MEDIA RELEASE

Members of the entering class at the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) are undertaking the study of medicine just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act destined to change the way physicians practice medicine and how Americans access health care.

Chosen from more than 1,600 applicants who sought to study at the University of Hawaii’s medical school, the 66 aspiring doctors in the newest MD class will receive the hip-length white coats that mark them as medical students during a ceremony at 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 20 at Kaimuki High School.

The students will also recite the Oath of Hippocrates, sacred to their profession, as they begin their journey to become healers.

The entering class, made up of 40 women and 26 men, will study alongside the 200 other students (second, third and fourth-year students) pursuing their MD degrees at JABSOM.

JABSOM also oversees the post-MD medical training of another 250 physicians being supervised during their intern and residency years at Hawaii’s major medical centers.

JABSOM is the overwhelming source of doctors treating patients in the state. About half of the practicing physicians in Hawaii are graduates of JABSOM, its residency program and/or are on the faculty.

Class Highlights:

* This will be the first JABSOM class to use I-Pads for all their course work. Our curriculum has been adjusted to incorporate the Apple tablet computer.

* Average student age is 24. Range of ages is 20-33.

* 58 of the 66 are Hawaii residents.

* 83 percent graduated from Hawaii high schools (23 public, 32 private).

* The class includes two sets of siblings (brother and sister).

* The public schools with most entrants this year are Waiakea and Roosevelt, with 3 each.

* Fourteen of the 66 have advanced degrees, including 13 holders of Master’s degrees and a PhD.

* 16 attended the University of Hawaii at Manoa for their undergraduate studies.

* Seven students graduated from high schools on Hawaii Island, two from high schools on Maui.

* 61 percent of the incoming students are women.

— Find out more:
http://jabsom.hawaii.edu/jabsom/

New MD Class-Day 1 from UHMed on Vimeo.