Old Department of Health Sciencesconsisting of courses in kinesiology, speech therapy, nutrition and occupational therapy, was offered under the name of the College of Health Sciences, thus becoming the fifth school in the college. University of California School of Medicineafter more than 13 years of history.
“This new school embodies our vocation to provide training with a multidisciplinary approach and represents our commitment to society,” said Ignacio Sánchez, rector of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.
During the event, the Dean of the UCLA School of Medicine, Felipe Heuser, highlighted the importance of the School of Health Sciences in training professionals committed to communities, in addition to explaining the transformation process: “Health Sciences Salud was formalized as a new school of the College and University, following the approval of the new statute of the College by the esteemed Supreme Council on April 19 of this year.
“This new school embodies our vocation to provide training with a multidisciplinary approach and represents our commitment to society” – University President Ignacio Sánchez
History with multiple disciplines
The School of Health Sciences began as the Associated Teaching Unit for Health Sciences, affiliated with the UCLA School of Medicine and hosting kinesiology and nutrition courses in 2011, and later in 2012, adding a speech therapy course, along with a speech therapy course, with the start of construction of the new Health Sciences building on the San Joaquin campus and the appointment of Patricia Garcia as the unit’s first director.
Once the building was inaugurated in 2013, the inauguration ceremonies began in 2014, to make way for the first generation of students who graduated in 2017. In the same year, the teaching unit became the Department of Health Sciences under the direction of Dr. Arnoldo Riquelme, who in 2021 integrated the profession of occupational therapy into its academic offerings.
In 2024, after the construction of 12 simulation rooms, the Health Sciences Building will build a new floor for occupational therapy, which will contain a multi-purpose room, resource laboratories in information and communication technology, and design and prototyping for additive manufacturing and rehabilitation technologies.
Thanks to the four-disciplinary composition, academics, students and teachers at the school have the opportunity to work collaboratively with various activities related to the environment, among them health operations, the creation of orthopedic devices, speech therapy assessments, activities for the elderly and nutritional education.
New challenges
The school currently has a total of 1,510 students and 110 academics from various disciplines, in addition to a total of 1,258 graduate specialists. That is why they strive every day to create opportunities for improvement, focusing on the implementation of new specialties with a focus on oncology, rehabilitation, sports and movement.
As a whole, in 2024, after the creation of 12 simulation rooms, the Health Sciences Building is building a new floor for occupational therapy, which will contain a multi-purpose room, ICT resource laboratories, and design and prototypes for additive manufacturing and rehabilitation technologies.
In addition, the school will seek to continue its growth in internationalization, creating new continuing education programs and constantly updating the content of its departments, said the director of Kinesiology, Javier Fuentes, who was also presented as the new director of the Faculty of Health Sciences and will assume this important responsibility from September 1.
“Creator. Devoted pop culture specialist. Certified web fanatic. Unapologetic coffee lover.”