticancer Potential and Molecular Mechanisms of Action

• Michael Wallace, Class of 2026

Faculty Mentor: Dr. Paul Cervone

Title: The Hidden Impact of Race-Based eGFR Calculations in Access to Kidney Transplantation