Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMUoHP) is a private, for-profit university focused on
graduate healthcare education and located in
Provo, Utah. It was established in 1998 and is accredited by the
Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities.
History
Rocky Mountain University of Physical Therapy was established in 1998 by Dr. Richard P. Nielsen and Dr. Michael Skurja Jr. as an exclusive
post-professional graduate healthcare institution. Nielsen and Skurja, both
board-certified
Board certification is the process by which a physician or other professional demonstrates a mastery of advanced knowledge and skills through written, practical, or simulator-based testing.
Certification bodies
There are more than 25 boards that ...
electrophysiologists
Electrophysiology (from Greek , ''ēlektron'', "amber" etymology of "electron"">Electron#Etymology">etymology of "electron" , ''physis'', "nature, origin"; and , ''-logia'') is the branch of physiology that studies the electrical properties of bi ...
, had co-founded the Institute for
Clinical Electrophysiology in 1993, and had been involved in developing continuing education courses for several years. They dreamed of combining all of the curricula they had developed into a Doctor of Electrophysiology program, but the Institute wasn't authorized to award degrees, only certificates. Nielsen and Skurja began the process of obtaining authorization from the
Utah State Board of Regents, and on June 8, 1998, The Institute for Clinical Electrophysiology officially became Rocky Mountain University of Physical Therapy and began offering a
Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program with seven specialty concentrations, including
cardiopulmonology,
,
geriatrics
Geriatrics, or geriatric medicine, is a medical specialty focused on providing care for the unique health needs of older adults. The term ''geriatrics'' originates from the Greek γέρων ''geron'' meaning "old man", and ιατρός ''iatros ...
,
neurology
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal ...
,
orthopedics
Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...
,
sports
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...
, and
pediatrics.
The following year, in 1999, instruction officially began with ten faculty, six employees, and eight students in the first class. Ninety students enrolled in the first year. In December 2000, Rocky Mountain University of Physical Therapy was registered as a developing institution with the
Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities for regional accreditation. That same year, RMUoHP began offering its
Master of Science in Physical Therapy program and the university's name was changed to Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMUoHP).
By 2003 RMUoHP had added the first post-professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program in the country. The university gained regional accreditation candidacy status in November 2005 and added a
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program the following year. RMUoHP also expanded its OTD program to include specialty tracks, and began offering a Doctor of Science in Health Sciences program in 2007.
In May 2010 RMUoHP began offering a residency entry-level Doctor of Physical Therapy program, and became the first proprietary graduate institution in the NW region to gain accreditation by the
Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities .
In 2014 RMUoHP began offering the first limited-residency model Doctor of Clinical Science in Speech-Language Pathology program. By the next year RMUoHP had also added its entry-level Master of Physician Assistant Studies, and in 2016 its entry-level Post-Bachelor's Doctor of Nursing Practice (FNP) program, as well as a Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology program with a medical emphasis in 2017. RMUoHP is one of the pioneer institutions for Speech-Language Pathology with a medical emphasis.
RMUoHP now awards 10 master's and doctoral degrees and four graduate certificates and fellowships. RMUoHP has 2,021 alumni. In 2018, Wasatch Educational Group, the parent company of Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions, announced plans to break ground on a medical school, which will open in 2021.
Campus
Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions is located in
Provo, Utah, in the East Bay Technology Park. RMUoHP's campus is 85,000 square feet, and sits at an elevation of 4,551 feet (1387 m).
In October 2018, the acquisition of of land previously belonging to a Provo golf course was announced. The land, along with an additional of property, will be the location for a new medical school campus. The school is to be named the
Noorda College of Osteopathic Medicine
The Noorda College of Osteopathic Medicine is a private, for-profit medical school for osteopathic medicine located in the city of Provo in the U.S. state of Utah. It is the third medical school in the state, and the second school of osteopat ...
.
Housing
All student housing is off-campus and generally includes apartments and houses for residential students and hotels for non-residential students. RMUoHP does not own, operate, or maintain housing facilities for students.
Academics
RMUoHP awards 10 graduate and doctoral degrees and 4 certificates and fellowships, including:
Master’s programs
* Master of Science in Health Science (MSHS)
* Master of Physician Assistant Studies (MPAS)
* Master of Science in Medical Speech-Language Pathology (MS MedSLP)
Doctoral programs
* Doctor of Medical Sciences (DMSc) for
physician assistants
A physician assistant or physician associate (PA) is a type of mid-level health care provider. In North America PAs may diagnose illnesses, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and may serve as a principal healthcare prov ...
* Doctor of Science in Health Science (DSc)
* Doctor of Philosophy in Health Sciences with 9 concentration tracks (PhD)
* Post-Master's Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
* Post-Bachelor's Doctor of Nursing Practice Family Nurse Practitioner (DNP/FNP)
* Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)
* Doctor of Optometry (OD)
* Post-Professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD)
* Doctor of Clinical Science in Speech-Language Pathology (ClinScD SLP)
* Transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy in Pediatric Science (tDPT)
Certificate programs
* Post-Master's Family Nurse Practitioner Certificate (FNP Cert)
* Post-Master's Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate Program (PMHNP)
* Learning Design in Healthcare Education Graduate Certificate (LDHE)
* Seattle Children's Neonatology Fellowship
RMUoHP's 2018 total enrollment was 775.
Approximately 61 percent of the student body comes from the
Western United States
The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the We ...
, with the remaining 39 percent coming from the remaining states or out of the country. Since its inception, RMUoHP has awarded 2058 degrees and certificates, and has 2021 alumni.
Research
The RMUoHP Foundation provides funding and support for student and faculty research in the field of
health science. In 2018, RMUoHP launched and funded $19,960 worth of internal grants to faculty engaged in a wide range of research. Since the university's inception, there have been over 800 peer-reviewed student and faculty articles in 260 publications.
Current faculty and student research efforts include projects related to clinical development, education, and clinical interventions. RMUoHP faculty are engaged in research designed to enhance cultural competency and examining the prevalence of
evidence-based practice
Evidence-based practice (EBP) is the idea that occupational practices ought to be based on scientific evidence. While seemingly obviously desirable, the proposal has been controversial, with some arguing that results may not specialize to indiv ...
among recent alumni from RMUoHP. Other faculty are seeking to enhance clinical placement by examining the motivations of clinical educations. The university is engaged in interprofessional education whereby students from different disciplines collaborate to treat cases, and faculty are evaluating the effectiveness of this novel intervention.
Office of Research and Sponsored Projects
In August 2017, RMUoHP established the Office of Research and Sponsored Projects (ORSP).
ORSP's purpose is to remove barriers for faculty and students to conduct innovative research that will enhance knowledge and provide evidence for better clinical practice.
References
External links
Official website
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Private universities and colleges in Utah
Educational institutions established in 1998
Universities and colleges in Utah County, Utah
Universities and colleges accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
Provo, Utah
1998 establishments in Utah
For-profit universities and colleges in the United States