School of Health & Natural Sciences

Join us in-person at Mercy University’s Westchester campus for an evening of information and networking. Our staff and professors will be on-hand to answer your questions, and the facilities in our Health Professions Wing will be open to tour! RSVP Here

It is a pleasure to welcome you to the School of Health and Natural Sciences at Mercy University. The outstanding programs in the School provide students the opportunity to explore basic and applied sciences and health care careers. The faculty of the School is student-focused and dedicated to providing high-quality educational experiences that lead to rewarding careers in the health and natural science fields. 

Dr. Nannette Hyland
Interim Dean, School of Health and Natural Sciences

Occupational Therapy is the only profession that helps people across the lifespan to do the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of daily activities (occupations). Occupational therapy practitioners enable people of all ages to live life to its fullest by helping them promote health, and prevent—or live better with—injury, illness or disability.

The Mercy University Occupational Therapy Assistant program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at located at 7501 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 510E, Bethesda, MD 20814-6519. ACOTE's phone number c/o AOTA is (301) 652-AOTA. The web address is WWW.ACOTEONLINE.ORG

Occupational Therapy Assistants (COTA) work collaboratively with the Occupational Therapists (OTR) in providing high-quality, cost-effective services, promoting health and wellness by meeting society’s occupational needs (AOTA, 2012). 

This space includes a Clinical Skills and Assessment Lab, movement lab and home health labs, frequently used by students and faculty in our nursing occupational therapy, occupational therapy assistant, and physical therapy programs. 

The U.S. Department of Education awarded Mercy University federal funding to develop and implement a project called Advancing Curricular Change to Enhance Student Success, or ACCESS. The project will expand and enrich opportunities for students in high-demand health science careers by improving student outcomes in Anatomy and Physiology I, a gateway course, and increasing the number of available nursing training slots to meet the pressing need for nurses, particularly in the New York City metropolitan area. The project will improve teaching and learning on an institution-wide basis through the implementation of high-impact practices, advancement of faculty development, and robust student engagement in the college experience.