University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Encyclopedia
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
s of the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
, one of six dedicated to Health Sciences.
The School has its own publication, FACETS, which is published 7 times a year.
History
The school was originally founded in 1969 as the School of Health Related Professions. By 1971, the school had 23 full-time faculty members and had graduated 31 students with bachelor's degreeBachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
s, 10 with master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s and 18 with post-baccalaureate certificates
Postbaccalaureate program
Some colleges and universities offer programs for which a first undergraduate degree is a pre-requisite, but which are usually not considered traditional graduate education...
. Focused from its creation on entry-level professional education, the school began to focus more on research and advanced graduate school after 1989, under the guidance of then senior vice chancellor for health sciences Thomas Detre. The name of the school was changed in 1991 after Clifford E. Brubaker
Clifford E. Brubaker
Clifford E. Brubaker is Dean of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. Brubaker is also a Professor at that institution and an Adjunct Professor at both Xian Jiaotong University and Carnegie Mellon University....
became Dean, at which time it was expanded with new programs and departments. In 2009-2010, the faculty had grown to over 100, with over 1,100 enrolled students.
Academics
The school offers a school-wide Health and Rehabilitation Sciences program as well programs in eight other specialized departments/programs within the school: Communication ScienceCommunication Sciences
Communication sciences refers to the schools of scientific research of human communication. This perspective follows the logical positivist tradition of inquiry; most modern communication science falls into a tradition of post-positivism. Thus, communication scientists believe that there is an...
and Disorders
Communication disorder
A communication disorder is a speech and language disorder which refers to problems in communication and in related areas such as oral motor function. The delays and disorders can range from simple sound substitution to the inability to understand or use language...
, Emergency Medicine
Emergency medicine
Emergency medicine is a medical specialty in which physicians care for patients with acute illnesses or injuries which require immediate medical attention. While not usually providing long-term or continuing care, emergency medicine physicians diagnose a variety of illnesses and undertake acute...
, Health Information Management
Health Information Management
Health information management is the practice of maintenance and care of health records by traditional and electronic means in hospitals, physician's office clinics, health departments, health insurance companies, and other facilities that provide health care or maintenance of health records...
, Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy
Occupational therapy is a discipline that aims to promote health by enabling people to perform meaningful and purposeful activities. Occupational therapists work with individuals who suffer from a mentally, physically, developmentally, and/or emotionally disabling condition by utilizing treatments...
, Physical Therapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
, Physician Assistant
Physician assistant
A physician assistant/associate ' is a healthcare professional trained and licensed to practice medicine with limited supervision by a physician.-General description:...
Studies, Rehabilitation Science and Technology, and Sports Medicine
Sports medicine
Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness, treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise...
and Nutrition
Nutrition
Nutrition is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet....
. Degrees available in each program vary from certificate programs
Professional certification
Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply certification or qualification, is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task...
, to Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
s, master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
s, professional degrees (e.g. Doctor of Physical Therapy
Doctor of Physical Therapy
The Doctor of Physical Therapy or Doctor of Physiotherapy is a post-baccalaureate three-year degree conferred upon successful completion of a professional clinical doctoral level professional or post-professional physical therapist education program for the licensed physical therapist...
and Doctor of Audiology
Doctor of Audiology
The Doctor of Audiology is a first professional degree for an audiologist. The Au.D. program is designed to produce audiologists who are skilled in providing diagnostic, rehabilitative, and other services associated with hearing, balance, and related audiological fields. There is an emphasis on...
), and PhDs
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
.
In 2010, the U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is an American news magazine published from Washington, D.C. Along with Time and Newsweek it was for many years a leading news weekly, focusing more than its counterparts on political, economic, health and education stories...
listed the school as among the "top graduate programs to prepare...for a successful career" in the United States in the field of Physical Therapy, where it tied for 2nd place with the Washington University School of Medicine
Washington University School of Medicine
Washington University School of Medicine , located in St. Louis, Missouri, is one of the graduate schools of Washington University in St. Louis. One of the top medical schools in the United States, it is currently ranked 4th for research according to U.S. News and World Report and has been listed...
. The school also ranked tied for ninth in Occupational Therapy, 12th in Speech-Language Pathology, and 16th in Audiology by U.S. News in their most recent ranking of those graduate programs in 2008. The school's athletic training program was also ranked fifth in the nation according to a 2003 study of undergraduate athletic training education.
Research
SHRS faculty and students are active in basic, translational and clinical research. In 2009, SHRS received more than $13.5 million in external research funding from government and private sources. Areas of inquiry include: the measurement and study of motion; balance disorders; human performance; hearing disorders; speech, language and cognitive disorders; neuropsychological parameters; telerehabilitation; wheelchair performance and design; and data mining. SHRS research typically involves faculty from multiple departments, schools, as well as other institutions.SHRS includes four National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research is a United States governmental institution that provides leadership and support for a comprehensive program of research related to the rehabilitation of individuals with disabilities...
Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs): Wheelchair Transportation Safety, Telerehabilitation, Spinal Cord Injury, and Wheeled Mobility. Some particularly important interdisciplinary collaborations include: McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine (MIRM)http://www.mirm.pitt.edu/, Psychiatry, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Neurological Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Nursing
University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing
The University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing is the nursing school of the University of Pittsburgh, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded on April 6, 1939, Pitt's School of Nursing was officially separated from the School of Medicine and became an independent, professional school within...
, Center for Sports Medicine, Neurology, Center for Emergency Medicine of Western Pennsylvania, Otolaryngology, and several departments of Pitt's Swanson School of Engineering
Swanson School of Engineering
The Swanson School of Engineering is the engineering school of the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1846, The Swanson School of Engineering is the second or third oldest in the United States.- History :...
. Collaborations also exist with schools and programs of Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
including engineering, computer science, design, psychology and robotics. SHRS also has a joint project with the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
and the University of Louisville
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
.
SHRS is developing resources for computational modeling for clinical research. It is working with specialist in regenerative medicine to merge rehabilitation and regeneration to create a new research paradigm for ‘regenerative rehabilitation.’ Similarly, the SHRS RST department cooperates with Medical Robotics of CMU on a project in Quality of Life Technology for self-determination for older and disabled adults.
Clinical collaborations include several programs of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is an $9 billion integrated global nonprofit health enterprise that has 54,000 employees, 20 hospitals, 4,200 licensed beds, 400 outpatient sites and doctors’ offices, a 1.5 million-member health insurance division, as well as commercial and...
(e.g., Center for Assistive Technology, Institute for Rehabilitation and Research, Centers for Rehabilitation Services, Center for Sports Medicine, Comprehensive Spine Center, Facial Nerve Center).
See also
- University of Pittsburgh Medical CenterUniversity of Pittsburgh Medical CenterThe University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is an $9 billion integrated global nonprofit health enterprise that has 54,000 employees, 20 hospitals, 4,200 licensed beds, 400 outpatient sites and doctors’ offices, a 1.5 million-member health insurance division, as well as commercial and...
- University of Pittsburgh School of MedicineUniversity of Pittsburgh School of MedicineThe University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is a medical school located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. The School of Medicine is also known as Pitt Med, and is ranked as a “top medical school” by U.S. News & World Report in the publication's categories of research and primary care...