Rose Trimpey-Warhaftig has a good sense of what she wants to achieve and the impact she'll make on the world. Though she grew up in North Carolina and earned her undergraduate degree in biology there, she always knew her future would start in Pittsburgh.
"I had a project in eighth grade where I had to say what my life plans were, and I said I wanted to move to Pittsburgh for medical school,” she said. “From the moment I first spoke with admissions counselors at Duquesne to now, I've constantly felt wanted and cared for—like I really deserve this.”
Rose was the first student to commit to the new Duquesne University College of Osteopathic Medicine. Her parents are physicians, and the family is familiar with the Bluff. Her mother, Amanda Trimpey, MD, S’90, is a Duquesne alumna, and her sister, Grace Trimpey-Warhaftig, is a second-year student in Duquesne's occupational therapy program.
Learning about the University's strengths from her family gave Rose the confidence to pursue her medical degree at Duquesne.
"The fact that Duquesne has so many other health-related programs played a big role in my decision,” she said. “Knowing there are other successful, competitive health programs is a bonus, and I think it provides so much opportunity for collaboration and research.”
With plans to pursue family medicine, Rose has a special interest in treating women and children. She grew up watching her father, a primary care physician, build rapport with his patients and give back to his community.
These are qualities Rose would like to emulate in her own practice. “With family medicine, it’s more longitudinal care,” she said. “What draws me to it most is you have the same patient base over years and you can build relationships.”
Driven by compassion and empathy, Rose knows that studying osteopathic medicine will equip her with the skills needed to take a whole-body treatment approach. “Holistic patient care is so important,” she said. “It’s a better way to treat a person’s individual needs.”
A fluent Spanish-speaker, Rose is determined to improve access to medical care and make an even bigger impact on her profession and the people it serves. Her desire to address systemic challenges in health care will make her more open to the lives and journeys of others–creating a future everyone can share.
“There’s a huge need for primary care physicians who speak Spanish,” she said. “I want to use these skills in my daily work to help eliminate barriers.”
Rose is honored to be part of the incoming class and looks forward to learning alongside fellow students and future doctors. She’ll arrive to Duquesne after completing graduate studies in physiology in North Carolina this spring.
"I'm so excited to build a community,” said Rose. “Pittsburgh is a place where I've always felt like I've belonged.”
News Information
New Medical School, Fresh Perspectives
Students from across campus will connect in meaningful, productive ways.
Jacob Dimenbort
There will be a lot of opportunities for interprofessional work, particularly in the state-of-the-art simulation suites. This is where students start to understand the roles and responsibilities of their colleagues in different simulations such as the emergency room, birthing suite and more.
Rachel Anderson
I prioritize a holistic health approach in my own practice and consider physical, emotional and social wellbeing. It’s really exciting that Duquesne is expanding and working to train new professionals in these resources.
Henry DiPaolo
The opening of Duquesne’s College of Osteopathic Medicine is a great opportunity for collaboration. Pharmacy students can hear different patient cases and collaborate with a team of medical students, nursing students and pharmacy students–just like in the hospital setting.
Kyla Covato
With the medical students we can look at issues they might have and help them discover what we can do about them. I'm excited to collaborate and solve more health issues.
Iván Del Toro Hernández
Sometimes [doctors] say they have patients who would benefit from occupational therapy, and it helps to start that dialogue from the beginning in school–not just during clinical field work.
Cassidy Camp
I feel like the school and faculty will guide medical students and get them on the same positive path faculty have sent me on in the nursing field.
Kirstin Franklin
The new college will allow school psychology students to interact with medical students and learn how those teams work, while medical students get to learn how school systems work. It’s important to have these multidisciplinary teams working together so their patients–our students–can benefit.
Amelia Trello
Duquesne students in the health profession programs are already contributing to the wellbeing of our communities. Now we are putting forth more professionals in the health sphere, and that's a great thing.
Fayla Junior
Since being here at Duquesne, one of the things that people tell others about Pittsburgh is that it's one of the places where health care thrives.