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I got my acceptance two days before Thanksgiving and immediately started crying—it felt like validation that I could do what I set my mind to, despite the self-doubt and catastrophic Reddit threads. I spent the next year working and spending time with friends and family, and in August, I moved to Durham.

The Duke Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program recently hosted an energetic and inspiring Mentorship Social, led by assistant professor Tomeico Faison, OTD, OTR/L, FAOTA. Now in its fifth year, the event brought together current students, alumni, faculty, and volunteer leaders to foster meaningful connections and emphasize the importance of mentorship within the Duke OTD community.

The Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) has announced a significant update to its 2024 Standards and Required Elements (SREs), marking a key milestone for academic physical therapy and the future of faculty development.

Visit marks a key moment in ongoing collaboration between Duke and Duke-NUS.

In a compelling session of the Interdisciplinary Rehabilitative Research Seminar Series, Duke DPT and Duke OTD co-hosted a presentation by Amy M. Pastva, PT, MA, PhD, Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Director of Research for the Duke Doctor of Physical Therapy Division. Her talk, “The Vital Sign We Forgot: Function in Acute Heart Failure—Evidence from REHAB-HF and REHAB-HFpEF,” highlighted an often-overlooked marker of health and recovery: physical function.

School of Medicine students offer music to patients hospitalized at Duke University Hospital via the Musical Rounds program

Effective immediately, April Stouder, EdD, MHS, PA-C, has been named and appointed as the program director and division chief of the Duke Physician Assistant Program. Stouder previously served as the associate program director and transitioned into the interim director role with the retirement of Jacqueline S. Barnett, DHSc, MSHS, PA-C.

September 12 was National Day of Encouragement. Le Well partnered with DPT Student Affairs Office to offer rock painting, coloring and learning about Kawa.

The Duke Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Division is pleased to announce that Derek Clewley, PT, DPT, PhD, has been appointed Assistant Director of Curriculum, effective January 1, 2026.

In 1965, Eugene Stead, MD, then chair of the Duke University Department of Medicine, launched what he called “the biggest innovation in medicine in my lifetime”: the physician assistant (PA) profession. With the founding of the Duke University PA Program, he sparked a movement that would change health care delivery across the country.