Olivia Menardy 
DO '16

Olivia Menardy (DO '16)

Olivia Menardy鈥檚 love of osteopathic medicine was cultivated in high school, when she toured several medical schools including her local osteopathic school, New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine, as part of the Sophie Davis Bridge to Medicine program鈥攁 rigorous pre-med program for high school students in the New York City-area who are interested in a career in healthcare. Ms. Menardy is a native of Long Island.

鈥淭hat solidified my desire to be a doctor,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 have always been interested in areas such as public health, nutrition and preventive medicine, and I quickly learned that the osteopathic philosophy fit into those areas.鈥�

Ms. Menardy moved to Philadelphia in 2007 to attend Temple University, where she received her bachelor鈥檚 degree in public health. Her interest in osteopathic medicine was so strong that while there, she and other future PCOM classmates started that campus鈥� first-ever Pre-Student Osteopathic Medicine Club. Ms. Menardy served as president for two years, and fellow classmate Dat Nguyen (DO 鈥�16) served as vice president. 鈥淚t is so humbling to now be graduating as DOs together,鈥� said Ms. Menardy.

After meeting with some of PCOM鈥檚 DO students and representatives from the Office of Admissions at a PCOM Open House event, she made the decision to stay in Philadelphia to get her doctorate in osteopathic medicine. While at PCOM, she has been very active in the College鈥檚 chapter of the Student National Medical Association, where she served as academic chair and ran study sessions for first-year students. She was also active in the PCOM 鈥淏igs and Littles鈥� program, which pairs incoming first-year DO students with more established second-year students to ease their transition into medical school, and was a campus tour guide as well as a member of the Office of Admissions鈥� interviewing committee for applicants to PCOM.

鈥淚 do see a future for myself in academic medicine, and helping my peers allowed me to realize that passion,鈥� she said.

Although she matched to a family medicine residency at South Nassau Communities Hospital in Long Island, the experiences she had mentoring and shepherding younger DO students and high-schoolers left an impression.

鈥淚鈥檝e always had an interest in teaching, but after these experiences, I am very interested in training the next generation of doctors. One of my goals is to come back here, to PCOM, as a faculty member. You鈥檒l never get rid of me!鈥� she joked.