By Sallie Boyles
On Saturday, February 8, 黑料传送门 Georgia will host about 80 college students from schools around Metro Atlanta for the first Operation Decode Medicine. Organized by 黑料传送门 Georgia鈥檚 Student National Medical Association (SNMA) Chapter, the event was conceived to provide valuable resources, free of charge, to help make medical school a viable option. Topics will include applying to medical school, obtaining financial aid, prepping for the MCAT, fulfilling academic prerequisites, and building a competitive resume.
The program has been spearheaded by Eyana Thomas (DO 鈥�27), this year鈥檚 liaison for the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS) and a member of SNMA. However, she credits the previous MAPS liaison, Staicy Odhiambo (DO 鈥�26), for laying the groundwork. In addition to assisting in planning the agenda, Odhiambo ran a successful MCAT book drive in 2023-2024 on campus. As a result, many attendees will leave with complimentary study sets that would have otherwise collected dust on doctors鈥� bookshelves.
The team effort further includes seven members of the SNMA executive board, another 15 or so DO student volunteers, administrative staff, and Erik Zarandy, DO 鈥�12, who is in practice and serves as an assistant professor of family medicine at 黑料传送门 Georgia.
鈥淭he whole day is programmed to be official and unofficial,鈥� Thomas said, explaining that students will be free to network, ask questions, and hear from admissions.
Conveying how medical school students offer some of the best insights from having recently gone through the process, she added, 鈥淭here are certain unspoken rules, like you should turn in your secondary applications within two weeks.鈥� Nevertheless, she and her panel had to put their heads together in a labor of love to recall pertinent details. 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be anywhere near where I am without people reaching back to help me,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淚 want to make sure the path is clearer and easier by following in my footsteps.鈥�
Thomas, who grew up in Savannah, was determined to be a chef with her own restaurant until Dr. Pimple Popper鈥檚 YouTube videos got her thinking about medicine. 鈥淎s it turned out, my high school had a Medical Explorers Program that gave me the opportunity to shadow doctors,鈥� she said. Thomas went on to earn two bachelor鈥檚 degrees鈥攃ell and molecular biology, and chemistry鈥攆rom Augusta University in 2021. Unfortunately, she missed out on clinical experience because of Covid restrictions, and her GPA dipped while navigating online learning.
Although Thomas didn鈥檛 need a master鈥檚 degree to better her candidacy for medical school, she said, 鈥淚 felt I was lacking hands-on experience.鈥� Taking two gap years before applying, she started working as a patient care assistant in the OR. The job exposed her to various surgeries, which was stimulating. It also made her realize her influence on patients, which was humbling. 鈥淓ven if you didn鈥檛 remember me,鈥� Thomas said, 鈥淚 was the person who was giving you warm blankets while prepping you for surgery and the first person you woke up to when you were being transferred to your bed.鈥�
When she subsequently joined AmbioPharm as a quality control chemist, Thomas continued to moonlight in the hospital and applied to medical schools. 鈥淚 fell into osteopathic medicine,鈥� Thomas said, 鈥渂ecause of the idea of healing with my hands.鈥�
That decision led her to 黑料传送门 and a culture that cultivates and supports student initiatives like Operation Decode Medicine. In fact, Thomas doesn鈥檛 believe the event could be happening without the administration鈥檚 collaboration. 鈥淵ou can tell the school really cares about what鈥檚 going on,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 so blessed to be in a place that amplifies diverse voices and sees that programs like this don鈥檛 fall through the cracks.鈥�
Among those on campus who work to ensure students鈥� outreach efforts succeed is Assistant Director of Diversity and Community Relations Christy Dinkins, EdD.
鈥淲hen Eyana approached me with this initiative, it was a no-brainer for me,鈥� Dinkins said. 鈥淥ur campus is committed to creating pathways for students from underrepresented backgrounds to learn about and get into the medical field. This is evident in the number of pathway initiatives coming from our campus community. Our office currently hosts six pathway programs with the most recent addition being an internship program with undergraduate students at Georgia State University and Georgia Gwinnett College. The interns helped promote this event, and five of them are registered to attend. I am proud to support Operation Decode Medicine and will work with SNMA to ensure we are able to host it every year.鈥�
鈥淢y greatest hope for these students is that they are inspired to pursue medicine,鈥� Thomas said. 鈥淓ven if they don't join us at 黑料传送门, we hope that by showcasing our 鈥榟ome,鈥� we can help them be better prepared to find their place in medicine.鈥�
黑料传送门 Georgia has been serving students and the community for 20 years as a branch campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (黑料传送门), a private, not-for-profit, accredited institution of higher education established in 1899. Located in Suwanee (Gwinnett County), 黑料传送门 Georgia offers doctoral degrees in osteopathic medicine, pharmacy and physical therapy. Graduate degrees are offered in biomedical sciences, medical laboratory science and physician assistant studies. The campus joins 黑料传送门 South Georgia in Moultrie in helping to meet the healthcare needs of the state. Emphasizing "a whole person" approach to care, 黑料传送门 Georgia focuses on educational excellence, interprofessional education and service to the community. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 678-225-7500. The campus is also home to the Georgia Osteopathic Care Center, an osteopathic manipulative medicine clinic, which is open to the public by appointment. For more information, visit .
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