The Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine (KCOM) in Kirksville, Mo. believes so strongly in their philosophy that they built a $650,000 science center exhibit and decided to take their message on the road and into the science centers and classrooms of schoolchildren all across the nation. The Healer Within(r) is their vehicle and it will arrive at the Smithsonian Arts and Industries building in Washington, D.C. May 28 -- September 5, 2003.

The Healer Within(r), a 2,000 square foot traveling science center exhibit that explains the preventative concepts of health and wellness and is based on the principals of osteopathic medicine and self-directed wellness. The central theme throughout the exhibit is that each of us have the power within us to obtain optimal health.

The Healer Within (r) was recently awarded a gold medal for special individual public relations projects in the 2002 international circle of excellence competition sponsored by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). The judges were impressed with the creativity of the display and the effective way it addressed the needs of the college while also adhering to KCOM's educational mission.

For the past two decades, Americans have shown a growing interest in wellness and fostering health from within. The emphasis has shifted from just curing disease to preventing it. This "wellness philosophy" has always shaped the educational principals upon which osteopathic medicine was founded: Body Unity; Structure/Function; Self-Healing; and Medical Applications. With its 112-year old roots as the founding college of osteopathic medicine, KCOM is poised to deliver this message through The Healer Within(r).

"It's exciting to think that we are educating a whole new generation of children about osteopathic medicine," said James J. McGovern, Ph.D., President, KCOM. "Who knows how many people will end up going to osteopathic physicians for care or become DO's themselves after visiting The Healer Within(r)."

In the exhibit, visitors are treated to a number of hands-on, colorful components ranging from a virtual reality trip through the immune system where visitors become disease-fighting white blood cell warriors; to watching in awe at the physiology of their nerves and muscles lighting up while doing a simple act such as turning a door handle; to a cancer defender game that battles cancer by making healthy choices.

KCOM has extended its role even farther in educating children. Reaching beyond the walls of the nations science centers, they are taking their message into elementary and junior high school classrooms. Along with the exhibit comes an expansive educational outreach package that includes 34 school discovery and science center programs that provides print and computer materials for preparatory and follow-up classroom activities for elementary and junior high school students.

Teachers in towns where the exhibit is displayed are preparing lesson plans based on the programs provided by The Healer Within(r). "What is so extraordinary about this exhibit," said Bill Castles, Executive Producer, The Healer Within(r), "is that children visit with their schoolteachers and they return, pulling their parents by the arm and exclaiming they can't wait for them to see The Healer Within(r). It makes learning about health and wellness fun and interesting."

Local radio and television stations throughout the nation have picked up the story of the only traveling exhibit in the nation created, funded, and maintained by an osteopathic medical school, including FOX, CNN, ABC, and NBC. During the exhibit's stint in Marion, Ohio, the only non-science center venue of the tour, a local cable station even filmed a 10-minute segment and it aired on 40 cable stations throughout Ohio.

The exhibit is also unique in that KCOM is using the exhibit as a recruiting tool to recruit pre-medical students. "Prospective students are impressed that here is the founding college of the osteopathic profession that believes enough in what it's teaching their students, they're willing to build a science center exhibit and take it on the road to educate others. It's a powerful statement," said Castles, who is also KCOM Vice President for Public Relations and Communications.

The exhibit is booked solid through 2004 in three-month increments in science centers throughout the nation. From Seattle to Tampa, from San Diego to Washington DC., over a half a million citizens from these and many other communities have learned from and experienced The Healer Within(r). The exhibit has been accepted at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. for June 28 -- September 3, 2003 in its Arts and Industries Building.

"We are very proud of this achievement," said McGovern. "This exhibit truly helps children, parents and even grandparents become proactive about their health."