Touro's Lander College of Arts & Sciences
School of Health Sciences of Touro University, Physical Therapy Program
For Yehuda Daniel, the decision to become a physical therapist was shaped by two childhood experiences. “The first is simple,” he shares. “My father is a dentist, and I always admired his tremendous empathy and careful care of his patients.” The second was seeing his grandmother slip and fall down the stairs. Even at such a young age he remembers feeling tremendous empathy and knew that he wanted to help people in a career in healthcare.
After serving in the Israeli army, Yehuda chose Touro University’s Lander College of Arts and Sciences (LAS) for his undergraduate studies – in large part because of the flexibility. “I was looking for a program that would accommodate my work,” he says. “I started my schooling as a married man and graduated with three kids! Touro was always supportive of my schedule and worked with me to accommodate my other commitments. I never felt I had to give up a supportive environment along with rigorous studies.”
Yehuda also credits the undergrad science program at LAS for setting him up for success. “We had terrific professors who made hard material interesting and offered memory techniques so that when I started grad school for physical therapy (PT) I was prepared and even felt ahead in certain areas,” he says.
Now, Yehuda works as a physical therapist, operating a clinic that specializes in orthopedics with Dr. Artem Kovyazin, his business partner and fellow Touro alumni. The two hit it off in school and agreed that if they ever opened a practice, they’d do it together. “We are now the owners of two physical therapy practices, and business is thank G-d, flourishing,” Yehuda exclaims.
At the clinic, he and Kovyazin work with a diverse range of clients, creating personalized programs that focus on their patients’ individual needs and providing an environment where patients can feed off each other’s energy and boost each other through the process. “Successful therapy has to be done in an enjoyable environment!”
Looking back, Yehuda is thankful to Touro for helping him to build such a satisfying career. “Touro gave me knowledge, guidance, and confidence to treat patients. The affiliations put me in a place to succeed, and the friendships I built have lasted beyond the classroom and given me a group of like minded professionals from which to seek advice and support.”
Best of all, he’s doing exactly what he set out to do when he decided to work in healthcare. “I love that I can make a direct impact on people’s health and well being,” he exclaims. “I love being able to change people for the better!”