Dr. Bob Rowe is the associate dean for clinical affairs for the MUSC College of Health Professions and the chief of MUSC Health Therapeutic and Rehabilitative Services Integrated Center for Clinical Excellence (ICCE).
Dr. Rowe is the founder of the Brooks Institute of Higher Learning (Brooks IHL) within the Brooks Health System, located in Jacksonville, FL, and has served in multiple leadership roles at Brooks IHL over the past 18 years, including executive director of Brooks IHL. One of the primary achievements in this role was the implementation of 10 residency and fellowship programs, which, over the 18-year period, served as an example of best practice in residency/fellowship programs, and also assisted in the development of multiple residency/fellowship programs around the country.
Dr. Rowe received his Doctor of Physical Therapy at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center (LSUHSC) in 1985 and completed his Master of Health Science in Physical Therapy in 1994 at LSUHSC. He completed an Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapy Fellowship through the Ola Grimsby Institute (OGI) in 1999 and subsequently earned his Doctor of Manual Therapy degree through OGI in 2001. In May 2007, Dr. Rowe completed his t-DPT through MGH IHP. Dr. Rowe was recognized as a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists (AAOMPT) in 2001.
Dr. Rowe is a nationally recognized speaker in the areas of musculoskeletal patient management, professional advocacy, residency/fellowship value and development, and professional issues/leadership. He served as the president of the AAOMPT for six years (2009-2014). Dr. Rowe served on the APTA Board of Directors as a director from 2015 to 2021 and began a three-year term as president of the Academy of Orthopaedic Physical Therapy in 2022.
Previously, Dr. Rowe served a four-year term on the APTA American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education (ABPTRFE) that began in July 2008 and continued to serve as a site reviewer for the Accreditation Services Committee, a subcomponent of the ABPTRFE, until June 2015. He served as chair of the Orthopaedic Section's Practice Committee from 2004 to 2010. He has served for 22 consecutive years as a delegate to the APTA House of Delegates for the Louisiana Chapter (2001-2004), the Orthopaedic Section (2004-2010), the Florida Chapter (2010-2015), the APTA Board (2015-2021), and AOPT (2022-2023). Dr. Rowe served on the APTA Manipulation Task Force from 2001 to 2015 and served on the APTA POPTS Task Force from 2004 to 2007. In 2009, Dr. Rowe completed five years of service as an appointed member to the APTA Advisory Panel on Practice and served as chair for the final year. Before serving as president of AAOMPT, he served as co-chair of the Standards Committee (2002-2006) and as vice president for a term (2006-2009). Dr. Rowe has served on the LPTA Board as vice president (2004-2006) and on the FPTA Board as Regional Director (2007-2010) and Speaker of the FPTA Assembly (2010-2014). He began service as a member of the APTA Awards Sub-committee for selection of the McMillan and Maley Lecture awards in 2013 and completed that service in 2015.
In 2023, Dr. Rowe was recognized by APTA with the distinguished honor of being a Catherine Worthingham Fellow of the APTA. Dr. Rowe is a recipient of the APTA Lucy Blair Distinguished Service Award (2011 - American Physical Therapy Association award); the Dave Warner Distinguished Service Award (2006 - Louisiana Physical Therapy Association); the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Award for Excellence in Research, Education, Patient Care, and Community Outreach (2004 - LSUHSC); the Arcadia University Charles Magistro Award (2017 – Arcadia University); and the AAOMPT John Mennell Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Rowe was recognized as a Distinguished Fellow of the National Academy of Practice (FNAP) in March 2024.