Kudos to Dr. Jeff Johns' recent work as co-author of the article "Baseline characteristics and outcomes for people with and without COVID-19 diagnoses receiving Inpatient Rehabilitation Care across the US in 2020-2021, " published in Archives of Rehabilitation Research and Clinical Translation. To read the Article click here
Congratulations to Drs. Woody Morgan and Jacob Jeffers for passing their brain injury subspecialty board exams. This makes 4 physicians (including Drs. Plummer and Martin) in the PM&R department with this certification out of only 8 in the state!
Dr. CJ Plummer was selected to be part of the 2023 class of the AAP’s Program for Academic Leadership (PAL). This is a highly competitive training program for academic leaders and a great honor. Congratulations!
PM&R’s own Dr. Mosi Jones acted as a session moderator and a session speaker at the American Academy of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) Annual Meeting in Nashville September 21-24, 2022. Along with Dr. Jones, Vanderbilt colleagues- Drs. Lauren Porras, Stephen Schaaf, and Byron Schneider, also participated in the session, “An Update on MSK Injections and Injectables”. The session included interesting and thoughtful discussions on topics such as Orthobiologic, The Role of Corticosteroid Injections, Local Anesthetic Chondrotoxicity, and The Importance of Using Ultrasound Guidance When Doing These Injections. #AANEM.
Kudos to Ruth Wolever, PhD, professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and director of Vanderbilt Health Coaching at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine for being featured in the June 21, 2022 edition of the VUMC Reporter.
The April 2022 issue of PM&R Journal has an article featuring VUMC PM&R faculty physician Dr. Woody Morgan. Congratulations Dr. Morgan!
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/QXFUSCPFCI72QGNG8EC4?target=10.1002/pmrj.12813
Dr. Aaron Yang becomes Inaugural member of the Vanderbilt Academy for Excellence in Clinical Medicine Excellence!
The inaugural members of the Vanderbilt Academy for Excellence in Clinical Medicine (AECM) have been chosen. The AECM was created in 2021 by leaders of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine to recognize and advance exceptional patient care.
Thanks to Dr. Cristina Kline-Quiroz's recent work as part of a collaborative team with cystectomy patients, the Department of PM&R was mentioned in the June 2021 issue Discover VUMC Magazine. To read the article click here
Dr. Paula Donahue, and her collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work "3.0 T relaxation time measurements of human lymph nodes in adults with and without lymphatic insufficiency: Implications for magnetic resonance lymphatic imaging." in the journal of NMR Biomed.
“NASS Recognized Interventional Spine / MSK Fellowship” now offered at VUMC Department of PM&R.
Dr. Gerasimos Bastas delivered two symposia on “Creating Real World Impact: Becoming Deliberate About Interdisciplinary Professional Identity Training” and “Medical Care of the Limb Restoration Patient: Cardiovascular Changes and Adaptations” at this year’s 95th American Congress of Rehabilitation Annual Conference, held September 30th – October 3rd, 2018 (Dallas, TX).
Asst Professor Zelik, and his collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work entitled "Effect of toe joint stiffness and toe shape on walking biomechanics." This work will be appearing in the journal of Bioinspiration & Biomimetics.
Dr. Byron Schneider
Congratulations to Dr. Byron J Schneider -- Recognized as an Expertscape World Expert in Pain! Expertscape's PubMed-based algorithms placed Dr. Schneider in the top 0.1% of scholars writing about Pain over the past 10 years, a level they label as "World Expert." Reaching this level of expertise is a tremendous achievement.
For more information please follow the link
Dr. Schneider makes NASS News. He is named one of SpineLine's Inaugural 20 Under 40. SpineLine Article
Dr. Jeffery Johns has been invited to become an Associate Editor of the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, the official journal of the Academy of Spinal Cord Injury Professionals.
Congratulations to Ryan Castoro, DO, on his award-winning abstract, "A Novel Compound Heterozygous Mutation in Titin Leads to Core Myopathy With Heart Disease." The publication was awarded the 2018 President's Research Initiative and the Resident & Fellow Abstract awards by the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine. This recognition is given to the 10 best abstracts submitted on the topic chosen by the AANEM President each year.
Dr. Gerasimos Bastas and his collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work entitled "IMU-based gait analysis in lower limb prosthesis users: Comparison of step demarcation algorithms," Gait & Posture. 2018 May 22;64:30-37.
Jeffery Johns, MD, Medical Director of Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, has been elected to the board of directors of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Dr. Johns begins a six-year term in August. The board oversees the certification process for physiatrists, physicians who specialize in physical medicine and rehabilitation and its seven subspecialties. VUMC Reporter 04.12.18
Dr. Paula Donahue, and her collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work "3.0 T relaxation time measurements of human lymph nodes in adults with and without lymphatic insufficiency: Implications for magnetic resonance lymphatic imaging" in the journal of NMR Biomed.
Dr. Gerasimos Bastas was an invited speaker
and experts' panel participant at this year's TSOP (Tennessee Society of
Orthotics & Prosthetics) 2018 Annual Meeting (Oct 11-13, Memphis, TN). He
presented on the "Medical Considerations for Prosthetic Candidacy,
Enduring Functional Enablement and Coordination of Care" and participated
in an interactive panel discussion surrounding appropriate Functional Outcome
Measurement testing metrics, and their framing and clinical use in relation to
overall prosthetic enablement and medicolegal use for device
approval/reimbursement. This was a very engaging meeting and well attended by
O&P allied health providers, industry partners and academics, from all over
the state and elsewhere.
“NASS Recognized Interventional Spine / MSK Fellowship” now offered at VUMC Department of PM&R.
Dr. Gerasimos Bastas delivered two symposia on “Creating Real World Impact: Becoming Deliberate About Interdisciplinary Professional Identity Training” and “Medical Care of the Limb Restoration Patient: Cardiovascular Changes and Adaptations” at this year’s 95th American Congress of Rehabilitation Annual Conference, held September 30th – October 3rd, 2018 (Dallas, TX).
Asst Professor Zelik, and his collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work entitled "Effect of toe joint stiffness and toe shape on walking biomechanics." This work will be appearing in the journal of Bioinspiration & Biomimetics.
Dr. Byron Schnieder has been named one of SpineLine's Inaugural 21 Under 40. He will be recognized at the 2018 NASS Annual Meeting. SpineLine Article
Dr. Jeffery Johns has been invited to become an Associate Editor of the Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, the official journal of the Academy of Spinal Cord Injury Professionals.
Dr. Gerasimos Bastas and his collaborators, are pleased to announce the publication of their work entitled "IMU-based gait analysis in lower limb prosthesis users: Comparison of step demarcation algorithms," Gait & Posture. 2018 May 22;64:30-37.
Dr. Bastas delivered the Ethics Grand Rounds at UT Southwestern Medical Center (Dallas, TX), on April 10th, 2018. His talk, entitled "Biomedical Ethics Considerations in Limb Loss and Prosthetic Enablement" re-examined the bioethics consult operationally, bringing into focus how aspects of intentionality and current limits of knowledge distill imperatives for overall professional conduct. The talk examined i) how to deal with the patient who is requesting an amputation of a healthy limb, ii) when and how amputations may be offered as medically advisable therapeutic options, and iii) contextualized emerging amputation procedures and prosthetic technologies.
Jeffery Johns, MD, Medical Director of Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, has been elected to the board of directors of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Dr. Johns begins a six-year term in August. The board oversees the certification process for physiatrists, physicians who specialize in physical medicine and rehabilitation and its seven subspecialties. VUMC Reporter 04.12.18
VUMC Spine surgeon Byron Stephens, MD, works closely with physiatrists in offering patients nonsurgical options at Vanderbilt Bone and Joint Franklin. Stephens works side by side with physiatrists Aaron Yang, MD, and Byron Schneider, MD. "It’s a coordinated approach, providing seamless, uninterrupted spine care...the full spectrum, starting with conservative care all the way to surgery,” says Dr. Stephens. Additionally, Becker’s Hospital Review has recognized Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) as having one of the 100 best neurosurgery and spine programs in the nation. The publication noted that VUMC has a 96 percent patient satisfaction rate for lumbar spine procedures and a 97 percent satisfaction rate for cervical spine procedures. Performing more than 5,000 procedures a year, VUMC is “one of the busiest academic neurosurgery centers in the country,” the magazine said. Reporter 02.08.18
Gerasimos Bastas, MD, PhD, delivered a symposium on the Medical Considerations for Prosthetic Candidacy, Enduring Functional Enablement and Coordination of Care at this year’s 94th American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Conference, held October 23 – 28 , 2017.
Dr. Bastas is a founding member and Inaugural Chair of the Limb Restoration Rehabilitation Group, an international interdisciplinary group aiming to bolster research endeavors, the clinical care delivery, and overall enablement outcomes for people with limb restoration needs.
The LRRG is a content-specific interest 
group within the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM). Dr. Bastas convened and moderated a panel of national experts focused on Distinguishing Prosthetic Performance and Enablement in Clinical Care and Research.
"Super-suits for back-pain sufferers?" PM&R faculty members Aaron Yang, MD, and Karl Zelik, PhD, "are developing a device, designed to be worn under regular clothing, that would activate elastic bands to relieve stress on back muscles when people are doing physical tasks." (Stories in USA Today 08.03.17 and Tennessean 08.07.17.)
Gerasimos Bastas, MD, PhD, has been named the Inaugural Chairman of the Limb Restoration Rehabilitation Group for the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. He will be speaking during the welcome session at the ACRM annual conference in October, 2017.
Dr. Jeff Johns has been named one of two Senior Reviewers for the ABPMR SCI Medicine certification examination item writing process. In that role, he will also join the ABPMR SCI Medicine Committee as an Associate Member, participating in the committee’s activities in exam assembly, oversight, and review.
CONGRATULATIONS to Dr. Paula Donahue for winning the Best Research Award sponsored by the Lymphology Association of North America at the 2016 National Lymphedema Network Conference in Dallas. Reporter 9.22.16
Gerasimos (Makis) Bastas, MD, has been named Director of Limb Loss Rehabilitation in the Department of PM&R and has opened a weekly clinic for patients with limb loss with the collaboration of professional prosthetists.
Stallworth makes select list of brain injury rehab centers. Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital’s performance at helping people with traumatic brain injuries reconnect with their lives has received Joint Commission recognition and is now one of only seven rehab centers to achieve specialty accreditation for “traumatic brain injury rehabilitation.” Vanderbilt Reporter 09.24.15
Osher Center adds health coaching expert Wolever. Ruth Wolever, Ph.D., (at left) has joined the staff of Vanderbilt’s Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, where she will share her expertise and knowledge in health coaching. Vanderbilt Reporter 09.24.15
VUMC researchers received a $2.15 million grant from the NIH to study the amount and activity of brown adipose tissue in adults in order to understand its role in metabolic disease and to find therapeutic targets. Primary investigators are Brian Welch, Ph.D., MBA, assistant professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences and Theodore Towse, Ph.D., (at left) assistant professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Research News at Vanderbilt 06.25.15
A new Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Outpatient Clinic has opened on the first floor of the Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital, part of Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s outpatient clinical services. Patients recovering from acute injuries or with neurological and musculoskeletal conditions can receive care from expert physicians, nurses and rehabilitation specialists whose focus is on the functional restoration aspects of a patient’s rehabilitative care. Vanderbilt Reporter 08.14.14
Vanderbilt's Dayani Center for Health and Wellness has been recertified by the Medical Fitness Association (MFA), a credential achieved by only 44 of approximately 1,200 hospital fitness centers in the United States. Dayani was first certified in 2010, and was the first center in Tennessee to achieve the credential. Vanderbilt Reporter 05.15.14
The Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation has begun an adult inpatient consultation service to evaluate patients who may need rehabilitation and to assist with the transition from inpatient care to post-acute rehabilitation facilities. The service will start primarily with trauma patients, given the high volume of patients requiring post-acute rehabilitation, and then build to other inpatient services at VUH as needed. Vanderbilt Reporter 10.10.13
Jeffery Johns, M.D., has been named medical director of Vanderbilt Stallworth Rehabilitation Hospital. He has also been appointed associate professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R). Johns is board certified in PM&R and sub-specialty Board Certified in Spinal Cord Injury Medicine. Vanderbilt Reporter 08.01.13