Ryan Smith
Following a national search, an experienced psychiatrist, leader in medical education, and national expert in psychiatry and mental health has been selected as the founding associate dean of clinical affairs for Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine.
Ryan Smith, a doctor of osteopathic medicine with a PhD in education and health science education leadership, a master’s degree in medical education leadership, an MBA with a concentration in strategic leadership administration, and a bachelor’s degree in medical biochemistry and physics, began work at IUP on July 8.
Smith, who is a board-certified psychiatrist and diplomat and fellow of the American Osteopathic Board of Neurologists and Psychiatrists, comes to IUP from Orlando Health Sciences University’s Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he was the founding associate dean for preclinical education and professor of psychiatry; he also continues to serve as an adjunct associate clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth.
Smith is a National Academy of Osteopathic Medical Educators Fellow, an American Psychiatric Association Fellow, and an American Association of Osteopathic Examiners Fellow, serving as vice president of the organization until 2023. Smith has been practicing psychiatry at the New Hampshire State Hospital in Concord, NH, for the past 13 years and directed the mental health division of a rural federally qualified health center in Washington County, ME.
IUP’s Council of Trustees endorsed the exploration of a possible development of a college of osteopathic medicine at IUP in December 2022. Miko Rose was hired as the founding dean of the proposed college of osteopathic medicine in November 2023; the hiring of a founding dean is one of the first steps to establishing the college.
Since her hiring, IUP has formally initiated steps towards accreditation of its proposed college of osteopathic medicine from the American Osteopathic Association’s Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation, a three- to five-year process that includes submission of self-studies and a feasibility study, along with site visits. Securing clinical training sites for students is part of the successful accreditation process.
The associate dean of clinical affairs is an essential leadership role that reports to the founding dean and is responsible for overseeing the clinical curricular areas of the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program at IUP.
“I am very pleased to welcome Dr. Smith to IUP to serve as the founding associate dean of clinical affairs for IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine,” Rose said.
“His skill set is extraordinary: a well-deserved, national reputation for leadership in psychiatry and mental health, extensive experience in the accreditation process and in developing colleges of osteopathic medicine, proven success in developing and fostering clinical training agreements and sites, he started two medical residency programs, and he has an award-winning track record of mentoring promising and talented students.
“What makes him the right fit for our proposed college of osteopathic medicine goes beyond these talents: his clear passion, drive, and commitment to rural public health and to recruiting and retaining those hidden healthcare heroes, promising potential physicians who want to meet the medical needs of underserved patients and communities,” she said. “He is an innovator and problem solver and believes that teamwork makes everyone more successful.”
“We share similar backgrounds,” Rose said. “We are both first-generation physicians, from families with limited financial means who never imagined that a career in medicine was possible. We understand the students that we will be recruiting and the challenges that they face. He has already hit the ground running, and I know he will be successful in this position,” she said.
Prior to his work at Orlando Health Sciences University, Smith was the founding psychiatry residency program director at Tufts University School of Medicine’s site at Portsmouth Regional Hospital in Portsmouth, NH, and adjunct associate professor of psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine. He also served for eight years as a full-time faculty member at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine in Maine, where he led psychiatry and systems-based education and was named Professor of the Year twice in his tenure there.
“I am honored to have been selected as a member of the founding team of the proposed college of osteopathic medicine and, in the first week, have already been meeting with potential partner institutions to form the foundation of our establishment of a robust clinical training network in support of our mission,” Smith said. “The enthusiasm for our proposed COM is palpable both on campus and in the community, and we are thrilled to be working in such an environment of enthusiasm and collaboration.”
In his position, Smith will develop the foundational framework of the clinical education program, with input into the pre-clinical education program, including recruiting, outreach, and development of clinical institutional relationships to establish clinical clerkship training sites and opportunities throughout surrounding rural Pennsylvania target sites.
In June, IUP signed its first clinical training affiliation agreement with Punxsutawney Area Hospital. Typically, students in colleges of osteopathic medicine spend the first two years of their education in the classroom; during the third and fourth years, students are based in the community at clinical sites.
“The realization of our mission’s focus of providing accessible, quality healthcare in rural and underserved areas starts at the ‘ground floor’ of planning,” Smith said.
“We are establishing a broad, yet focused, network of clinical partners where our students will train as part of their medical education. We also are interested in assisting sites in developing graduate medical education positions in which our graduates can complete their residency training. The proposed college of osteopathic medicine truly is looking at the intentional development of a continuum of osteopathic medical education starting with involvement in pre-medical programs all the way through continuing medical education programs, and everything in between,” he said.
Smith also will work closely with Rose and the proposed college of osteopathic medicine team, which will include a founding associate dean of preclinical affairs, to develop the clinical curricular framework for the initial phases of COCA accreditation.
Smith completed his graduate medical education at Maine Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine (psychiatric post-graduate training year four and child psychiatry fellowship); Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth (psychiatric post-graduate training years two and three and psychiatric residency); and Harvard Medical School (psychiatric post-graduate training year one and psychiatry residency).
He was honored as professor of the year and as clinical faculty member of the year at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, and received the James K. Lally, DO, Emerging Leader of the Year Award from the American Osteopathic Foundation, the Marguerite Elliot Innovator in Clinical Medical Education Award from the Society of Osteopathic Medical Educators, and the Young Physician of the Year Award from the Maine Osteopathic Association; earned membership in the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Gold Humanism Honor Society; and was a National Health Service Corps Scholar for the US Department of Health and Human Services, serving in Washington County, ME, which has one of the highest uninsured rates in all of New England.
He has held several clinical, consultant, and voluntary supervisory positions and has been in leadership positions for many national professional organizations. He has been active in research, including in two ongoing projects: “Gender Differences in the Perception of Stress after High-Stakes Medical School Examinations” and “Predictors of Performance on National Medical Licensing Board Exams.” He has also been a contributor to articles in many professional journals and has been an invited lecturer at medical colleges and professional meetings. Smith served for five years via gubernatorial appointment to the Maine State Board of Osteopathic Medical Licensure. Lastly, Smith has been involved in the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners for the past 13 years and currently is the chair of the Department of Neurology, Psychiatry, and Clinical Neurosciences.
IUP chose to explore a proposed college of osteopathic medicine based on several factors, including the critical need for rural health care—there are not enough trained physicians to provide care to Pennsylvania’s citizens: the ratio of patients to available primary care physicians is 1,367 to 1, according to the United Health Foundation.
There are only three colleges of osteopathic medicine in Pennsylvania, all at private universities; IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine would be the only college of osteopathic medicine at a public university. National studies show that graduates from programs of osteopathic medicine are more likely to pursue primary care in rural and underserved areas—57 percent of all doctors of osteopathic medicine practice as general practitioners, and more than 20 percent of DO graduates practice in rural areas. Demand is high for osteopathic medicine training: in 2021, 22,708 applicants competed for 8,280 seats at schools of osteopathic medicine.
IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine continues to draw support from individual donors, foundations, and from legislators.
In July, IUP graduates Tim and Debra Phillips Cejka gifted $2 million to IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine.
In June, the Foundation for IUP committed $20 million to support IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine.
In May, Congressman Guy Reschenthaler included $2 million for IUP’s project among his FY25 requested community projects and Senator John Fetterman included $2 million for IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine project on his list to advance in the FY25 Community Project Funding process.
The proposed college of osteopathic medicine received a $150,000 allocation in the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2024, which was sponsored by Congressman Reschenthaler and Senator Fetterman and signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 9.
In January, IUP’s Alumni Association Board of Directors authorized a donation of $500,000 to IUP’s proposed college of osteopathic medicine project.
In December 2023, Senator Joe Pittman announced that as part of the 2023–24 state budget, $2 million was set aside for IUP’s new college of osteopathic medicine. These new dollars are an investment above and beyond what IUP receives in the budget and will be used largely to support the operations at the start of the medical school.
In July 2023, IUP graduates Nick Jacobs and Mary Ann Hoysan Jacobs donated $40,000 to advance the project. Nick Jacobs is a 2005 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient who has a 1969 bachelor’s degree in education and a 1972 master’s degree in music education; Mary Ann Jacobs has a 1968 bachelor’s degree in music education and a 1993 master’s degree in adult and community education.
In May 2023, Rich Caruso, a 1983 accounting graduate from Meadow Lands, 2023 Distinguished Alumni Award recipient and former president of the Foundation for IUP Board of Directors and current board member, announced a pledge of $1 million for the project.