The School of Health Sciences of Touro College

Since 1972, when Touro’s School of Health Sciences (SHS) pioneered the training of physician assistants, SHS has grown into a healthcare powerhouse, educating clinicians in eight different areas of the health sciences—from physical therapy (PT) to occupational therapy (OT), physician assistant studies (PA), nurses, mental health, behavioral science and more. As current events have shown, there is a pressing need for talented healthcare professionals and SHS is helping fill this void, preparing the next generation of healthcare leaders.

SHS’s newest program is the Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) in Clinical Psychology with a health emphasis, designed to prepare students to work as psychologists in traditional mental health settings, in private practice, as well as in an increasingly integrated healthcare system with medical patients, and in collaboration with a variety of healthcare providers.

HANDS-ON TRAINING PREPARES STUDENTS FOR ROBUST JOB MARKET

Faculty members are still active in their respective fields and are committed to ensuring students are set up for success. They provide students with intensive interaction and hands-on training, so they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they’ll need on the job. In addition, SHS partners with over 300 healthcare facilities throughout the New York area where students complete fieldwork and clinical rotations, putting their learning to practice under the guidance of seasoned specialists.

SHS is proud of our 100 percent pass rates on professional licensing exams in various programs, including speech therapy and physician assistant. Our graduates experience high demand for their services in the job market, finding employment within six months of passing their licensing and certification exams. Career opportunities are especially strong and financially rewarding and are expected to grow, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

INTERPROFESSIONAL EDUCATION = COLLABORATIVE HEALTHCARE

SHS’s robust and active Interprofessional Education Committee engages students and faculty in interprofessional learning opportunities and fosters collaboration between the various health professions with the various professions represented in the school, and in collaboration with the New York Touro healthcare programs including pharmacy, medicine, dentistry and social work.

In addition to our rigorous curriculum and clinical rotations, SHS students attend multi-disciplinary symposia and challenging roundtable seminars, where they are tasked with creating virtual patient care plans based on case studies, while experts in healthcare, law, social services and finance critique their findings.

“When members of the healthcare team work together, it leads to better patient outcomes with fewer preventable errors and reduced healthcare costs,” said Dr. Louis Primavera, dean of SHS. “Touro provides multiple opportunities for interprofessional education amongst our vast and varied health professions programs to ensure our graduates are ready to enter a collaborative workforce.”

Research is an integral part of the SHS experience. Our students are exposed to, and actively engage in, research to help them understand firsthand what it is to be part of a research team and even become independent researchers. Many of our faculty allow our students to work on smaller research projects so students learn how to critique and apply research to daily practices in the clinic.

David Ilan, PA

Organ Transplant, Mount Sinai Medical Center

For the past 18 years, David Ilan has held the demanding role of caring for the most vulnerable of patients. As a senior physician assistant, Ilan looks after patients who have just undergone a liver, kidney or intestinal transplant in the Recanati-Miller Transplant Department at Mount Sinai Medical Center.

“I receive the patients directly from the OR and from then on, they are my responsibility,” says Ilan, who lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. “I treat each and every person like they are my only patient.”

It’s no small responsibility. Patients must be monitored closely for everything from vital signs to changes in lab values to medications to the possibility of their bodies rejecting the newly transplanted organ. “I’m very grateful to Touro for pointing me in this direction,” says Ilan of his career choice. “We were given many rotation options and a strong clinical education. We were a close-knit group and we got to see all sorts of possibilities for a PA. Choosing Touro was very beneficial to me.”

Ilan still appreciates all the professors did and their willingness to impart real-life information to the students. He is also thankful for the school’s flexibility. He worked during the day and attended school at night and on weekends. “Among other things, they focused on helping us prepare for the licensing exams,” he says.

Ilan’s career continues to engage him: “I especially enjoy seeing people with significant illnesses get a new lease on life.”