Physician
Campbell University School of Osteopathic Medicine
Apex, North Carolina
Dr. Cappola Biography
James J. Cappola, III,M.D, FACP, is Chair and Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and joined
Campbell University in 2018. He completed his undergraduate degree at Duke University. He
completed medical school at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in
1994. He completed the University of Rochester Primary Care Internal Medicine Residency in
1997. He is board-certified in internal medicine. He was elected as a Fellow of the American
College of Physicians in 2016.
Dr. Cappola began his career with the Wake Med internal medicine faculty in 1997 and practiced
primary care and hospital medicine at the Wake Med Raleigh Campus through 2004. He then
joined the Wake Med Cary Hospital Medicine Department and practiced from 2004 through
2018.
Dr. Cappola has helped train medical professionals at all levels through his 28 years of practice.
He taught medical students and residents rotating at Wake Med Raleigh from the UNC School of
Medicine. While at Wake Med Cary, he helped establish and lead a physician assistant rotation
in hospital medicine serving students from Campbell, Wake Forest, Duke and East Carolina
Universities. He also created an Acute Care Essentials conference series for the nursing staff at
Wake Med Cary from 2010 through 2016.
Dr. Cappola served as clerkship director in hospital medicine at Wake Med Cary Hospital for
Campbell’s inaugural medical school class in 2015 and continued as clerkship director through
2018.
His current clinical work includes precepting Harnett Health Internal Medicine residents and
Campbell medical students providing inpatient care at Betsy Johnson Hospital and Central
Harnett Hospital. He is also a preceptor at Harnett Health internal medicine residents’ clinic.
Dr. Cappola has served as a mentor for students in Campbell’s Master of Science in Biomedical
Sciences.
His clinical and teaching interests include patient-centered interviewing, evidence-based
medicine and diagnostic reasoning.
Dr. Cappola volunteers regularly precepting students providing primary care at the Campbell
University Community Care Clinic. He is also a faculty advisor for Campbell’s Internal Medicine
Club.
He and his wife, Linda, have five children.
Thursday, September 4, 2025
4:00 PM - 5:30 PM PST