Featured News
Every day College of Health Professions students, alumni, faculty and staff do extraordinary things. Read more about our latest achievements below.
Summer program offers glimpse into public health and laboratory science careers
The Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University’s College of Health Professions, recently held a Public Health Summer Program to provide students with the opportunity to learn more about public health and medical laboratory sciences.
Tanya Smith on being interim chief anesthetist at VCU, new workforce challenges, and how CHP still holds a place in her heart
One of the newer leaders within the Virginia Commonwealth University Health System is Tanya Smith, CRNA, DNAP, who was named interim chief nurse anesthesiologist in October 2025. Having attended the College of Health Professions in the early 2000s, Smith has worked for VCU Health for decades and draws on her experience to guide the department into the future.
VCU convenes leading health care management scholars to advance research that improves health care organizations
Virginia Commonwealth University's College of Health Professions recently welcomed leading health care management scholars from across the country for the annual conference of the Organization Theory in Health Care Association (OTHC), a national organization dedicated to advancing research on how health care organizations can improve quality, workforce well-being, patient care, and organizational performance.
Inaugural Transforming Chaplaincy members look back on 10 years of the organization and its future
The field of chaplaincy is becoming increasingly research-focused, and one catalyst has been Transforming Chaplaincy (TC), a program designed to promote evidence-based spiritual care and blend research with professional practice. Established at Rush University in Chicago a decade ago, TC has several faculty members of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Patient Counseling who have led and championed initiatives within TC.
VCU helps build a new model for mental health care in Ethiopia
Faculty from VCU’s Department of Rehabilitation Counseling are helping Bahir Dar University in Ethiopia launch a new master ’s-level clinical psychology program focused on trauma-informed, community-based mental health care. In addition to expanding access to critical services in an underserved region, the partnership creates opportunities for VCU faculty and students through international collaboration, research and cultural exchange.
Writing, trauma and trust
The Mighty Pen Project has shown that writing can help veterans and military families heal. Now, VCU researchers are working to understand why. A team of graduate students is helping document the teaching techniques, group dynamics and storytelling practices that make the program effective, laying the groundwork for a therapeutic model that could bring its benefits to many more people.
She shines the light – and leads the way – on the national challenge of gambling addiction
As director of the Virginia Partnership for Gaming and Health, VCU researcher Carolyn Hawley has helped create a pioneering statewide treatment network. (VCU Health News)
Changing the odds
Traditional forms of gambling have always posed risks, but the rise of online gambling has supercharged the speed and scale of harm.
VCU takes third place in 2025 Marquette Challenge
VCU’s Department of Physical Therapy delivered another standout performance in the 2025 Marquette Challenge, placing third nationally among participating programs. Led by student organizers and supported by faculty and alumni, PT students raised critical funds for the Foundation for Physical Therapy Research, the only national nonprofit solely dedicated to advancing physical therapy research.
Two CHP students selected to present research at a major conference for nurse anesthetists
Two doctoral students in the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions have been selected to present their research at the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiologists’ (AANA) 2026 annual congress in Boston.
Contact Malorie Burkett at mgburkett@vcu.edu or (804) 828-7247.