Dr. James McGovern tells Michelle Rivera why this institution is considered one of the most unique in the country.

When A.T. Still University founder Andrew Taylor Still was practicing medicine in the 1800s, he’d often tell patients to pay him only what they could afford. In those days, where people got around by horse and buggy, patients often traveled hours to see a doctor, and Still would be working into the evening hours treating them.

Before sending them off, Still would ask his patients how far they lived, and if they said they had a few hours ahead of them, he not only wouldn’t charge them but would also give them the dollar to stay at a boarding house that night, according to Dr. James McGovern, president of A.T. Still University. “That’s our heritage, and that’s what our university is about. We’re treating not only the body but also the mind and spirit. There’s a desperate need for that today.”

Inner healing
Kirksville, Mo.-headquartered A.T. Still University, which opened its doors in 1892, was the first school of osteopathic medicine in the world. A doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO) differs from an MD in that a DO treats the mind, body, and spirit, explained McGovern. The philosophy of osteopathic medicine refers to the mind as a conscious psyche, a place where people deliberately know what they are doing and thinking—when a person tells his or her hand to move, it moves. “It’s a conscious interaction between mind and body,” McGovern said.

Dr. James McGovern

But there are also unconscious and semi- conscious interactions, or in other words, the spirit. According to the president, these include people’s beliefs, will, and determinations. “As doctors and therapists, we know we have to reach that will and inner determination to get a person to want to get better.”

There are more than 24 colleges and medical schools that offer osteopathic medicine, and students enrolled in those programs represent a total of 12% of the medical students in the country, explained McGovern. The president also mentioned that about 6% of present physicians are in this field of medicine.

“Two things we stress are compassion and integrity—we believe they are keys to healing. There are inner healing mechanisms. Doctors and surgeons know how to externally put parts of the body together, but healing always occurs from within, so we must activate these inner healing mechanisms,” McGovern said.

Responding to need
Since McGovern took the role of president nearly 10 years ago, the institution has quadrupled its number of students, tripled its research money, and doubled its endowment. The institution has also grown from one graduate school to five and is about to open a sixth. One of the main reasons for this rapid growth, McGovern explained, is that they have created programs to respond to needs.

In 1999, the university opened an online School of Health Management. According to McGovern, the US is the envy of the world as far as technology and management in healthcare. In fact, the online school has become so popular in other countries that McGovern is thinking of changing that school’s name to include the word “international”.

The online school has also greatly benefited people in rural areas wishing to further their education. “In rural areas, people can’t get to a university, so they are turning to the Internet. Many people can’t give up a job for a year because they need to maintain salary, or they can’t take time off because they have kids to watch,” McGovern said. “Through the online School of Health Management, people can get their masters in public health or doctor of health education degree without even spending a second on campus. We have responded to that need.”

Several years ago, the governor of Arizona declared that the state was experiencing a crisis in dental health. The state didn’t have a dental school, and there was a huge population in need of dental care. Responding to that need, A.T. Still University opened the Arizona School of Dentistry, the first and only dental school in the state.

Community dedication
Currently, the institution is recruiting students for its new medical school in Mesa, Ariz., which will see its first class of students at the end of the summer. More than 1,700 applications have been submitted for the 100-spot class, according to McGovern. The students will spend their first year learning basic sciences, but for the second, third, and fourth years, students will be disbursed throughout 10 community health centers.

McGovern made arrangements with the Community Health Center Association since they focus on serving the underserved in locations that include the west side of Phoenix and Brooklyn, NY. “We’re training all 100 students to serve the most needy citizens in the US, and we hope that by putting them in these locations, they will stay and work long after they graduate.”

In talking to applicants, if they don’t show an interest in working in a needy area, McGovern tells them the school is not the place for them. “We’re training dedicated people and are dedicating 100% of our new medical school to serve people in need. This stems back to the foundation of what A.T. Still University is all about,” he said.