Judy Tarr, CVMC President and CEO is pleased to welcome Dr. Chapman to the CVMC hospitalist team. “Dr. Chapman’s experience as a minister, prior to studying medicine, makes him uniquely qualified to treat patients in a hospital setting,” stated Tarr.
Dr. Chapman received his BA in English from Oberlin College, earning his Doctor of Ministry ten years later from Columbia Theological Seminary. From 1982 to 2003 he worked as a Presbyterian Minister, pastoring local congregations, primarily in the Orlando area.
Watching over his mom before she died Reverend Chapman was disappointed in the medical care she received and was very frustrated. He realized that a way to work through his grief was by doing something positive and embarked on a mid-career change. After taking science prep courses at the University of Central Florida, he then matriculated at the University of Florida College Of Medicine where he earned his MD. He recently completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington.
While in medical school Dr. Chapman won a number of awards. He was honored with the Student Hippocratic Award, chosen by the class of 2007 as “the class member who best exemplifies the ideals of honesty, integrity, and unselfish devotion to patient care.” In 2006 he was presented with the Mark W. Herrbold Memorial Award for “extraordinary determination and perseverance in…pursuit of a medical education.” In 2005 he received the Equal Access Clinic Service Award given to the medical student who contributed the most to the volunteer student-run free clinic for that year.
Dr. Chapman was raised in Malone, New York, and wanted to live in the north country, getting back to the land he has a spiritual connection to. Dr. Chapman and his wife Susan, a CPA who works for the Chittenden Solid Waste District, live in South Burlington.