Thomas Meehan

Thomas.Meehan@jwu.edu

Biography and Expertise

Thomas Meehan, Ph.D., PA-C is a native New Englander, although he grew up in Atlanta. He earned an undergraduate degree and subsequent doctoral degree in Biochemistry from the University of Georgia. He was a Post Doctoral Fellow at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston studying the genetic basis for obesity and infertility. During this time, he decided that his passion was in clinical care. Tom went on to attend the Baylor College of Medicine Physician Assistant program graduating in 2008. He practiced clinically as a physician assistant in orthopedic surgery and emergency medicine.

In 2013, Tom became an inaugural member of the faculty of the JWU Center for Physician Assistant Studies. Although his teaching responsibilities ranged from the basic sciences to clinical medicine, his goal is to include real world clinical examples during each lecture. During the basic science portion, it is important for the students to see the application of the base material as opposed to learning for learning sake.

The next challenge in his career was to be the founding program director for a PA program in Indiana. He successfully developed the program from the ground up through accreditation and graduation of the first PA cohort.

Now, Tom has returned to JWU as the program director for the Center for Physician Assistant studies with the goal of bringing the program through accreditation and innovating the program to produce the most qualified PA graduates. Tom is passionate about diversity in healthcare and believes in student-centered education where the needs of the individual student are considered.

When not at work, Tom enjoys watching his two boys play tennis. He and his wife are avid runners and budding triathletes. The entire family follows a whole-food plant-based vegan diet for overall health and wellness.

Education

MS
Baylor College of Medicine

PhD
University of Georgia

BS
University of Georgia