Jordan Samuel, MSA’23, DO’27, was recently appointed as the medical student representative to the American Medical Association’s Council on Medical Education — a key body focused on policy and recommendations for medical education, accreditation and the physician workforce.
In his role, Samuel will represent the perspectives of medical students nationwide while contributing to discussions about the future of physician education and training in the United States.
“The council’s work touches every stage of the physician pipeline — medical school, residency, continuing education — so the recommendations have broad downstream effects on patients,” Samuel says. “Physicians have a responsibility not only to care for patients but also to advocate for them. Those letters behind a physician’s name carry influence, and that matters when you’re in conversations with lawmakers, federal agencies and organizations shaping health care policy.”
Notably, Samuel was the only osteopathic medical student appointed to an AMA council during this appointment cycle.
“As a Des Moines University student, I am grateful for the opportunity to bring both an osteopathic perspective and the experiences of DMU students to these national discussions,” he says.
Samuel credits his selection to the Council on Medical Education — a competitive opportunity requiring application and selection by the AMA Board of Trustees — to his experiences at DMU.
As a Master of Science in Anatomy student, Samuel served as a teaching assistant, where he discovered his passion for medical education, including “helping people learn, figuring out how to communicate information in a way that clicks and seeing that light bulb moment.”
During his time as a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine student, Samuel has conducted research with Julia Van Liew, PhD, associate professor of behavioral medicine, medical humanities and bioethics, examining how board exam scoring changes — such as shifting from numerical scores to pass/fail — affect student stress levels.
“There’s not much research on student wellness during clinical years, so our study helps fill that gap,” Samuel says.
Additionally, Samuel worked with Rich Salas, PhD, chief diversity officer, to develop “DMU Health Equity: Delivering Responsive Healthcare,” a video training series designed to educate health care professionals locally and nationwide on health equity and responsive care.
“All of that really pushed me toward wanting to be involved in conversations that shape how we educate future physicians,” Samuel says.
Salas noted how proud he is of “soon-to-be Dr. Samuel.”
“Jordan has distinguished himself as an outstanding student leader, and I have been especially impressed by his commitment to cultural competence and his dedication to serving every future patient and family with compassion, respect and understanding,” Salas says. “He will undoubtedly represent Des Moines University with the highest level of professionalism, integrity and excellence on the council.”
Samuel ultimately views his role with the AMA’s Council on Medical Education as a chance to learn from leaders in medical education while contributing an important student perspective to council deliberations.
“I hope to contribute to the conversations, represent student perspectives and serve osteopathic students well,” Samuel says. “I also hope it reflects well on DMU and shows that students here can make an impact not just in the classroom, but beyond that, in national spaces.”