Rosa Elena Torres-Panchame

Dr. Rosa Elena Torres-Panchame, PT, DPT is the Assistant Program Director and Director of Clinical Education for the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at St. John’s University.  She earned both her Bachelor and Master of Science as well as her Doctorate in Physical Therapy at Long Island University, Brooklyn.  She is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Nova Southeastern University and is in the dissertation phase of her degree completion. She is board certified as a clinical specialist in orthopedic physical therapy.  Dr. Torres-Panchame has completed workshops domestically and internationally, culminating in a certificate in Essential Skills in Medical Education from the Association of Medical Education in Europe, through the International Association of Medical Science Educators. She has served in professional leadership roles such as Vice-Chair of the Greater New York District of the New York Physical Therapy Association (NYPTA), a founding member of the NYPTA’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, and Nominating Committee member within the NY NJ Physical Therapy Clinical Education Consortium.  Professional volunteer experience includes a prior appointment as Board Member and volunteer within a non-profit organization providing physical therapy and health-related services for the homeless and previously incarcerated.   

Prior to coming to St. John’s, Dr. Torres-Panchame had 15 years of cumulative experience across administration, academia, and clinical environments. She held administrative and faculty appointments at Long Island University as the Director of Physical Therapy Admissions, Faculty, and Director of Clinical Education. She was also the Clinical Director and a staff physical therapist for their on-campus clinic, which served the academic, athletic, and neighboring community.  Clinical practice areas involve post-surgical, repetitive stress, sports-related, chronic, and acute orthopedic injuries and dysfunctions. While her clinical expertise is concentrated in musculoskeletal rehabilitation, she has diverse experience in neurological and general medical-based dysfunctions, having worked at NYU Medical Center/ RUSK and across private practice settings. She attends courses focused on manual, functional-based, and pragmatic physical therapy approaches to patient management in addition to educational workshops that focus on pedagogy, student learning, and clinical reasoning in physical therapy, which support her teaching and research interests. 

Overall, Dr. Torres-Panchame strives to provide safe learning spaces and values culturally knowing her students and patients to best support experiences that optimize their educational and health-related goals, respectively.