Cheri Teranishi-Hashimoto embarked on her professional journey at Purdue University, where she earned both a Bachelor of Arts in exercise and fitness and a Bachelor of Arts in movement and sports science in 1997. Remaining at Purdue to complete a Master of Science in exercise physiology in 2000, she went on to join Des Moines University, concluding her studies with a Master of Science in physical therapy in 2002 and a Doctor of Physical Therapy in 2003. During this time, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto began her career as a staff physical therapist with the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific, also known as REHAB, in Honolulu from 2002 to 2003 before becoming a physical therapist with Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii from 2003 until 2010.
In 2010, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto returned to REHAB as the program director for women’s health and cancer rehabilitation, a position she held until 2015. She subsequently held the role of assistant manager of REHAB at Nu’uanu from 2015 until 2019, when she became the therapy director for REHAB. As therapy director, she is responsible for patient care and a variety of administrative responsibilities for the inpatient unit and the outpatient clinics. Over the course of her career, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto has continued to cultivate her expertise in physical therapy and rehabilitation through a range of additional certifications from the American Physical Therapy Association, the University of Northern Colorado Cancer Rehabilitation Institute, the Lymphology Association of North America, and more.
Alongside her primary responsibilities, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto has served as a member of the advisory board for the College of Health and Society at Hawaii Pacific University since 2021. She has also donated her time to FUNfitness, Special Olympics Hawaii, Run for Care Hawaii and a local Parkinson’s symposium. In an effort to remain up to date with new developments in her field, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto maintains professional affiliation with the Hawaii chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association, the Southwest region chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine, the Hawaii Society of Clinical Oncology and the Association of Community Cancer Centers.
Having accomplished much over the course of her career, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto attributes much of her success to her passion for providing quality care to her patients. She loves what she does and considers her greatest achievement to be establishing the first cancer rehabilitation program in the state of Hawaii. As she looks toward the future, she hopes to bring that program, which she originated on the island of Oahu, to the rest of Hawaii’s islands as well as to other islands in the Pacific Rim region. For her excellence, Dr. Teranishi-Hashimoto was named a Hawaii Healthcare Hero by the Healthcare Association of Hawaii in 2017.