Welcome
The goals of NuHealth’s three-year residency training program in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation are to produce residents with broad-based skills; to prepare them to enter directly a general private or academic practice; and to provide them with ample clinical experience and access to procedures for future clinical practice or fellowship.
Our residents, under the supervision of attending physicians experienced in rehabilitation medicine, attend and participate in weekly educational conferences, and read relevant textbooks and journal articles in order to expand their knowledge base, and become competent in all aspects of physical medicine and rehabilitation. The close faculty and resident interactions, and our supportive, collegial learning environment, provide for the development of confidence, competence, autonomy and compassion in the resident physician. We are one of only several programs in the country that is dually accredited by the ACGME. There are ample opportunities for research and publication.
We welcome your interest in learning more about our department.
Paul Pipia, MD
Chair, Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Program Description
The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Residency Program is dually accredited by the AOA and the ACGME. Our 25-bed inpatient unit treats a variety of patients, including CVA, amputees, hip fractures, multiple trauma, burn, traumatic brain injury, and spinal cord injury patients. Our outpatient clinic treats over 6,000 patients per year. We have specialty clinics devoted to back pain, prosthetics & orthotics, chronic pain, and pediatrics , as well as mixed clinics. In our clinics, residents perform a number of procedures, including joint, tendon, trigger point and Botox injections. Residents receive training in diagnostic ultrasound. Approximately 8 hours per week are devoted to lectures, and there is ample time for independent studies. Our residents do extremely well on the Board Examination, as well as the Self-Assessment Examination. Graduating residents receive excellent job placements. There is extensive attending supervision of residents.
We provide a broad-based curriculum that is competency-based, and features numerous teaching modalities, including bedside teaching, extensive didactic lecture series, faculty and resident combined conferences, Grand Rounds and specialty workshops.
CURRICULUM OVERVIEW
Our clinical curriculum is uniquely designed to provide a balanced inpatient and outpatient experience throughout the training program. This facilitates residents’ development of specialized interests early in their training, and allows them to enhance their knowledge and skills in all areas throughout their training.
INPATIENT SERVICE
Residents are assigned to approximately 8 patients, are responsible for case management, and function as team members. Four attending assigned to the floor provide supervision. The unit was recently renovated, with expanded and improved therapy and treatment areas.
OUTPATIENT SERVICE
Residents evaluate patients and initiate a treatment program for each patient. An attending physician assigned to the clinic oversees all patients. Our outpatient therapy areas are maintained with the most modern equipment. Specialty clinics include prosthetic and orthotic, back pain (which is staffed by a physiatrist, and an osteopathic physician who teaches manipulation), chronic pain and pediatrics. Residents get extensive exposure to Baclofen pumps and injections, including Botox, trigger points, joint, tendon and ultrasound-guided injections.
CONSULT SERVICE
During the consult rotation, residents formulate treatment programs for patients on other services throughout the hospital. Residents also participate in trauma and burn rounds. All consults are reviewed with an attending.
EMG SERVICE
Residents perform electrodiagnostic testing and Somatosensory Evoked Potential testing with an attending physician supervising the case. Between this EMG rotation and the rotation at South Nassau Communities Hospital, residents complete well over 200 EMG examinations.
SOUTH NASSAU COMMUNITIES HOSPITAL
Residents rotating at this hospital formulate treatment plans for outpatients and consults, and perform electrodiagnostic testing under the supervision of an attending physician.
NORTH SHORE LIJ ROTATION
Residents spend about one month per year rotating at NS-LIJ for increased experience in interventional spinal procedures and spinal cord injury management.
Faculty
Paul Pipia, M.D.
Chairman
Adam Isaacson, M.D.
Program Director
Ajendra Sohal, M.D.
Director of Pain Medicine
Thomas Pobre, M.D.
Associate Program Director & Director of Outpatient Services
Ricardo Cruz, M.D.
Director of Neurorehabilitation
Walter Gaudino, M.D.
Director of Prosthetics and Orthotics
Dennis Dowling, D.O., F.A.A.O.
Director of Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine
Mery Elashvili, D.O.
Voluntary Attending physician
Matthew Shatzer, D.O.
Spinal Cord Injury Services
Lynn Schaefer, Ph.D.
Director of Neuropsychological Services
Shaheda Quraishi, M.D.
Attending Physician, PM&R, Interventional Pain
Richard Gasalberti, M.D.
Attending Physician, Interventional Pain Services
Contact Us
Rosa Duras
Program Coordinator
Telephone: (516) 572-6525
Email: rduras@numc.edu
Other Important Information
Total Number of Residents: 13