Health Forward Foundation CEO urges Kansas City University graduates to help heal the nation

Kansas City University (KCU), home of the sixth-largest medical school in the nation, celebrated commencement ceremonies for its Joplin and Kansas City campuses on May 6 and May 13, 2023, respectively.

Kansas City University conferred a total of 392 Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degrees from its College of Osteopathic Medicine, with 51 earning dual degrees. Thirty-four of the DO graduates earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Health Care Leadership through KCU’s partnership with the Rockhurst University Helzberg School of Management, and 17 earned a Master of Arts (MA) in Bioethics.

KCU’s College of Biosciences conferred six Doctor of Clinical Psychology (PsyD) and 89 Master of Science (MS) in Biomedical Science degrees.

Qiana Thomason, MSW, president and chief executive officer of Health Forward Foundation, delivered the keynote address at both ceremonies. “Graduates, if there was ever a time when the world needed the intellect, tenacity, vision and fortitude of a healer, a comrade, or a co-conspirator in this hard work called health equity, we need it now. You are our very best thing. Now is your time to help heal us, help restore a limping health care field, and a hurting nation,” Thomason said. “If you think you’re without power and a platform to change the rules, I invite you to reconsider. Whether you’re at the bedside or in the boardroom, tap into your personal agency and power.”

Marc B. Hahn, DO, KCU president and CEO commended the graduates for adapting and persevering in the wake of the pandemic, noting that many members of the Class of 2023 were in their first year at KCU when COVID-19 changed the course of their studies. “Based upon their demonstrated grit and determination, I can honestly say that the future of our health care system is in good hands,” Hahn said.

“Together they will redefine the future of health care as physicians, scientists, psychologists, ethicists and leaders."

Graduates of the College of Osteopathic Medicine Class of 2023 will enter residencies that include surgery, dermatology, orthopedics and molecular pathology. However, nearly 60 percent of the class elected to enter the field of primary care, a specialty facing severe shortages throughout the nation. These KCU graduates are part of a record-breaking national class of young doctors who will provide a much-needed shot in the arm for a healthcare system that desperately needs them.

A high percentage of KCU’s College of Biosciences Master of Science graduates will pursue careers as physicians, with more than 500 COB graduates matriculating at more than 80 medical schools across the country since 2015. Among the KCU College of Osteopathic Medicine’s Class of 2023, more than 10 percent earned an MS degree from the College of Biosciences.

The College of Biosciences’ Doctor of Clinical Psychology (PsyD) program graduated its second-ever class this year. KCU developed the PsyD program to address the nation’s growing mental health crisis, as well as create an interprofessional education curriculum to prepare future health care professionals to ensure patients’ emotional, as well as physical, health.

Both commencement ceremonies in their entirety can be viewed online:

Kansas City (May 13, 2023) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLyEYtQTVVU

Joplin (May 6, 2023) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJt6s5B0MkU

About Kansas City University

Kansas City University, founded in 1916, is a fully accredited, private not-for-profit health sciences university with Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Biosciences and Dental Medicine. The university offers multiple graduate degrees: a doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO); doctorate in clinical psychology (PsyD); a master of arts in bioethics; a master of science in biomedical sciences; a master of business administration (MBA) in Health Care Leadership in partnership with Rockhurst University; a master of public health in partnership with the University of Nebraska Medical Center; and will seat the first

doctor of dental medicine students in July 2023. The medical school is the nation’s sixth largest, the ninth most impactful in primary care and the tenth most affordable of private medical colleges in the nation. It is also the leading producer of physicians for both Missouri and Kansas.

KCU has two campuses: in Kansas City and Joplin, Missouri, to address the growing population health needs of both urban and rural communities in the region.