PHILADELPHIA, PA—The National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME), an independent, nonprofit organization that provides competency assessments for osteopathic medical licensure and related health care professions, at its annual Board Meeting in December announced the addition of two new Board members and recognized one outgoing member for his service.
NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Furhut R. Janssen, DO, is the medical director for Community Mental Health for Central Michigan and a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry for Central Michigan University College of Medicine. From May 2018 – December 2021, she served as a member of the NBOME COMAT Psychiatry Subcommittee, and as its chair from 2019-2022. She also served on the COMAT Advisory Committee from 2019-2022.
Janssen serves nationally in setting and maintaining high standards for board certification as the child psychiatry representative to the American Board of Osteopathic Neurology and Psychiatry. She is currently vice-chair of the Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists. She also serves as a member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education Psychiatry Residency Review Committee.
Janssen received her doctor of osteopathic medicine degree from the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Jennifer Y. Kendall, DO, is a board-certified physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) physician practicing in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. She will join Hennepin Health Care System in April as the PM&R Medical Spine Lead, launching Hennepin Health’s Spine Care Program.
She has served the profession tirelessly on the Board of Trustees of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA). She is the immediate past president of the American Osteopathic College of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and past president of the Minnesota Osteopathic Medical Society. She was appointed in 2023 to the NBOME National Faculty and the COMLEX-USA Level 3 Advisory Committee.
Kendall previously served as the DO representative on the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice, the licensing board that oversees multiple health professions. She received her osteopathic medical degree from Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
OUTGOING BOARD MEMBER
Robert G. G. Piccinini, DO, is a practicing psychiatrist in Sterling Heights, Michigan. A graduate of Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSUCOM), he is board-certified in geriatric psychiatry and general adult psychiatry by the American Osteopathic Board of Neurology and Psychiatry and is also fellowship-trained in forensic psychiatry.
Piccinini joined the NBOME Board of Directors in 2019 and served on the Standards & Assurances Committee, and as chair of the Audit Committee and vice-chair of the Test Accommodations Committee. From 2009-2015, he was a COMAT item writer and reviewer for the NBOME and was a key member of NBOME’s DSM-5 Task Force from 2012-2015.
From 1992-2005, he held many roles at MSUCOM, including clinical instructor in the Department of Psychiatry, assistant clinical professor, and regional director of the Department of Psychiatry.
Piccinini is an active member of the Canadian Osteopathic Association, the Macomb Osteopathic Medical Association, the American College of Osteopathic Neurologists and Psychiatrists (ACONP), the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and the Michigan Osteopathic Association (MOA). He served as president of the MOA from 2014-2016, and the president of the ACONP from 2013-2014.
Piccinini is the president-elect of the AOA and will begin his one-year presidential term in July 2025. He has been recognized by MSUCOM with the Dean’s Award for Meritorious Contribution and by the ACONP with the Distinguished Fellow Award, among numerous other awards.