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In a span of a week, three candidates up for a Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedicine successfully defended their dissertations in late March, and early April. The three received their degrees during the May 24 commencement ceremonies.:

• Robert Andersson, MSc, FAAO, clinical instructor in the International Optometry program. Andersson defended Justifying the Need for Mandated Comprehensive Eye Care in Nursing Homes. He performed prevalence and risk analysis assessments for age-related eye diseases and vision loss among nursing home residents in the state of Delaware. He compared the data collected to national statistics in order to justify the need for mandated comprehensive eye care in nursing homes.
• Richard Hom, OD. Dr. Hom presented Food insecurity and Vision Impairment Among Adults in the United States. He is the National Optometric director at Anthem, Inc. and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the California Optometric Association. Dr. Hom’s presentation focused on understanding the effect of Vision Impairment and Food Insecurity on disability so that it may improve rehabilitation outcomes.
• Lauren N. Sponseller OTD, MSOTR/L, MEd, Occupational Therapy (OT) Department chair and director of the University’s Master’s in OT program. She presented Exploring Occupational Therapy’s Role with Mothers who Breastfeed. Dr. Sponseller developed one of the first occupational therapy programs in an outpatient breastfeeding resource center. Her project focused on the outcomes of the program and supporting mothers who breastfeed.

Salus University’s PhD in Biomedicine program allows students to specialize in any area of health science such as Optometry, Audiology, Occupational Therapy, Physician Assistant Studies, Rehabilitation Sciences, and Biological Sciences.

This unique 84-credit program can be done completely online, allowing students to complete their PhD without having to uproot family in order to attend or to put their career aside; which is a welcomed option in this day and age.

There is also the option to complete the degree on campus, where research projects are arranged with established mentors in laboratories either at the University itself or other sites in the Philadelphia community.