Oncology Rehabilitation Scholarship Fund

Dr. Deb Doherty dedicated her career to advocating for and improving oncology rehabilitation. One of the ways she is continuing to do so is through the Doherty Oncology Rehabilitation Scholarship Fund. Dr. Doherty and The School of Health Sciences are seeking to fund this endowment in order to provide financial assistance to two Doctor of Physical Therapy students each year who are interested in specializing in oncology rehabilitation. 

As one of the newest specialty areas in the physical therapy profession, oncology rehabilitation is experiencing tremendous growth due to the immense need for this specific type of care. Out of the 18.1 million cancer survivors, 60-90% need rehabilitation to counteract the adverse effects of treatment; however, only 5-10% of survivors receive this rehabilitation. “We, as physical therapists, are the most appropriate and qualified healthcare professionals to provide this care,” says Dr. Doherty, “so we need to encourage it.”

Michigan is a leader in oncology rehabilitation, and education in this area is evolving. While all physical therapy programs are different, at Oakland University oncology rehabilitation is interspersed throughout the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program to provide all students with a foundational understanding of this area. To help further education, Oakland offers the unique, fully online Graduate Certificate in Oncology Rehabilitation. “Once you graduate,” explains Dr. Doherty, “it is really helpful to continue in practice because you can’t learn everything at the entry level.” Additionally, OU’s partner, Corewell Health Beaumont Troy Hospital is the first in the nation to have an oncology rehabilitation residency program, allowing licensed physical therapists to work for one year in this specific area to gain expertise and return to their previous practice or transition to a new position. Nationally, through the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) , physical therapists are now able to take an exam to become certified as an Oncology Rehabilitation Specialist. Michigan was also the first state to create an Oncology Rehabilitation Special Interest Group through the APTA- Michigan chapter for clinicians and students who wish to be involved with this population in their practices.

Throughout her career, Dr. Doherty brought oncology rehabilitation to OU’s Physical Therapy program and co-developed the graduate certificate, maintained involvement in this field at the state and national levels, co-edited the cutting edge textbook “Oncology Rehabilitation: A Comprehensive Guidebook for Clinicians” and treated patients diagnosed with cancer at her own Center for Survivorship. “It’s a very rewarding field,” Dr. Doherty says. “There’s such a great need to help people return to as close to normal - what we call their new normal - as possible and improve their quality of life so they can get back to their highest level of function as possible.”

Please consider helping this impactful fund reach its level of endowment so it can provide support to students. 

Give to the Doherty Oncology Rehab Endowed Scholarship fund.

If you would like to mail in a check, please remit it to Oakland University and in your memo write Fund DORPT-OU. Mail your tax-deductible gift to the following address:

Oakland University
Gift Accounting for Fund DORPT-OU
Moceri House
3151 University Dr.
Auburn Hills, MI 48326 

If you have any questions about making your gift via payroll deduction, please contact Sarah Brown, Director of Philanthropy for the School of Health Sciences, at [email protected].