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RUSK Insights on Rehabilitation Medicine

RUSK Insights on Rehabilitation Medicine is a top podcast featuring interviews with faculty and staff of RUSK Rehabilitation as well as leaders from other rehabilitation programs around the country. These podcasts are being offered by RUSK, one of the top rehabilitation centers in the world. Your host for these interviews is Dr. Tom Elwood. He will take you behind the scenes to look at what is transpiring in the exciting world of rehabilitation research and clinical services through the eyes of those involved in making dynamic breakthroughs in health care.
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Now displaying: 2015
Dec 30, 2015

Divya Mathur is the Program Manager of Physical Therapy at the Hospital for Joint Diseases where her primary responsibility is to oversee all physical therapy operations at this site in three programs:  Acute Medical Surgery, Adult Inpatient Rehabilitation, and both inpatient and outpatient Pediatrics. She is actively involved in all the various changes occurring in acute care. She also has a primary role as the Epic champion for rehab at the Hospital for Joint Diseases, which involves being the liaison for therapy services and the Epic team for all Epic upgrades. A related duty includes serving as an extension of the Coordinator of Clinical Education for PT. She is a graduate of Stony Brook University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Physical Therapy and has a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from NYU’s Wagner School of Public Service. In this interview, Divya delves into multiple aspects of physical therapy, the changing healthcare environment, and the future of this discipline. 

Dec 23, 2015

Dorra Blacker is the Clinical Supervisor in the department which encompasses clinical, supervisory, and managerial duties. For the past thirty-one years she has been in the Vocational Rehabilitation department at Rusk Institute, providing vocational counseling to both adult and pediatric in- and outpatients who have physical, orthopedic, neurological and psychiatric disabilities to address  return-to-work issues that may include career alternatives,  academic planning, career exploration, accessibility and job modifications, employer contact and identifying transferable skills. A graduate of Hunter College with a Master’s degree in Rehabilitation Counseling, she is both a certified vocational rehabilitation counselor and licensed mental health counselor. She is a member of the NYU Langone’s Concussion Center and the liaison counselor to the NYU Langone Multiple Sclerosis Center and the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center at NYU Langone.​ In this interview, Dorra shares her experiences in vocational therapy and provides amazing insights to this critical component of rehabilitation. 

Dec 16, 2015

Carie Sumida is the program manager for pediatric inpatient and outpatient therapies at the Hospital for Joint Diseases where she oversees programming for pediatric physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech/ language pathology, psychology, child life, therapeutic recreation, and creative arts therapies throughout the hospital. She also serves as a resource for pediatrics at other Rusk campuses. A physical therapist by training, both her Master of Science in Physical Therapy and Doctor of Physical Therapy degrees are from Columbia University. Her current areas of interest and practice are in infant care in the neonatal intensive care unit and pediatric concussions. In this interview, Carie provides an in-depth look at pediatric care and the challenges/opportunities for children in rehabilitation. 

Dec 9, 2015

Alicia Esposito is a clinical specialist in Rusk’s adult inpatient rehabilitation unit at the Hospital for Joint Diseases where she is responsible for coordinating patient care, training programs, and research endeavors for the inpatient physical therapy department.  She also is a clinical instructor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the School of Medicine and the Residency Coordinator for Rusk’s Neurological Physical Therapy Residency Program. She specializes in the evaluation and treatment of patients with a variety of neurological conditions including stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, degenerative neurological diagnoses and vestibular and balance dysfunction.  In this interview, Dr. Esposito discusses the role of physical therapy as one kind of intervention to drive neuroplastic changes in the brain after an injury, the impact of a residency program on physical therapy education, and the activities of a Parkinson’s Disease Edge Task Force.

Dec 5, 2015

In this special edition interview, April O'Connell, clinical specialist in the Hand and Upper Extremity Therapy Department, and Melissa Hirsch, a Senior II physical therapist with her Doctorate in PT credentialed in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy, describe an exciting project ongoing at Rusk. Working in collaboration with proprietary 3D motion sensing technology leader Extreme Reality and Aetna's Innovation Labs, the team at Rusk continues to explore the best ways to provide extraordinary patient care. 

Dec 2, 2015

Dr. Charles Kim is an assistant professor in the departments of rehabilitation medicine and anesthesiology at the NYU School of Medicine. He completed his medical education at the State University of New York-Downstate College of Medicine in Brooklyn, a residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, and a fellowship in anesthesiology-pain medicine also at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. He trained in acupuncture at the UCLA School of Medicine and is a New York State-certified acupuncturist. With his unique training and board certifications in multiple specialties, he practices and teaches a comprehensive and integrative approach to pain management and physiatry at Rusk Rehabilitation at the Center for Musculoskeletal Care of the NYU Langone Medical Center. He is published in the medical literature, lectures locally and nationally, and has appeared in numerous media outlets discussing wide-ranging medical and health topics.

Nov 25, 2015

Miriam Gross is a senior physical therapist at Rusk. Her focus is on early mobility with patients in the ICU, following rotations in the adult outpatient and acute rehabilitation units. She works primarily in the Medical Intensive Care Unit while providing support to the Surgical Intensive Care unit. She has participated in NYU’s Dr. Radio program and has published in Advance for Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation regarding physical therapy interventions following total knee replacements. She also has presented at the APTA’s Combined Sections Meeting. She lectures physical therapy student interns and has been the lab instructor for the Examination and Intervention of the cardiopulmonary systems courses. Her doctorate in physical therapy is from the NYU Steinhardt School and she received her board certification in neurologic physical therapy through the American Physical Therapy Association. In this interview, Miriam discusses the importance of early mobilization, physical therapy interventions following knee replacement surgery, and coordination of care between inpatient and community settings.

Nov 18, 2015

David Biderman has worked with individuals with brain injuries and their families for almost 25 years. He is the supervisor of the Brain Injury Day Treatment Program at Rusk Rehabilitation. He has performed research on the benefits of significant others’ participation during the rehabilitation process and has presented internationally, nationally and in local community forums on this important topic. He also is working on ways to assess quality of life as an outcome measure for patients, updating cognitive training software for individuals with a brain injury to help restore or improve attention and concentration functioning, and trying to develop an app for brain-injured individuals to help manage their appointments at Rusk as well as help them work around various other brain injury based problems. In this interview, David discusses his work in an intensive day care program for brain injury patients, along with his involvement in updating cognitive training software for individuals with a brain injury and trying to develop an app for patients to help manage their appointments at Rusk and increase their ability to deal with various brain injury problems.

Nov 11, 2015

Wei Angela Liu, MD is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Rusk Rehabilitation. A former Chief Resident at Rusk, Dr. Liu received her B.A. degree in Biochemistry at Columbia College where she was honored as a Fu Foundation Scholar for four years and her M.D. degree from NYU School of Medicine where she was a Debrovner Scholar. Tune in to listen to Dr. Liu discuss emerging trends in rehabilitation care, specifically focused on treating patients with sports injuries, musculoskeletal conditions, and those who have suffered a stroke or other neurological event. 

Nov 10, 2015

April O’Connell is a Clinical Specialist in the Hand and Upper Extremity Therapy Department at NYU Langone Center for Musculoskeletal Care. As a member of the American Society of Shoulder and Elbow Therapy (ASSET) she has a strong interest in sports rehabilitation, especially as it pertains to professional and recreational athletes. She has lectured to orthopedic surgeons and therapists in current concepts of orthopedic rehabilitation of the shoulder, elbow and hand. She has been a guest speaker for Doctor Radio on Sirius Satellite on topics including football & baseball injury and prevention, golf, tennis and skiing injuries and was featured in Shape Magazine in May 2013. She earned her Occupational Therapy degree at Boston University, is a Certified Hand Therapist and is certified by the American Council of Sports Medicine (ACSM) as a Clinical Exercise Specialist. In this interview, April discusses the emerging field of hand transplantation and 3-D motion analysis using wireless technology.

Nov 8, 2015

Dr. Jonathan Whiteson is Assistant Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine; Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine; Medical Director of Rusk Outreach and Growth; and Medical Director of Cardiac Rehabilitation. His research interests include: cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation coping strategies during cardiac rehabilitation following cardiac surgery, pulmonary rehabilitation of individuals exposed to world trade center dust, and recognizing encephalopathy and delirium in the cardiopulmonary rehabilitation setting. In this interview, Dr. Whiteson discusses the occurrence of encephalopathy and delirium and the importance of coordination along the continuum of care.

Nov 4, 2015

Jena Harb is a board certified geriatric specialist and senior physical therapist, who most recently became a left ventricular assist device rehabilitation educator at Rusk. She has worked in acute care and adult inpatient acute rehabilitation settings with special interests in the areas of geriatrics and critical care medicine. Over the last several years she has worked primarily in the surgical and medical intensive care units, helping to lead an early mobility pilot project, which is now an accepted early mobility program in both the surgical and medical intensive care units. She has presented at multiple American Physical Therapy Association Combined Section Meeting conferences and is an active participant in clinical research at Rusk. She teaches at NYU Langone Medical Center, New York University, and Columbia University’s physical therapy departments. In this interview, Jena discusses the role of physical therapy in providing both inpatient and home-based care, teamwork with other members of the health professions, prevention, and key aspects of physical therapy research in rehabilitation.

Oct 29, 2015

Holly Cohen has been at NYU Langone Medical Center for almost 15 years. In 2006, she founded the Assistive Technology Service at NYU, which now reaches across all of the campuses. The focus of that Service is to improve the quality of life and independence of adults and children through technology use. Holly also started the Driving Rehabilitation program in 2007 and is currently the program manager of both services. Along with her clinical experience, she holds certification in assistive technology from the Rehabilitation and Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America and has a specialty certification in environmental modifications from the American Occupational Therapy Association. She has been an adjunct professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy at the Steinhardt School at New York University since 2005 and has lectured at national conferences focusing on technology use for individuals with disabilities. Her degree is in occupational therapy and she has taken graduate level courses within the Interactive Telecommunications department at New York University. In this interview, Holly discusses the many innovative ways in which assistive technology interventions improve the lives of patients in this interview.

Oct 28, 2015

Dr. Salvador Portugal serves as a Clinical Instructor at the NYU School of Medicine and is an Attending Physiatrist within the Rusk Department of Rehabilitation Medicine. Board certified in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation as well as in Sports Medicine, he specializes in Interventional Spine & Sports Medicine. He provides comprehensive evaluation and non-surgical management of a multitude of musculoskeletal conditions, predominantly of the lower back and neck. Dr. Portugal also teaches medical students, residents, and sports medicine fellows. In this interview, Dr. Portugal provides insights on treating patients with medically complex health problems and how proper diagnosis is imperative, as well as his thoughts on the future of rehabilitation. 

Oct 26, 2015

Dr. Barbara Siminovich-Blok is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Rusk Rehabilitation. Her research interests include: integrative research in rehabilitation medicine, how traditional modalities and modern science collaborate to enhance patient outcomes, physiological stress markers to analyze the effectiveness of Integrative Modalities, and retrospective analysis of the effectiveness of integrative health therapies at NYU Langone. In this interview, Dr. Siminovich-Blok discusses integrative medicine with an emphasis on naturopathic medicine, acupuncture, and treatment of pain

Oct 25, 2015

Liat Rabinowitz is the Program Manager of Speech Language Pathology. She has worked as a speech-language therapist in the field of neuro rehabilitation for over 11 years; six of them at Rusk. Her experience has been in evaluation and treatment of adults with acquired brain injury with a specific area of interest in cognitive communication impairments and working with patients in disorder of consciousness. Most of her current work involves managing the Speech Language Pathology department, along with supervising and training staff. In this interview, Liat reviews when to initiate speech-language therapy, complementary modalities, and the identification of areas where additional research is warranted.

Oct 24, 2015

Geoffrey Hall is an accomplished operational strategist and executive leader with more than 15 years of experience cultivating, improving, and directing operations for various facilities throughout the healthcare industry. He is currently the Administrator for the top 10 nationally ranked Rusk Rehabilitation at the NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City. In this interview, Geoffrey discusses controlling health care costs through bundled payments, the use of technology in health care, conversion from ICD-9 to ICD-10, and Rusk's health involvement in China.

Oct 21, 2015

Dr. Ira Rashbaum is the Chief of Stroke Rehabilitation at Rusk where he cares for adult stroke inpatients and outpatients. He also provides care for adults with general outpatient rehabilitation needs, including chronic pain and musculoskeletal disorders. In particular, he has an expertise in diagnosing and treating psychosomatic pain. He has served as chairperson of the Study Guide Committee of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, a position that placed him at the cutting edge of all aspects of rehabilitation medicine. He has been selected as a Castle Connolly Top Doctor every year since 2012. In this interview, Dr. Rashbaum discusses the importance of the multidisciplinary team to stroke care and the treatment of medically complex patients. 

Oct 14, 2015

Sofiya Prilik, MD is a Clinical Instructor at Rusk Rehabilitation and practices general and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Dr. Prilik’s work extends to two subacute facilities which work closely with Rusk and provide an opportunity to follow her patients throughout the continuum of care. After moving to the US at the age of 17, Dr. Prilik received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from NYU where she was awarded membership in the Phi Betta Kappa honorary society and was the recipient of the Founders Day Award, and her medical degree from SUNY Downstate.  In this interview, Dr. Prilik discusses two critical elements of medical care today: education and patient empowerment and how these translate to all those she works with in the clinical setting.

Oct 7, 2015

Maria Tafurt is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Rusk Rehabilitation. She is the Site Director at Rusk and Hospital for Joint Diseases where she manages an interdisciplinary staff that includes occupational and physical therapists, speech and language pathologists, psychologists and neuropsychologists, recreational therapists, and child life professionals. She has authored or co-authored sixteen articles, abstracts and international presentations in her field. In this interview, she discusses innovative pediatric integrative approaches as well as electrical stimulation after stroke and the importance of teamwork to achieve optimal success. 

Oct 4, 2015

Joseph Taravella, MS, PhD is a licensed child and family clinical psychologist who serves as the Supervisor of the Pediatric Psychology Services and Co-Director of Psychology Intern Training at Rusk Rehabilitation. Along with a private practice in midtown Manhattan, he proudly serves on the Board of Directors for Kid Angel Foundation, a non-profit organization that helps underserved children and families from distressed communities, and is co-founder of Forward Footsteps, LLC, a publishing company with a focus on children, caregivers, and diversity with his colleague, Dr. Stacey Bromberg. In this interview, Dr. Taravella provides tremendous insights into dealing with grief, cyber bullying, and his own education from being on staff at Rusk. 

Oct 4, 2015

Jodi Herbsman, MS, PhD is the Program Manager of Acute Care Therapy Services at Rusk Rehabilitation where she manages the daily operations of Physical and Occupational therapy, Speech-Language Pathology, and Psychology servicesHer position entails providing support, guidance, and supervision to acute care managers and assisting them with management of operational issues as needed. Among many interesting topics discussed in this episode, Dr. Herbsman delves into the importance of therapy in the acute care setting and her research in the areas of delirium and early mobility for these patients. 

Oct 3, 2015

Dr. Amit Bansal and Dr. JR Rizzo, two physicians at Rusk Rehabilitation, provide quick summaries of their presentations at this year's Annual Assembly. 

Oct 3, 2015

Dr. Julie Silver is an Associate Professor and the Associate Chair for Strategic Initiatives at Harvard Medical School in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and is on staff at Spaulding Rehabilitation hospital. She is recognized nationally and internationally as an innovator, academician, teacher, and an award-winning author who has published multiple books including two new books: the Essentials of PM&R which is here at the conference today at the Elsevier booth, and Before and After Cancer Treatment: Heal Faster, Better, Stronger (Johns Hopkins Press) which was just released and is for cancer survivors.
The Boston Globe recognized Dr. Silver’s important contributions to healthcare and society and awarded her the Top Innovator in Medicine. The Discovery Channel featured her work and the STAR Program in the show Innovations. She has been a guest on the Today Show, the CBS Early Show and Dr. Oz. Her work has been featured in hundreds of media outlets including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the London Times and NPR. Each year hundreds of healthcare professionals from all corners of the nation come to Boston to attend the continuing education courses that she directs at Harvard Medical School titled “Career Advancement and Leadership Skills for Women in Healthcare “ and “Writing, Publishing and Social Media for Healthcare Professionals”. Her courses are among the highest-rated at Harvard.

Oct 3, 2015

Margaret (Meg) Waskiewicz is the supervisor of the Adult Outpatient Neurological occupational therapy unit where she primarily treats complex vision and concussion patients and has had an active role in the concussion center at Rusk.  Along with her clinical experience she also is an adjunct professor teaching both at NYU and LIU-Brooklyn. She will be speaking in the fall at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine conference and at the American Academy of Physical Medicine &Rehabilitation Annual Assembly Session. Last year, she was in China to provide education on the role of occupational therapy in rehabilitation and in a hospital setting. In this interview, Meg discusses acute and chronic visual problems stemming from traumatic brain injury and how occupational therapy modalities are being used in China.

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