Angela M. Hanks Philippus, PhD, is a Research Professional 6 and a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Minnesota School of Medicine. With over 15 years of experience in research on spinal cord injury (SCI) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), she specializes in regulatory compliance, participant recruitment, data analysis, and dissemination for federally funded studies. She holds a BA in Psychology from Metropolitan State University of Denver and an MS and PhD in Clinical Science from the University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus. Her research focuses on psychosocial factors affecting quality of life post-injury, particularly in injustice appraisals and psychological outcomes. Dr. Hanks Philippus has contributed to multiple studies and peer-reviewed publications aiming to enhance SCI rehabilitation and measurement techniques. Dr. Kowalski is an Assistant Professor in the University of Minnesota’s Medical School, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine. She received her Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and holds clinical experience with an emphasis in neurorehabilitation. She completed her PhD in Rehabilitation Science with a Minor in Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota and conducted training in neuroimaging analysis as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Harvard University. Dr. Kowalski’s research centers on maladaptive neuroplastic mechanisms within the sensorimotor system after neurological injury. Her lab focuses on identification of biomarkers and the effect of rehabilitation interventions across molecular and systems level neuroscience domains.

Dr. Lauren Haney is a 3rd year physical medicine and rehabilitation resident at the University of Texas at Houston. She is applying to spinal cord injury medicine fellowship in pursuit of a career caring for spinal cord injury patients.

NO BIO

With a deep-rooted passion for neuroscience and clinical research, my journey has led me to become an Associate Professor at Gothenburg University and a dedicated Researcher at the Center for Advanced Reconstruction of Extremities (CARE). My research focus has been broad in terms of subject areas, research disciplines, and collaboration partners, which together have translated experimental basic research into clinical research. My incentive at CARE is to engage in the development and evaluation of surgical and rehabilitative strategies for patients with spinal cord injury (SCI), stroke and traumatic brain injury (TBI) aiming at restoration of mobility, independence and quality of life. More specifically, we evaluate novel surgical strategies to restore volitional hand control after SCI.

PhD and Reg. OT with extensive clinical experience in primary healthcare, rehabilitation technology industry, and spinal cord injury rehabilitation, together with teaching experience in universities and consumer organizations for people with e.g. spinal cord injury. Her research has focused on aging with spinal cord injury, participation in activities for people with spinal cord injury, and rehabilitation of people with syringomyelia.

I am pursuing research as a Docent at Lund University in parallel with clinical work in SCI outpatient rehabilitation at Skåne University Hospital in Sweden. I am PI of the first longitudinal study on aging with SCI in a Northern European perspective; the Swedish Aging with Spinal Cord Injury Study (SASCIS), initiated in 2010. The results can be used to design rehabilitation interventions and follow-up programs tailored to older adults with long-term SCI to support their healthy and sustainable aging. I am one of two PIs of the longitudinal, multicentre, mixed methods study STRIVE-SCI aiming to gain knowledge of patient outcomes, critical incidents during rehabilitation and transition to community, and unmet rehabilitation and support needs during the first year after SCI in Sweden. This knowledge will then be used to develop improvement interventions and implementation strategies. STRIVE-SCI promotes structured, equitable and empirically supported rehabilitation to improve long-term patient outcomes and standardise care nationwide. I am also part of the international collaboration the INTERnational Project for the Evaluation of "activE Rehabilitation" - inter-PEER, with the aim to investigate the effects of community peer-based rehabilitation after SCI.

Dr. Giuseppe Zito obtained his Master's Degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Rome “Sapienza” (2012) and a PhD also in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Bern (2016). At the Inselspital Bern, Sorbonne University in Paris and the ETH Zurich, he applied neuroimaging techniques to study the pathophysiological mechanisms of neurological disorders, such as cervical dystonia, Gilles de la Tourette disorder and functional movement disorders. Since January 2023, Giuseppe has been the Group Leader of the Advanced Imaging Research Group at SPF. His current research focuses on neuroimaging of cognition in SCI.

NO BIO

NO BIO

Brief bio data– February 2025 Professor Amiram Catz, MD, PhD ‏ Born in Israel, 1952. Married+3. Medical education: Hebrew University, Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem (1970-1976). Master in PM&R (1990), in Health administration (2009). PhD in Physiology (2005). Residency in neurosurgery: Ichilov Hospital, Tel-Aviv (1982). Specialization in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R), Loewenstein Hospital, Raanana (1983-1990). Specialization in spinal cord injuries (SCI), Stoke-Mandeville Hospital, UK (1988). Research director, the Spinal Rehabilitation Department, Loewenstein Rehabilitation Medical Center, Raanana, (2022-present). Clinical professor (full) in PM&R, Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University (2012-2022). Medical director of the Spinal Rehabilitation Department, Loewenstein Rehabilitation Medical Center, Raanana, (1994-2022). Medical Director and CEO Loewenstein Hospital (2011-2019) Head of the Rehabilitation Department, Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University (2008-2012). Main field of clinical practice: Consultation and care of medical problems related to spinal cord lesions, sphincter control, and back and neck pain. Special interest in spinal cord injuries, functional assessment, evaluation of the direct contribution of rehabilitation, Practicing a rehabilitation approach to the care of back pain disability. Principal Fields of research: 1. Autonomic changes in patients with spinal cord injury. 2. Development and assessment of medication and aids for patients with spinal cord injury. 3. Development and validation of assessment instruments for patients with spinal cord injury. 4. Outcome assessment in patients with spinal cord injury. PhD Diֹssertation: "Hemodynamic and hormonal changes following thoracic spinal cord lesions". Suggested a new model of thoracic spinal cord neural centers controlling the cardiovascular system. Developed The Spinal Cord Independence Measure – a disability measure for spinal cord injuries. Developed a new approach for the evaluation of rehabilitation effectiveness. Developed a sniff-controlled abdominal muscles electrical stimulation coughing system, for tetraplegia. Peer-reviewed publications: 115