From the beginning of his career, Dr. Chuck’s practice has been guided by his belief that each child is unique and special. His passion for helping children thrive has helped countless children become well-rounded, healthy and thoughtful adults.
Keith Loud, MD, Dartmouth Health Children's Physician-in-ChiefCharles Cappetta, MD, FAAP, Dartmouth Health Children’s pediatrician and children’s health advocate, has been selected as the recipient of the 2022 Sandi Van Scoyoc Legacy Award by the New Hampshire Children’s Health Foundation. The foundation is a leading funder to improve the health and wellness of children in the state.
Cappetta, or simply “Dr. Chuck” to the countless patients and families, schoolchildren and others who have had the good fortune to encounter him, has been practicing pediatric and family medicine in Nashua, New Hampshire for more than 30 years. Cappetta was honored in a ceremony at Dartmouth Health’s regional administrative office in Bedford on Monday, June 6, where Gail Garceau, president of the New Hampshire Children’s Health Foundation, presented him with the award and a $2,500 check, which he donated to Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children New Hampshire (CASA NH).
Cappetta completed his pediatric residency at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon in 1993 and joined the pediatric practice at Hitchcock Clinic in Nashua, now Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinics Nashua, in 1993, where his practice has thrived since. He will celebrate his 33rd anniversary with Dartmouth Health on June 26.
“From the beginning of his career, Dr. Chuck’s practice has been guided by his belief that each child is unique and special. His passion for helping children thrive has helped countless children become well-rounded, healthy and thoughtful adults,” said Keith Loud, MD, Dartmouth Health Children's Physician-in-Chief, Chair Department of Pediatrics, and Board Vice Chair for the New Hampshire Children’s Health Foundation. “I was thrilled when my colleagues at the New Hampshire Children’s Health Foundation informed me that they had voted Dr. Chuck recipient of this year’s Sandy Van Scoyoc Legacy Award.”
Beyond his pediatric practice, Cappetta devotes his expertise, energy and personal time to the health and well-being of thousands of children through his participation and leadership in numerous professional and civic organizations, committees, councils and boards, and other advisory and hands-on roles locally, regionally and nationally.
“Dr. Cappetta is truly a champion for children’s health,” said Garceau. “His work, both professionally and as a volunteer, exemplifies the priorities of our foundation, from promoting the importance of children’s oral health through the full continuum of healthy eating and active living.”
Recognizing the importance of educating and supporting new fathers, Cappetta got his start in community outreach and education by beginning a support group for new dads in 1994. He developed the programming, and facilitated monthly drop-in meetings for new dads and their babies for the next 10 years.
He has served as School Physician for NH SAUs 41 and 42 for the past 28 years and he has visited schools throughout the region each Monday on his “day off” to teach students in Pre-K through grade 12 about living healthy lives.
In 1997, Cappetta founded Granite State FitKids and continues to devote time and energy to the program, including serving as chairman of its board of directors. Geared to fourth graders, the award-winning program teaches children about their bodies and how individual choices and actions affect us; promotes the 5 E’s — Excitement, Enthusiasm, Energy, Exercise and Education at home, in school and in the community; engages children and their families in regular physical activity and promotes lifelong respect for mind, body and spirit. The program also teaches students about older life health risks, such as heart disease, lung disease, cancer and drug and alcohol use.
When schools were remote during COVID-19, Cappetta created a virtual FitKids for those schools that wanted to continue offering the program to students.
Cappetta has also served in leadership roles at Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinics Nashua, with the New Hampshire Chapter of the American Association of Pediatrics, New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association, New Hampshire Governor’s Council on Physical Activity and Health, and he has served on the City of Nashua Board of Public Health for eight years. He currently serves as the pediatrician for youth ages 13-17 at the Sununu Youth Services Center in Manchester.
“Although he has received many, many accolades throughout his career, Dr. Chuck’s greatest achievement is the profound positive impact he has had on thousands of children and families throughout New Hampshire,” said Garceau. “It is with great appreciation and respect that the New Hampshire Children’s Health Foundation honors Dr. Chuck Cappetta with the Van Scoyoc Award for his tireless and far-reaching work with children and families,” she added.
The award ceremony, held at Dartmouth Health’s regional administrative office in Bedford, was attended by some of Cappetta’s Dartmouth Health colleagues, and his children, Andrew, Kate, Kelsey and Alyssa, who surprised their father by joining virtually.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire's only academic health system and the state's largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes its Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 51 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children’s, including the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, the state’s only children’s hospital and clinic locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene and New London, NH, and Windsor, VT, and Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.
About CHaD
As New Hampshire's only full-service, comprehensive children's hospital, the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth‐Hitchcock (CHaD) is committed to providing outstanding compassionate care for children and their families. Their physician expertise provides primary, specialty, and tertiary care to the children of New Hampshire, Vermont, and beyond. CHaD offers inpatient (hospital care) and outpatient (same day care) services at Dartmouth‐Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH. Outpatient and same-day surgery services are available at Dartmouth‐Hitchcock Manchester. Primary care is available at Dartmouth‐Hitchcock facilities in Bedford, Concord, Keene, Lebanon, Manchester, and Nashua, NH, and Bennington, VT. For more information about CHaD, please visit childrens.dartmouth-health.org or contact us at 603-650‐KIDS or chad.community.relations@hitchcock.org.