WCU President Dr. Tommy King, right, and Dr. Italo Subbarao, dean of the WCU College of Osteopathic Medicine in Chain Garden (File photo, January 2019)
In its 2020 rankings, U.S. News & World Report ranked William Carey University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine No. 3 nationwide in producing the highest percentage of primary care residents.
The 2020 rankings are based on data from 2017 to 2019 and included medical schools awarding both MD (Doctor of Medicine) and DO (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine) degrees. During that time, 78 percent of WCU’s medical school graduates entered primary care residencies.
Dr. Italo Subbarao, dean of the WCU College of Osteopathic Medicine, said this speaks to the university’s long-range vision and servant’s heart.
“In 2010, William Carey committed to tackling the problem of access to health care in Mississippi and founded the College of Osteopathic Medicine. The mission, then and now, is to serve under-served populations – and we seek out students who already feel a commitment to primary care,” Subbarao said.
“Today we have more than 600 alumni practicing around the country, serving the sickest in this time of COVID, and most of them are practicing in primary care where the need is the greatest.”
WCU President Dr. Tommy King offered his congratulations for the No. 3 ranking.
“I am so pleased with the remarkable progress of the College of Osteopathic Medicine. This is a distinct honor that fulfills the mission we established for the medical school more than 10 years ago. Dr. Subbarao and our former dean, Dr. James Turner, are to be commended,” King said.
Only two medical schools posted higher numbers – and the top three schools were separated by barely more than a percentage point. Lincoln Memorial University in Tennessee reported 79.2 percent of its graduates entered primary care, while 79 percent of New York University-Long Island’s graduates entered primary care.
Significantly, of the top 10 schools in U.S. News & World Report’s primary care ranking, six were osteopathic medical schools.
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