Winter 2024 Edition

TIRR Memorial Hermann has received the prestigious Community Investment Award from Alexander Jewish Family Service (Alexander JFS), a 110-year-old social service agency that serves people of all faiths and backgrounds and is dedicated to transforming the lives of individuals, families and communities in the Houston area.

The passage of legislation naming TIRR Memorial Hermann as a national rehabilitation innovation center reflects the culmination of more than a decade of advocacy work and will allow for the preservation of cutting-edge rehabilitation for generations to come, officials with the health system say.

The ReelAbilities Houston Film and Arts Festival, a three-week event that showcases the lives, stories and talents of people with disabilities, uses film, arts, music and educational initiatives to change the culture of Houston's workplaces, places of faith and organizations and to promote inclusion and accessibility for all.

When patients begin the program, they are often under physical restraint and are taking multiple medications that were previously “necessary but are probably hampering their ability to participate in their rehab programs and make functional gains,” Dr. Harik notes.

Elroy’s aggression was almost exclusively related to his desire to leave and was rarely directed at staff; when not agitated, he was playful and friendly and appeared to enjoy socializing with staff. In all, he was admitted to the neurobehavioral program for less than three weeks.

The Urology Department at TIRR Memorial Hermann is undergoing a few changes in 2024, with John Bertini, MD, and James Harris, MD, each taking a step back, but not completely retiring, from clinical work.

New research being conducted by the Brain Injury Research Center (BIRC) at TIRR Memorial Hermann is investigating the utility of electronic problem-solving training (PST) for improving mental health and well-being of individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Researchers at TIRR Memorial Hermann’s Spinal Cord Injury and Disability Research Center (SCIDR) have received funding from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to conduct a detailed study of interpersonal violence and its effects on psychosocial health in men and women with spinal cord injuries (SCI). The study is being conducted in collaboration with researchers at the University of Montana and UTHealth Houston.

At TIRR Memorial Hermann, our care services go beyond rehabilitation. Ultimately, our goal is community reintegration following hospital discharge, meaning that patients continue their recovery as active, engaged members of the larger community.

Pain due to spinal cord injury (SCI) reduces patient quality of life and can be difficult to treat. Opioids are an effective tool for managing neuropathic pain, but research in animal models suggests that opioids may do more harm than good in patients with SCI. An ongoing research project at TIRR Memorial Hermann is exploring the impact of opioid exposure on patients recovering from the condition.

Throughout its more than 60-year history, TIRR Memorial Hermann has taken a unique approach to patient care and research that goes beyond the four walls of the hospital and into the communities we serve.

Integrating vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) into a home exercise program produces significant improvements in arm and hand function among chronic ischemic stroke survivors, safely and with minimal side effects, according to a study led by researchers at TIRR Memorial Hermann.

For Farhaan S. Vahidy, PhD, MBBS, MPH, FAHA, his appointment last summer to dual leadership positions at TIRR Memorial Hermann represents an exciting new chapter in his career-long quest to improve the quality of life for individuals living with disabilities.

Peggy Turner, CTRS, who is the athletics community liaison and adapted sports coordinator at TIRR Memorial Hermann, doesn’t see the accolades as highlighting her specifically, but rather as an affirmation of the powerful tool that sports can be in the rehabilitative process.

Cindy B. Ivanhoe, MD, the director of TIRR Memorial Hermann’s Spasticity and Associated Syndromes of Movement (SPASM) program, has been awarded the 2022-2023 John P. and Kathrine G. McGovern Distinguished Faculty Award from the Women Faculty Forum of McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston.