ASHS graduation emphasizes community service

NACHC chief medical officer urges proactive change, care for the underserved

MESA, Ariz. (Aug. 8, 2006 ) – Nearly 1,000 students and guests from across the country gathered on Saturday, August 5, to celebrate the latest graduating class from A.T. Still University’s Arizona School of Health Sciences (ATSU-ASHS).

The keynote address was given by one of the nation’s foremost healthcare authorities, Thomas F. Curtin, M.D., chief medical officer of the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC). Dr. Curtin was also presented an honorary doctor of humane letters degree.

In his address, Dr. Curtin stressed the importance of community service and care of the underserved. He challenged students to refine their skills, become actively involved in their communities, and to be proactive in the pursuit of society’s needs regardless of social status.

He concluded his address with a quote from former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, a lifelong advocate of human rights and humanitarian causes.

“It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.”

ATSU-ASHS granted degrees in audiology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, sports healthcare, physician assistant studies, and medical informatics. The school also celebrated the inaugural graduating classes for its residential Doctor of Audiology program and its online advanced occupational therapy program.