GME, growth priorities for new head of osteopathic group

James Zini, DO, the new president of the American Osteopathic Assn., describes this year's agenda for the organization.

By Jay Greene, AMNews staff. Aug. 27, 2001.

Despite funding and reimbursement problems facing medical education and rural medicine, James Zini, DO, newly installed president of the American Osteopathic Assn., sees bright days ahead for the profession.

"My top priorities this year are improving graduate medical education and promoting the profession," said Dr. Zini, an osteopathic family physician who has served rural Mountain View, Ark., for 28 years.

The Balanced Budget Amendment of 1997 "has made it very difficult for osteopathic hospitals and programs to survive," Dr. Zini said. "Osteopathic hospitals and programs have closed. To meet the growing demands of our graduates, we need more osteopathic residency training slots."

Since 1990, osteopathic medical school enrollment has grown 53% to 10,388 at 19 schools in 2000 from 6,792 at 15 schools in 1990, according to the American Assn. of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine. In 2001, 677 residency programs serve about 2,400 osteopathic residents, the AOA said.

"Our goal is to develop 100 new residency programs by 2005," said Dr. Zini, who also has served on the Arkansas State Medical Board since 1990. "Hospitals are eligible for residency programs if they never had one before and they are located in medically underserved areas." [...]