Stark County Business News: ALAN L. MESHEKOW, D.O., DFACOS, RECEIVES HIGHEST HONOR FROM AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC SURGEONS

 

ALAN L. MESHEKOW, D.O., DFACOS, RECEIVES HIGHEST HONOR 

FROM AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC SURGEONS

Alan Meshekow, D.O., wears the academic robe, cap and medallion signifying his achievement

 as he accepts the Orel F. Martin Medal in Salt Lake City.

MASSILLON, OH – Alan L. Meshekow, D.O., DFACOS, has received the 2025 Orel F. Martin Medal, the highest honor for an osteopathic surgeon from the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons (ACOS). The award was presented Sept. 19 during the ACOS Annual Clinical Assembly in Salt Lake City, recognizing his decades of service to the profession and the organization.

Dr. Meshekow practiced for 40 years and served on the medical staffs of all of Stark County’s hospitals—Doctors, Massillon Community, Aultman, Mercy and Affinity, which formed later with the merger of Doctors and Massillon Community. A 1974 graduate of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, he completed his internship and general surgery residency at Doctor’s Hospital in Columbus, where he was chief surgical resident, graduating in 1979 and earning board certification in 1983.

Within ACOS, he chaired multiple committees, served as Board of Governors president, and was named a Distinguished Osteopathic Surgeon and Distinguished Fellow.

Joining Doctor’s Hospital in Massillon in 1979, Dr. Meshekow co-founded a general surgical residency in 1983 and directed the program until its 2018 closure. He also led surgical missions to rural Mexico.

“This is a great honor, and I deeply appreciate the respect and acknowledgment from my peers,” said Dr. Meshekow. He encourages young physicians “to get involved in their professional organizations and help shape decisions at local, state and national levels.”

Dr. Meshekow held numerous leadership roles at Doctors Hospital and Affinity Medical Center,  including chair of the surgery department, chief of staff, and board chair. He also served on the active medical staffs of Aultman and Mercy hospitals and often rounded at all four facilities in a single day.

An accomplished educator, he was a clinical professor of surgery at Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, earning multiple teaching awards and appointment as master clinical faculty in 1990. He also taught students from the colleges of osteopathic medicine at A.T. Still University and Des Moines University and chaired the Centers for Osteopathic Research and Education program at the Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine at Ohio University.

He frequently lectured locally and nationally, appeared on radio and television, and served as a longtime preceptor for the Stark County Medical Society mini-internship program. Many of his former residents now practice across the country.

Dr. Meshekow and his wife, Susan, live in Massillon with their five cats. He enjoys golfing, bowling and serving on the board of Temple Israel in Canton.