Dudgeon named chair of occupational therapy

A nationally known researcher on disability and rehabilitation will chair the Department of Occupational Therapy.

Brian_DudgeonBrian J. Dudgeon, Ph.D., has been named chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy in the UAB School of Health Professions. His appointment begins Oct. 1, 2012.

Dudgeon, a nationally known researcher on disability and rehabilitation, is an associate professor in the Division of Occupational Therapy at the University of Washington. He also served in several clinical settings as manager of occupational therapy at Seattle Children’s Hospital and as a staff occupational therapist at the Veteran’s Administration Medical Center.

“We are extremely pleased that Brian Dudgeon is joining the school in this role,” said Harold Jones, Ph.D., dean of the school. “His accomplishments as a faculty member at the University of Washington and his long history of national, state and community advocacy on issues related to disability will complement our outstanding occupational therapy program.”

“I hope to learn from and effectively guide the department in preparing effective practitioners and researchers who can address needs in the local community and region,” said Dudgeon, “Partnerships within the community will continue to be important to our success as a program.”

Dudgeon is a NIH- and CDC-funded therapist whose research has focused on spinal cord injuries and spina bifida. He has assisted on numerous national committees, including the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research, American Occupational Therapy Association Task Force on Human Genome Project and the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Research Dissemination Committee. He served on the editorial boards for the American Journal of Occupational Therapy and Occupational Therapy Journal of Research, and he is an active member and speaker for the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Dudgeon received his undergraduate degree in occupational therapy, master’s degree in rehabilitation medicine and doctoral degree in education from the University of Washington. He was named a Fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association in 2003.