UW Medical Education Program Students to Begin Clerkship Rotations

Twenty current University of Wyoming second-year medical students in the WWAMI Medical Education Program -- who began their medical school journey on UW campus in 2024 -- soon will leave the classroom to begin their clerkship rotations in clinical spaces alongside physicians and patients in the region.

The second-year Wyoming WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho) Medical Education Program students spent the past 18 months in medical teaching classrooms in UW’s College of Health Sciences while in the foundations phase of the medical education curriculum.

In addition to their basic science training in the first phase at the University of Wyoming, the students received early exposure to working with patients, which has equipped them to move on to the clinical phase of their curriculum. Wyoming WWAMI students ultimately receive their medical degrees from the University of Washington School of Medicine (UWSOM).

The second-year students were honored in December at the Wyoming WWAMI clinical transitions ceremony.

Among the speakers at the ceremony was Dr. Todd Guth, a physician and director of the Wyoming WWAMI program, who emphasized to the second-year students the importance of perseverance and resilience in getting to this point in their medical training -- and the community of individuals who support the goal of having WWAMI students return to serve Wyoming’s rural communities.

University of Wyoming Interim Provost Anne Alexander and University of Washington incoming Vice Dean of Rural and Regional Affairs LeeAnna Muzquiz provided reflections about the importance of the relationship between the two “UWs” and the role of the WWAMI graduates in shaping the clinical workforce and health care landscape in Wyoming.  

The keynote speaker, current Vice Dean for Academic, Rural and Regional Affairs Suzanne Allen from the University of Washington, provided important reflections on the symbolic meaning of the white coat and the stethoscope as a prelude to the second-year students receiving their white coats for the clinical phase of their training.

At the end of the program, Dr. Julie Carlson led WWAMI physician mentors and hospitalists in presenting white coats to each of the second-year students amid speeches from the mentors about each student’s journey in medical school. The white coats, provided by the UWSOM Alumni Association, symbolize the students’ assumption of their responsibilities in the care of their future patients. Students will wear their white coats throughout the clinical phase of their medical training.

Kyler Arriola, Medical Student Association president for the class, reflected on his cohort’s time in the foundations phase at the University of Wyoming.

“We grew into people who listen better, think more deeply and care more intentionally,” Arriola says. “We grew into people who understand the weight of walking into a room where someone is sick, scared or vulnerable -- and choosing to take a few deep breaths and help. We grew into future physicians who know that knowledge matters, but so does kindness. That no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care.”

Also featured at the ceremony were individual awards.

The recipient of the Howard Willson Excellence in Primary Care Award was Annika Syvrud, from Rock Springs, while the Pheneger Community Health Award went to Cassidy Sebastian, from Jackson, and Shay Nelson, from Afton. Casper’s Ben Radosevich was honored with the new Excellence in Foundations Award for outstanding academic, lab and clinical performance alongside proactive leadership in the learning community.

The second-year class presented the Faculty/Staff Award jointly to Amy Navratil, associate professor of zoology and physiology, and Natalia Brown, program and business services manager.

Second-year medical students entering the clinical phase of their training, listed by hometown, are:

Afton -- Shay Nelson.

Banner -- Noah Gustafson.

Big Horn -- Jill Mayer.

Casper -- Avery Potter, Ben Radosevich, Sarah Retherford and Lulu Rochelle.

Cheyenne -- Cassidy Dellos.

Cody -- Caden Crooks.

Douglas -- Makena Engelker and Audrey Peasley.

Green River -- Timothy Radosevich and Hannah Thomas.

Jackson -- Kyler Arriola and Cassidy Sebastian.

Laramie -- Aedian O’Connor.

Powell -- Carson Asher.

Rock Springs -- Celeste Keelin and Annika Syvrud.

Sheridan -- Jack Syring.

About the Wyoming WWAMI Medical Education Program

The Wyoming WWAMI Medical Education Program is a partnership between the University of Wyoming and the University of Washington School of Medicine. WWAMI Medical Education reserves 20 seats each year for qualified Wyoming residents. Students accepted to the program spend 18 months on the University of Wyoming campus. Students spend the third and fourth years at selected clinical sites throughout the WWAMI region.