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BIDDEFORD, Maine

Team of undergrad and COM students win poster competition at the Maine Osteopathic Association's Midwinter Symposium

A team of four UNE students, comprised of two undergraduates and two College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) students, participated in a student Research and Scholarship Forum at the Midwinter Symposium held by the Maine Osteopathic Association (MOA) on February 6, 2015, at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, Maine. The team won first place in a poster presentation contest.

The students’ poster was titled "Pre-Operative Treatment for Disc Herniation: A Case Study of Chronic Pain." As an accompaniment, the students presented a case study that discussed the efficacy of osteopathic manipulative medicine before surgery for the treatment of disc herniation. Ernie Merritt III, coordinator of the Southern Maine Chronic Pain Support Group, served as the subject of the case study, and he was able to attend the forum to speak with practitioners, thus enhancing the educational experience.

The winning team consisted of Samantha Shepard (Medical Biology, '17), Morgan Mitchell (Occupational Therapy, '17), Ellesse Credaroli (COM II) and Catherine Bixby (COM I).

Shepard and Mitchell began work for UNE's Pain Education and Advocacy Collaborative in the fall of 2014. The project was spearheaded by Vice President for Research and Scholarship Edward Bilsky, Ph.D., and consists of a series of video documentaries and case reports that shed light on chronic pain from an interprofessional perspective.

Credaroli is the current President of the College of Osteopathic Medicine’s Anesthesia and Pain Management Club, and Bixby was elected as president for the upcoming year. The two plan to host a Pain Panel at UNE this fall in coordination with the Chronic Pain Support Group of Southern Maine. 

About the University of New England

The University of New England is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible, accredited online degrees. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.