Benjamin Smallheer

Benjamin Smallheer, PhD, ACNP-BC, FNP-BC, CCRN, CNE, FAANP joined DUSON’s faculty in 2016. He served as the Director of the Adult Gerontology Nurse Practitioner-Acute Care major within the MSN program from 2016-2023. He then served as the Assistant Dean of the Master of Science in Nursing program from 2023-2026.

Smallheer earned his BSN at Florida State University in 1998, and his MSN in 2004 and PhD in 2011, both from Vanderbilt University. He has also completed a post-master’s certificate in Family Practice from Tennessee State University in 2016.

Smallheer came to Duke from Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, where he had been a faculty member since 2006 and an Assistant Professor since 2011. At Vanderbilt, he worked with both pre-licensure and Adult‐Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner students. He was also engaged in faculty mentoring in both the clinical and academic environments, receiving recognition for his work incorporating innovative teaching methods and the use of technology in the learning environment.

As Nurse Practitioner, Dr. Smallheer has practiced in a variety of clinical settings, including the Emergency Department, high acuity Medical-Surgical Intensive Care, Long Term Acute Care, and has been the lead responder on a Nurse Practitioner based Rapid Response and Code Team. He currently practices as an Acute Care Clinician in the Critical Care Unit at both Duke Raleigh Hospital and Duke Regional Hospital, within the Critical Care Medicine teams.