MetroHealth Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation ranked 2 in NIH funding
The Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) at the MetroHealth System (MHS) and Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is ranked number 2 in the nation in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding among PM&R departments in U.S. Medical Schools. The Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research rankings are based on data released by the NIH for all active awards during the 2018 fiscal year, which began October 1, 2017 and ended September 30, 2018.
The Department of PM&R at CWRU is based at the MHS and is housed within the MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute, whose mission is to restore function, societal participation and quality of life for persons with significant neurological and musculoskeletal impairments and functional limitations. The Institute is committed to a transdisciplinary approach that delivers outstanding rehabilitation care, trains the next generation of rehabilitation clinicians and scientists, and discovers new knowledge that translates to clinical practice.
The MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute is world-renowned for the development and clinical implementation of sophisticated electrical stimulation systems that reanimate paralyzed muscles; restore limb, trunk, respiratory, bowel and bladder function; and facilitate neurological recovery following stroke, brain injury and spinal cord injury (SCI). Major new initiatives include interventions for the treatment of chronic pain and cardiac and pulmonary dysfunction in the non-neurologically impaired population. The research program within the Institute is staffed by biomedical engineers, electrical engineers, neuroscientists, neurosurgeons, occupational therapists, orthopedic surgeons, physiatrists, and physical therapists.
The MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute presently has over $52 million in extramural research funding with two thirds awarded by the NIH. Independent Investigators in the Institute, defined as a Principal Investigator (PI) or Co-PI of a NIH R01 or equivalent award, include:
* Kimberly Anderson, PhD, Professor of PM&R*: Perspectives of people living with SCI and electrical stimulation for motor recovery in SCI (DoD)
* Niloy Bhadra, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of PM&R*: Electrical nerve block (NIH)
* Dennis Bourbeau, PhD, Assistant Professor of PM&R: Electrical stimulation for bladder function in SCI (NIH, VA)
* John Chae, MD, Professor of PM&R & Biomedical Engineering (BME): Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) for musculoskeletal pain (NIH)
* Anthony DiMarco, MD, Professor of PM&R & Physiology/Biophysics: Respiratory neuroprosthesis for SCI (NIH)
* Kevin Kilgore, PhD, Professor of Orthopedics, PM&R and BME: Upper limb neuroprosthesis for SCI and electrical nerve block (NIH, VA, FDA)
* Krzysztof Kowalski, PhD, Associate Professor of PM&R*: Respiratory neuroprosthesis in SCI (VA)
* Jayme Knutson, PhD, Associate Professor of PM&R: Electrical stimulation for hemiparesis (NIH, VA)
* Gregory Nemunaitis, MD, Professor of PM&R: SCI Model System (NIDILRR)
* P. Hunter Peckham, PhD, Professor of BME & Orthopedics: Upper limb neuroprosthesis for SCI (NIH)
* Mary Jo Roach, PhD, Associate Professor of PM&R*: SCI Model System (NIDILRR)
* Richard Wilson, MD, Associate Professor of PM&R: PNS for musculoskeletal pain (NIH)
*Pending CWRU review
Founded in 1837, MetroHealth is leading the way to a healthier you and a healthier community through service, teaching, discovery, and teamwork. Cuyahoga County’s public, safety-net hospital system, MetroHealth meets people where they are, providing care through five hospitals, four emergency departments and more than 20 health centers. Each day, our nearly 9,000 employees focus on providing our community with equitable healthcare — through patient-focused research, access to care, and support services — that seeks to eradicate health disparities rooted in systematic barriers. For more information, visit metrohealth.org.
