Dr. Marilyn Moffat is a Full Professor of Physical Therapy at NYU, where she directs both the professional doctoral program (DPT) and the post-professional graduate master's degree program in pathokinesiology. She is immediate Past-President of the World Confederation for Physical Therapy and she coordinated efforts to develop international guidelines for physical therapist educational programs and standards of physical therapy practice around the world. She completed a six-year term as the President of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in 1997 during which time she was instrumental in the development of both the “Guide to Physical Therapist Practice” and the “Normative Model for Physical Therapist Education.” She has taught and provided consultation services in countries all over the globe. Her many publications include two books for the lay audience and a four-book series for physical therapy clinicians and students. She has received numerous national and international awards, including the Rusk Rehabilitation Ambassador Award in 2015 and also has had various honors named after her. Her physical therapy certificate, master’s degree, and PhD are from New York University. In this interview, Dr. Moffat discusses the human movement system and the degree to which physical therapy has adopted and integrated it in the three areas of practice, education, and research.
Dr. Komal Shah is a full time senior physical therapist in the acute care hospital setting. She has been practicing for more than seven years. Her focus is on the intensive care units, starting in the neurological ICU, and currently working in the medical ICU. Her experience includes treating patients on the neurology floor, neurological intensive care unit, stroke step down unit, general medicine floor, and medical intensive care unit. Her special interests are on the neurological and cardiothoracic populations and engaging in various quality improvement projects. She has collaborated with an interdisciplinary team to create a lecture for registered nurses to understand the role of PT/OT/SLP across the continuum of care. Her doctorate in physical therapy is from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of NJ and she is board certified in Neurology. Most recently, Dr. Shah made a presentation at the national physical therapist conference in 2016. In this interview, she discusses her involvement in the early mobilization of patients at high risk of vasospasm in the neurological intensive care unit.
Katie Ann Sheeran received her doctorate degree from New York Medical college and has worked for over 5 years at Rusk specializing in adult neurological rehabilitation. Mike Post received his doctorate degree in physical therapy from Ithaca College and has worked for 2 years at Rusk in the departments of outpatient neurological, orthopedic, and vestibular rehabilitation. Estelle Gallo received her doctorate degree from NYU, and has worked for over 14 years at Rusk. She is a board certified clinical specialist in neurology from the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties. Jaime Cepeda received his doctorate degree from Rutgers University and has worked for over 7 years at Rusk specializing in neurological and limb loss rehabilitation. In this interview, panel members discussed their combined efforts to enable patients with an acquired brain injury to continue on with their lives more successfully through high level mobility training.
Holly Cohen is the Program Manager of the Assistive Technology Service at NYU Langone Medical Center. 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 AOTA. She has been an adjunct professor in the Department of the Occupational Therapy in the Steinhardt School at New York University since 2005 and has lectured at national conferences focusing on technology use for individuals with disabilities. A previous interview with her was posted in the Rusk podcast series on October 29, 2015. It had a focus on a Driving Rehabilitation program, which she started and continues to manage. In this interview, Holly focuses on how assistive technology is used in occupational therapy to treat patients.
Dr. Sonya Kim is a research scientist at the NYU School of Medicine, where she has a joint appointment as a clinical instructor in the Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine departments. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and a certified rehabilitation counselor. Her major research interests include chronic traumatic brain injury, cognitive deficits in individuals with multiple sclerosis, and exploring the mechanisms and interventions that help rehabilitate functioning post-brain injury. She pioneered the use of heart rate variability biofeedback to improve emotional regulation for individuals with severe and chronic brain injury. Currently, she is the principal investigator on a study funded by the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers. Using a qualitative approach, this study aims to develop an instrument to measure post-traumatic growth in the partner of an individual with this disease. Dr. Kim
earned her doctoral degree in clinical psychology with an emphasis on health from Yeshiva University’s Ferkauf School of Psychology in 2011. Her postdoctoral fellowship was at the Holy Name Medical Center’s Multiple Sclerosis Center. In this interview, Dr. Kim discusses the use of heart rate variability feedback to improve regulation for patients with severe and chronic traumatic brain injury. Sonya Kim: Pioneed of Heart Rate Variability in TBI Provides In-Depth Look at Novel Approach