Seminar Series

Associate professor, Department of Nuclear Medicine
UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences

Seminar Topic
Neuroimaging for research--a primer, with a focus on auditory studies

Seminar Summary
Neuroimaging can give a powerful view of the brain and how it functions. However, the field is broad and has a number of complexities, especially when utilized for research. This talk will take a look at different neuroimaging modalities and analysis methods; and will examine imaging methods such as MRI, PET, SPECT and CT.  It will review what each modality measures, and consider the roles of each, for both structural and functional imaging.  Many functional imaging studies rely on using a tracer or contrast, but can utilize modeling to provide true physiological parameters.  In forming a research study, scans from several subjects must be compared and require methods to handle differences in the subjects' size and shape of their brains. This talk will examine these methods and also consider statistical designs that can then be performed.   Finally, as a look into real-world problems, findings from auditory imaging studies will be reviewed.

Biographical Sketch
Dr. Wack is a faculty member in the Department of Nuclear Medicine and has research interests in the development of algorithms for the analysis of medical imaging, together with experimental auditory-related studies. 

Heather Coles, M.A. CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
University at Rochester Medical Center

Simon Carson MS, OT/L, MBA
Occupational Therapist 
University at Rochester Medical Center

Seminar Topic
From Concept to Creation, an Interdisciplinary Approach in Developing iPad Cognitive Assessments

Seminar Summary
Occupational Therapy and Speech Language Pathology are both involved in the cognitive rehabilitation of individuals with cognitive impairments with varying etiologies. This talk will address the clinical process between an occupational therapist and speech language pathologist who saw a need for a more comprehensive and systematic assessment of the measurement of functional cognitive breakdowns.   Furthermore, we will discuss our idea of creating iPad based cognitive assessments, the development of multiple subtests evaluating performance in individual cognitive domains as well as the ability to manage functional tasks with real life interruptions and distractions built in.  This seminar will also describe the process of brainstorming through taking the product to market and creating a LLC business to support the  production and sales of the Standardized Touchscreen Assessment of  Cognition and the Functional Standardized Touchscreen Assessment of Cognition.  Normative data collection, marketing, expenses and ongoing maintenance will also be addressed. 

Biographical Sketch
Heather Coles has more than 30 years experience as a speech language pathologist, working primarily with individuals with neurogenic communication, cognitive and swallowing disorders.   She has been employed at the University of Rochester Medical Center for over 20 years. She completed her Clinical Fellowship in Speech-Language Pathology at the Bermuda Ministry of Education after completing her Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts Degrees in Communication Sciences and Disorders at The State University of New York at Geneseo.  Heather worked as Clinical Associate Professor at Nazareth College in the Communication and Sciences Disorders program from 2015-2022.    Heather is a Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS).   Ms. Coles has worked in large medical centers in Canada, Bermuda and the United States, as well as in academia.  She has served on multiple committees through the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) and the Academy for Neurological Communication Disorders and Sciences.  Heather has completed numerous leadership training courses related to clinic management in both academia and medical centers.   Heather has given multiple presentations locally, statewide, nationally and internationally.  She has publications regarding integrative cognitive rehabilitation, translational aphasia research and collaborative aphasia research with music therapy.  Heather joined Cognitive Innovations, LLC in 2012 and was involved in the development of the Standardized Touchscreen Assessment of Cognition and the Functional Standardized Touchscreen Assessment of Cognition. 

Simon Carson is an occupational therapist with more than 20 years of experience in various settings and roles.  He has served as the Chief of Occupational Therapy at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY since 2014.  Simon is also the co-founding member of Cognitive Innovations, LLC, helping to create the cognitive assessments STAC and FSTAC.  His experience as an OT includes acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient and sub-acute rehabilitation.  The majority of Simon's experience has been in an academic medical center, with an emphasis on quality care in a fast-paced environment.  Simon's clinical areas of expertise include spinal cord and cognitive rehabilitation.  He has held leadership positions since 2003, and thrives on improving systems and processes related to the health care environment.  
Simon earned his Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy from Ithaca College in 2001. He then attended the William E. Simon Graduate School of Business earning both a Master’s of Science in Medical Management and a Master’s in Business Administration.  He has taught courses for Ithaca College and has guest lectured at Keuka and Nazareth Colleges.

Assistant professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science
UB School of Public Health and Health Professions

Seminar Topic
Neuroplasticity after spinal cord injury

Biographical Sketch
Dr. Jo's research employs biomechanical techniques, non-invasive brain stimulation, electrophysiology, and neuroimaging to study how the brain controls movements in healthy people, as well as in individuals with neurological impairments such as spinal cord injury and stroke. Specifically,  neural mechanisms of motor control, modulation in cortical and spinal circuits, and neuroplasticity.

Clinical associate professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science                                                                        UB School of Public Health and Health Professions

Seminar Topic

Reprogramming Skeletal Muscle for Enhanced Recovery from Peripheral Nerve Injury

Seminar Summary

Peripheral nerves have the capacity to regenerate; however, functional motor recovery is limited. Clinical and Preclinical studies suggest that there is a critical period for when reinnervation needs to occur in order for function to return. We are investigating using NANOG, a transcription factor, to expand the critical period for when functional reinnervation is possible.

Biographical Sketch
Kirk Personius, PT, PhD, is a clinical associate professor in the UB Department of Rehabilitation Science. He also holds an appointment in UB's Neuroscience program. His research focuses on how communication between motor neurons and muscle fibers guides the development of the neuromuscular junction and how this communication breaks down during disease, trauma and aging. Dr. Personius received his PT degree from Northeastern University, his PhD in Physiology from the University of Arizona and completed his postdoctoral fellowship in Neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

Adam Sheppard, AuD, PhD
Assistant professor, Department of Communicative Disorders and Sciences 
UB College of Arts and Sciences

Robert Burkard, PhD 
Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science  
UB School of Public Health and Health Professions

Seminar Topic
Threshold and Suprathreshold Measures of Hearing

Presentation Summary
Audiologic assessment has two main purposes: (1) The characterization of hearing ability for medico-legal reasons, and (2) Identification of communicative impairment followed up by (hopefully) remediation. In this presentation, we will briefly discuss established site-of-lesion audiologic tests, including both threshold and suprathreshold measured. For the last part of the presentation, we will discuss poorly understood auditory disorders that are seemingly undetectable by established site-of-lesion tests and future diagnostic directions.

Assistant professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science
UB School of Public Health and Health Professions

Research assistant professor, Department of Medicine
UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences

Seminar Topic
Treating Chronic Pain with Behavioral Medicine

Presentation Summary
Radziwon will discuss the nature of chronic pain, how it differs from acute pain, the impact of chronic pain, and the role of psychological principles. He will describe the cognitive-behavioral model of treatment demonstrating skills that are often beneficial and the utility of these strategies in managing pain that has not responded to standard treatments. 

Biographical Sketch
Christopher Radziwon is a psychologist in the Division of Behavioral Medicine and the Department of Rehab Medicine at ECMC. He works to develop and refine treatment manuals designed to help clinicians test and disseminate standardized interventions in order to consistently administer effective treatments. 

His research goals have focused on understanding the treatment response--to clarify how cognitive behavioral therapy CBT exerts its effects. 

In addition, he has more than 10 years of clinical experience assessing and treating patients struggling with chronic pain. His practice provides behavioral treatments for medical patients with chronic illnesses ranging from traumatic brain injury, migraines, low back pain and multiple sclerosis to irritable bowel syndrome. He believes the goal of behavioral counseling for chronic pain is less about lowering pain levels on a scale and more about helping patients develop strategies and skills that improve their quality of life. 

Assistant professor, Department of Urban and Regional Planning
Director of Research, IDEA Center
UB School Architecture and Planning

Seminar Topic
Advancing Inclusive Design: Linking Research to Practice

Presentation Summary
Rooted in a critique of designer-centric practice and embracing an ethic of social responsibility, the inclusive design focuses on developing form from function to increase the usefulness and responsiveness of our physical world for a more diverse range of people. This presentation will provide an overview and working knowledge of the inclusive design paradigm. It will introduce related knowledge bases, how that knowledge gets translated to design practice and best practice examples. 

Biographical Sketch
Jordana L. Maisel, PhD, is director of research at the IDEA Center and an assistant professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at UB. She is PI/co-PI on numerous sponsored research projects and has led research in the areas of public transportation, inclusive design, street infrastructure, post-occupancy evaluations, and accessible housing policy. Maisel co-authored The Goals of Universal Design. She earned her B.S. in human development from Cornell University and her master's degree in urban planning and PhD in industrial and systems engineering from UB. 

Assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation
Director, Integrated Cognitive Rehabilitation Program
University of Rochester Medical Center

Seminar Topic
Intro to Cognitive Rehabilitation: Insights from a Neuropsychologist

Seminar Summary
This presentation will highlight the history and evolution of cognitive rehabilitation with a focus on current practice. It will offer insights into an existing interdisciplinary cognitive rehab program at the University of Rochester Medical Center and present clinical outcomes and patient-specific experiences. 

Biographical Sketch
Dr. Martinez is a clinical neuropsychologist with more than 11 years of experience in the neuropsychology field. She is the Director of the Integrated Cognitive Rehabilitation Program at the University of Rochester Medical Center and runs the outpatient Neuropsychology Service within the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at UR Medicine.

Prior to joining PM&R, Dr. Martinez ran a successful private practice that provided diagnostic and assessment services for children, adolescents and adults in the greater Washington, DC area. 

Presently, Dr. Martinez provides direct patient care serving the diagnostic categories of chronic disease (i.e. MS, spinal cord injury, stroke, traumatic brain injury, brain tumors, and other neurological conditions). She is focused on helping individuals improve their performance, adjustment, and a general sense of efficacy in their lives. Her clinical interests include cognitive rehabilitation, neuropsychological and neurocognitive evaluations and adjustment from medical illness. 

Director of strategic initiatives and professional development
UPMC Centers for Rehab Services

Seminar Topic
Identifying and Addressing the Needs of Survivors of Critical Illness

Seminar Summary
Each year, over 4 million people survive ICU care and many of these survivors are discharged home with physical, cognitive and mental health problems that can last months to years. Post-intensive care syndrome, or PICS, is the term that is now used to describe the constellation of problems that can impact a person's ability to return to participating in activities both in the home and community following hospital discharge. This talk aims to familiarize participants with the problems associated with PICS, review key standardized measures to identify these problems and discuss an interprofessional post-acute clinic model to address patients at risk for developing PICS. 

Biographical Sketch
Hallie Zeleznik, PT, DPT is the Director of Strategic Initiatives and Professional Development for UPMC Centers for Rehab Services in Pittsburgh, PA. She is a Board-Certified Neurologic Clinical Specialist with over 20 years of clinical experience and specific expertise in rehabilitation in the areas of brain injury, stroke, vestibular disorders, concussion, and post-intensive care syndrome. Her professional roles involve clinical practice, program development and implementation, quality improvement, leadership, and clinical mentoring and teaching. She serves as a faculty member for UPMC Centers for Rehab Service's Neurologic & Geriatric Residency Programs and is both a clinical and adjunct faculty member in the University of Pittsburgh department of physical therapy. Hallie has served in a variety of roles for the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy including the Knowledge Translation Taskforce addressing the Clinical Practice Guideline: A Core Set of Outcome Measures for Adults with Neurologic Conditions Undergoing Physical Therapy. She has also served a 4-year term on the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties' Neurologic Specialty Council from 2017-2020. Currently, Hallie is the co-chair of the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy's Move Forward Knowledge Translation Taskforce, and the co-chair of APTA-Acute Care's Core Measures Clinical Practice Guideline Knowledge Translation committee.

Assistant professor, Department of Rehabilitation Science
UB School of Public Health and Health Professions

Seminar Topic
Brain Injury Behind Closed Doors: Prevalence, Risk Factors, Consequences and Management

Seminar Summary
One in four women aged 15-49 suffer physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Repeated acquired brain injuries (ABI) from intimate partner violence (IPV) are a serious public health concern worldwide. In the US, three out of four female IPV survivors have sustained at least one IPV-related ABI and nearly two out of four IPV survivors suffered from repeated ABIs and its silent and chronic sequelae. This talk discusses the prevalence, risk factors, and consequences of intimate partner violence-related head trauma and highlights the importance of trauma informed approaches to assessment and treatment for this undeserved group.

Biographical Sketch
Ghazala Saleem is an assistant professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Science at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. She is also the Director of Brain Function and Recovery Lab. Dr. Saleem earned both her master's in occupational therapy and her research doctorate in movement sciences from Columbia University.  Following her doctorate, she completed a year-long postdoctoral training in clinical research at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Saleem also completed a postdoctoral fellowship in pedicatric brain injury and neurorehabilitation from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She is a trained/licensed occupational therapist with extensive clinical experience in pediatrics and neurological disorders.