SHRS Blog

Many people like to celebrate Pi Day musing about their favorite number and eating lots of pie, but the Pitt Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) residential students have started a new tradition: holding a fundraiser by throwing pies at their favorite faculty. ...

Assistant Professor Cara Lekovitch is intimately familiar with the impact of mentoring in the University of Pittsburgh Doctor of Clinical Science (CScD) in Occupational Therapy (OT) program. After twelve years of occupational therapy clinical practice with older adults, in 2019 Lekovitch made the leap back into the role as a student in the CScD in OT program where she leaned into her Pitt faculty mentors to help learn how to balance school, a full-time job, and her role as a wife and mother of three children. ...

They announce their arrival with flashing lights and screeching sirens. They assess the scene quickly and immediately go to work, providing both physical and emotional support under the worst possible conditions. Their mere presence often brings comfort, knowing that trained professionals are here to help. But where do emergency responders such as firefighters, law enforcement, 911 dispatchers and emergency medical services (EMS) providers turn when they experience the mental health impacts of trauma and other job stressors? The answer is complicated. A few seek peer support. Some deny they are in crisis. Many internalize their feelings, creating the potential for mental health problems to worsen. ...

After practicing clinically in family medicine for the past eleven years, PA Erin Jones (DPAS ‘23) recognized that to continue practicing medicine at the highest level and provide superior patient care, she needed to expand her knowledge, network and engage with others, gain leadership skills and become a mentor and an educator herself.  ...

Twice a semester, students in the University of Pittsburgh Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) Hybrid program come to Pittsburgh from across the country for six to nine days of intensive hands-on learning. The “immersion experience,” as it is known, is spent fine-tuning and perfecting what they’ve learned with their instructors online and practiced at home, as well as learning new skills that can only be introduced during the in-person sessions, all while forming lifelong bonds with their fellow students and future colleagues.  ...

My name is Sarah, and I am a 2012 graduate of the Clinical Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling program* at Pitt. I am currently a Disability Specialist in the Department of Disability Resources and Services at the University of Pittsburgh (I just couldn’t stay away!). Prior to my current position I spent 10 1/2 years with Main Line Rehab/NeuroRestorative. If it wasn’t for my time in the Rehab Counseling program, I would not have been prepared to take on my roles in these organizations.  

In celebration of National Women's Day, we'd like to recognize five incredible women at SHRS who have dedicated their careers to advancing health care through research and education. Let's take a closer look at their inspiring stories.

I found out about the Sports Medicine program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (SHRS) through personal research. I am originally from Maryland and wanted to go to a graduate school that wasn’t too far from home. Having my background in exercise science, I was interested in continuing my education further into similar realms of this field. I looked at many of the schools neighboring Maryland with programs ranging from Kinesiology, Clinical Exercise Science, Sports Science and even Health Education.  ...

Seniors graduating from the University of Pittsburgh Health Informatics (HI) undergraduate program are watching their careers take off! As of January 2023, 63% of Pitt HI seniors have already secured a job in health informatics after they graduate in April 2023—our best year yet! There is no understating that the job market is hot for health informatics students.

The decision to attend graduate school while working full-time is not as easy as it sounds. Many of us complete our undergraduate degree as full-time students, which I did in psychology at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg. Upon completion of an undergraduate degree, some continue directly to graduate school while others, such as myself, enter the workforce. ...

The Pitt School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (SHRS) offers two separate degree programs in nutrition that attract students with different career goals. Let’s dive in to learn more about their differences and find out which one is right for you!

Heather Snyder is a physician assistant at Franklin Community Medicine UPMC in Franklin, PA, which is located about one and a half hours north of Pittsburgh. She has been practicing in her rural community for nine years.  Here’s why she chose Pitt’s online, post-professional Doctor of PA Studies (DPAS) program in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (SHRS) and how it’s helping her reach her goals.