Rotations

As a WesternU osteopathic medical student, you’ll gain considerable early clinical experience and be well-prepared when you enter your third and fourth year rotations.  Your rotation experiences will enable you to further develop your clinical skills.

Third Year Rotations Length Type 4 weeks Family Medicine 4 weeks Internal Medicine:  General 4 weeks Internal Medicine:  General 4 weeks Internal Medicine:  Specialty (e.g. GI, Cardiology, or Neurology) 4 weeks Surgery:  General 6 weeks Pediatrics 4 weeks Psychiatry 6 weeks Obstetrics/Gynecology 4 weeks Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine 4 weeks Elective

Fourth Year Rotations Length Type 4 weeks Emergency Medicine 4 weeks Medicine Sub-Internship (e.g. Family, Internal, Pediatrics, Geriatrics) 4 weeks Surgery Sub-Internship (general, subspecialty or procedural specialty) 28 weeks Elective Rotations

Rotation Sites
Most core rotations are located within driving distance of WesternU and will expose you to a wide range of practice options. It is our philosophy to give students a variety of experiences that include community-based hospitals, county-based hospitals, and private practice offices. 

 

Settings include sites with and without residency programs so that students are able to experience the broad spectrum of medical practice. Southern California core rotation sites include:

• Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, Colton, CA
• Downey Regional Medical Center, Downey, CA
• Chino Valley Medical Center, Chino, CA
• Garfield Medical Center, Monterey Park, CA
• City of Hope, Duarte, CA
• Marion Medical Center, Santa Maria, CA
• Pacific Hospital of Long Beach, Long Beach, CA
• Citrus Valley Medical Center, San Bernardino, CA
• Rancho Los Amigos Rehabilitation Center, Downey, CA
• Riverside County Regional Medical Center, Moreno Valley, CA

Five core rotation tracks are also available in Michigan because of the state’s strong osteopathic residency programs. Students who complete core rotations in Michigan arrange their rotations through St. John Macomb Hospital and return on a quarterly basis to WesternU for didactic week activities.

Hundreds of elective rotation sites are available to our students all over the country. Electives may encompass any specialty including clinical or basic research.

International Elective Rotations

You may also apply for up to 8 weeks of international elective rotations during your fourth year. WesternU students have rotated through sites in numerous countries including Mexico, Germany, England, Morocco, Ecuador, India, Morocco, Papua New Guinea, and more!

Students can research international rotation options through websites such as the Global Health Education Consortium (GHEC) and International Federation of Medical Student’s Associations (IFMSA). 

You will be able to participate in international rotations if you speak the country’s language, have an 80% GPA, and receive approval from WesternU’s Committee for International and Cross-Cultural Programs (CICP). For more information on international rotations, contact Dr. Rafi Younoszai or Gisele Tackoor at (909) 469-5414.

 

Residency Placement

The College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific’s fourth year curriculum gives students the flexibility they need to do “audition rotations” at potential residency sites.  You'll be seen at multiple sites increasing your chance of “matching” in your desired residency program.  Recent graduates have matched in top residencies throughout the country representing virtually all medical specialties. For more details

 

We are also on the forefront of osteopathic graduate medical education with the addition of two new multi-specialty residency programs approved to open in June, 2009:

 

Garfield Medical Center, Monterey Park, CA Internal Medicine Cardiology Interventional Cardiology Gastroenterology Pulmonary Medicine/Critical Care Radiology Traditional Rotating Internship Disciplines pending approval: General Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Family Medicine, Obstetrics/Gynecology

Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Corvallis, OR Family Medicine Traditional Rotating Internship Cardiology Fellowship Psychiatry      Disciplines pending approval: Emergency Medicine, Internal Medicine; Obstetrics/Gynecology; General Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery