Area student earns white coat

Dallas Johnson, a student in Des Moines University’s Doctor of Podiatric Medicine program and originally of Yuba City, was a participant in the university’s 2023 White Coat Ceremony on Sept. 15.

Among the members of the program’s Class of 2027, Johnson received the white coat as a symbol of the training aspiring health professionals receive and the accompanying responsibilities they’ve accepted for their future roles.

Across the country, the White Coat Ceremony is a rite of passage for students as they begin their medical education and prepare to become compassionate, competent health care providers.

Participating in DMU’S ceremony were 149 students in the College of Health Sciences’ Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Doctor of Occupational Therapy and Doctor of Physical Therapy programs; 56 students in the College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery’s Doctor of Podiatric Medicine program; and 226 students in the College of Osteopathic Medicine’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program.

“As you don the white coat today, you assume not only the responsibilities but also the obligations that attend to those who choose to provide care to other human beings,” DMU President and

CEO Angela L. Walker Franklin, PH.D., told the students. “These obligations include to be honorable in all phases of your life, to excel in your academic studies and training, to be compassionate, to be accountable, to collaborate with others as an interprofessional team member and to support a culture of inclusiveness.”

The ceremony concluded with the students’ recital of the White Coat Ceremony Student Oath, in which they pledged to focus their efforts on “the ultimate goal of serving my future patients.” The students’ white coats were provided by an endowed fund established by DMU graduates Maurice Schwartz, D.O., Class of 1933, and Elliott Schwartz, D.O., Class of 1973, as well as by donations from other alumni and friends.