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Background

Cristina Dumitrescu joined Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences in September 2024 as an assistant professor on a research tenure track for the Division of Occupational Therapy. She teaches in the entry-level and post-professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy programs.

Dumitrescu has 26 years of experience as an occupational therapy practitioner, primarily in sub-acute/management positions. She has worked in various clinical practice areas, including inpatient and outpatient adult and adolescent psychiatry inpatient hospital settings, home care, skilled nursing and outpatient rehabilitation. She was director of rehabilitation services at Throgs Neck Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, a skilled care facility in the Bronx, for over 17 years. Her expertise includes geriatric occupational therapy, reimbursement, program development, program evaluation, quality assurance/efficacy of treatment program evaluation, corporate compliance, and OT/PT/speech pathology services supervision.

She also has 15 years of experience teaching academia at the undergraduate and graduate levels and was the OTA program director at Mercy University for 7 years. Under Dumitrescu's leadership, the program's licensure pass rate dramatically improved. In addition, Mercy's OTA program received a 10-year (maximum) reaccreditation in 2019. A 10-year reaccreditation is atypical and reflects a tremendous amount of work, a high-quality curriculum and exceptional leadership. The accreditation team recognized Dumitrescu for her outstanding leadership and commitment to program excellence and student success.

Education

• EdD, health sciences with specialties in teaching and learning, University of St. Augustine, St. Augustine, Fla., 2022
• BS/MS, occupational therapy, Touro University, New York, N.Y., 2008
• AAS, occupational therapy assistant, Mercy University, N.Y., 1998

Research Interests

• Indicators of teaching and learning
• Program improvement and development
• Indicators of students' academic success
• Sources of stress in allied health students at all levels of education of students' success
  

Clinical Interests

• Health literacy
• Metacognition
• Adult clients with cognitive deficits
• Occupational therapy’s role in the primary care setting

Teaching Interests

• Administration and management
• Advanced leadership
• Teaching and learning theory and practice
  
• Interprofessional communications and collaborations
  
• PP-OTD coursework
  

Awards

• November 2004, NYSOTA Award for Significant Contributions to the Profession
• September 2008, Touro College Clinician Award for Outstanding Clinical Achievement in the Occupational Therapy Program
• June 2011, MOTEC Award for Active Service for the 2010-11 Academic Year
• April 2015, AOTA service commendations for Community of Leaders 2013-15 and Reviewer Middle Manager Program 2013-14
• April 2016, AOTA service commendations for Community of Leaders 2013-15 and Reviewer Middle Manager Program 2014-16
• June 2016, Touro College Alumni Reunion, Alumni Award for Professional Accomplishments
• November 2015, NYSOTA Merit Award for Significant Contributions to the Profession
• November 2015, NYSOTA Annual Conference, NYSOTA Historian Award

More Info

• Professional organizations: NYSOTA, AOTA and WFOT