BodieStevens

Bodie has been a part of the UK College of Medicine for eight years, and each incoming class makes him more excited about the work that he is doing.

Though he works with many of them much earlier than their first day of medical school, he officially welcomes them to UK during the white coat ceremony.

RPLP students don’t train in Morehead until the third year of medical school. They complete their first two years in Lexington, Ky.

In August, the 12 RPLP students in the Class of 2027 celebrated their initiation with Bodie in Lexington.

Bodie got to know the incoming class on a deeper level when they participated in the Common Read Initiative, which brings first-year students together at orientation for a book discussion. The initiative is made possible through a collaboration with the Office of Community Advancement and the Office of Medical Education.

This year’s book was “What We Don’t Talk about When We Talk about Fat,” by Aubrey Gordon.

Bodie led a discussion with eight students. He said the small-group session allowed them to be comfortable conversing with their peers. They were open to talking about the book but also other real-world issues.

“What I learned from them was way more than I could have given to them,” Bodie says.

Small-group settings like the Common Read Initiative help foster fruitful discussions. With only 10-15 students in each medical school class, RPLP carries that intimate format.

Bodie says RPLP students frequently hang out on the weekends and develop close friendships. As a student affairs officer, he facilitates some of those group activities, not only allowing students to grow closer but helping them get to know Morehead – the community that raised him.

This year, Bodie helped coordinate many social events including a trail clean-up as part of RPLP’s monthly service project and a dinner at Local Taco.

Before students join him in Morehead, Bodie and Associate Dean Rebecca Todd, MD, meet them in Lexington to go over third-year scheduling and help provide reliable options for housing in Morehead.

He even runs a team scavenger hunt highlighting the main areas of Morehead such as Cave Run Lake and local dry cleaners, banks, flower shops, mechanics, coffee shops, and grocery stores.

“I know Google has all of those things out there,” Bodie jokes. “But it’s still kind of fun.”

Third-year medical students come to Morehead and begin their Entrustment in Clinical Medicine (ECM) course, which is the turning point before they begin clerkships and embark on training in different medical specialties.

Bodie is always excited to celebrate his students. This year brought forth a new opportunity when Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicaid of Kentucky introduced Anthem Rural Medicine Scholarships. Dr. Todd was instrumental in negotiating the collaboration and funds.

The scholarships are aimed at relieving the financial burden of medical school for doctors-in-training who have dreams of pursuing rural medicine.

The overarching goal: advance health care in rural communities.

Makayla Arnett and Harrison Fouch were selected for the inaugural scholarships, which were presented to RPLP on National Rural Health Day and awarded to students during Match Day.

Bodie spoke to local TV station WYMT about this new partnership.

Bodie wears many hats – and one crown. Courtesy of his students, he is called the “king of dad jokes.”

That title is displayed everywhere in his office. It dons a name plate at the front of his desk. It’s also on a mug. He has a box of dad jokes by his keyboard.

As a parent, Bodie understands the nerves that come with dropping your child off for college, and medical school is no easy feat. He is always reachable if a student needs something, and that goes beyond school work.

“I would hope that if my kids were in that same situation, that somebody would do the same for them,” he says, “and that's truly all that I want to do is try to make them feel like they're not alone.”

“I mean, even though they are adults, right? They're still kids.”

During the holiday break, he invited RPLP students to his family’s home, in case they couldn’t travel.

When students go through residency interviews, Bodie is a constant source of encouragement. He arrives early just to unlock their building and help them get set up, and he always has snacks and water set aside.

Last summer, a group of RPLP students traveled and presented at a conference in Savannah, Ga., with several UK College of Medicine regional campus associate and assistant deans. Bodie was a great member of the team, providing assistance inside and outside the presentation hall. Throughout the week, he made sure the students were all safe, fed, and enjoying their experience.

Bodie always strives to make sure his fourth-year students feel special, but especially during more stressful times. That includes Match Day, when graduating RPLP students join medical students across the country to find out where they pursue the next pivotal step in training – residency.

Bodie provides each class with a special Match Day gift. This year, he wrote a letter with multiple silly gifts to accompany it.

• A toy medical kit because they’ve spent their lives “pretending” to be a doctor.
• A book by one of the experts to look up to, Dr. Seuss.
• An “Incredibles” figurine honoring the incredible journey they’ve made.
• Noisemakers to celebrate Match Day.
• A personalized “Dr.” water bottle, as not to “water down” what they’ve learned over the four years of medical school.

His students returned the favor. They presented Bodie with a Woodford Reserve bourbon bottle, “Kentucky-fied” and with all of their names painted on the back.

The Class of 2024 is special to Bodie. It includes four students from Morehead and five Morehead State University graduates. Three of them were enrolled as undergrad sophomores in the Early Assurance Program, for which Bodie is Morehead’s point of contact.

Bodie coached two of them in recreational league soccer when they were 4 years old. He went to church with one of their families for more than nine years. One of his students’ fathers went to high school with Bodie and worked with Bodie’s wife at the city government office.

“I feel like with half of them, I’ve had a relationship spanning six or seven years,” Bodie says. “That’s a small town for you.”

A fourth-year medical student’s final course transitions them to residency. Then it’s off to Lexington to celebrate graduation with all of their UK College of Medicine classmates.

There are a million positives to forming close bonds as an RPLP program, but one negative is that graduation always brings a difficult good-bye.

“It’s always like one of those Catch-22s,” Bodie says. “It's always happy and exciting, but then at the same time it’s sad. And the same for them. I think they're always happy to be done but then they also come to the realization that they're done.”

If there is anything students know when leaving RPLP, it is that their relationship with Bodie hasn’t ended. And if he calls, he jokes that they had better pick up the phone.

They always do.

Bodie finds the alumni connection so vital for his current students. Most of the time, if he’s calling, it’s going to be because he’s trying to help another student who is interested in a similar pathway.

That’s one of the biggest advantages of RPLP, he says. There are alumni going into many different specialties, and they maintain a desire to help future students.

“I’ve never had anybody that I called and asked, ‘Hey, can you help this student?’ and they said, ‘no,’” Bodie says. “They are always trying to help the next group of people.”

Bodie remains invested in his RPLP students. Every time he makes a connection, plans a social event, or tells one of his signature dad jokes, he is making sure all of his students know they are heard through the challenges of medical school – and hoping they have a little fun along the way.

“Being able to be involved in that process of seeing them from day one to successfully fulfilling the mission of serving rural medicine … that is my ‘why,’” Bodie says.