Physical Therapy students at Duke University have a long and illustrious history dating back to 1943 when Physical Therapy, a post-baccalaureate certificate program in the School of Medicine was started by Helen Kaiser.

 

This history was initiated by physical therapist education at Duke University within the School of Medicine awarding a post-baccalaureate certificate to students completing the course of study in physical therapy. At its inception, the educational program was physically and administratively housed with Duke University Hospital ’s clinical Department of Physical Therapy.

 

Throughout the history of the academic component and clinical component, Physical Therapy has been ably led by only five chairmen, four of whom have been Presidents of the American Physical Therapy Association:

 

In 1998, it was the vision and commitment of our faculty to transition the master’s degree to the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree. Through the diligence and dedication of the faculty, complemented by the strong support of the Chancellor of Health Affairs, the School of Medicine and the administration of The Graduate School, the Board of Trustees approved the DPT degree in December of 1998.

 

The standard for high quality professional education continues today with the recent initiation of the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree. The DPT Program replaced the Master of Science degree in the fall of 1999 and continues Duke’s history of raising the national and international standards for physical therapist education. The expanded substantive content of the curriculum will produce physical therapist leaders of the 21st century, prepared to function as primary clinical care practitioners in a challenging health care environment.

 

Since 1999, the University committed itself to admitting both full-time entry level doctoral students into the program and licensed physical therapists with master’s degree into the expedited "transitional DPT" program. In July 2001, the University acknowledged not only the quality of the DPT program but also the potential of our future contributions to the School of Medicine and recognized us as a Division of Physical Therapy within the Department of Community and Family Medicine.

 

When the Doctor of Physical Therapy degree was recognized by the Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy Education in 1999, Duke was only 1 of 5 programs in the country. Today, with Duke University serving as a prestigious leader and role model for others in the nation and our profession.