Biomedical & Rehabilitation Engineer

Expert Witness No. 1340

Virginia

EDUCATION:

Master of Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, 1983.
Awarded scholarship for academic excellence covering tuition, fees and stipend.

Bachelor of Science, Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, 1981.
Graduated with honors.

EMPLOYMENT:

December, 1989 - present
Director, Division of Rehabilitation Engineering
Local University Health Center, Virginia
Responsible for the establishment, management and ongoing development of a free-standing rehabilitation engineering program within the University of Virginia Health System.
Manage the clinical, educational, and research activities of the Division.
Write and manage grants; develop and fulfill service contracts; collaborate with other academic departments, governmental agencies, and industry on special projects.
Teach graduate and undergraduate engineers, medical residents, allied health students, and healthcare professionals. Perform engineering research.

June 1985 - December 1989
Rehabilitation Engineer, Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation
School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia.
Established a nationally recognized wheelchair seating program within the Division of Prosthetics and Orthotics.
Developed and implemented strategies to maximize the program's clinical effectiveness and financial strength.
Provided clinical education and supervision to graduate biomedical engineers enrolled in the University's federally-funded Rehabilitation Engineering Training Program.
Participated in the clinical evaluation and refinement of new products developed by the University of Virginia's Rehabilitation Engineering Center on Wheeled Mobility.

June, 1983 - June, 1985
Director, Rehabilitation Engineering Services
Woodrow Wilson Rehabilitation Center, Fishersville, Virginia.
One of only two service-oriented rehabilitation engineers employed at that time by the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Coordinated, both administratively and clinically, in-house and field rehabilitation engineering consultation, design and fabrication services.
As an applied biomedical engineer, implemented, utilizing human factors design, assistive devices and equipment that maximized individuals' employability, physical independence, and quality of life.
Managed an allied medical department and professional service in a manner that complied with both rehabilitation and hospital association standards.

ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS:

2002-present
Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Virginia

1992-2000
Assistant Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Virginia
Instructor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Virginia

1985-1989
Instructor, Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, University of Virginia

SELECT PROFESSIONAL ACHIEVEMENTS:

2002- Project manager for the development of an occupational musculoskeletal disorders clinic at the University of Virginia Health System.
Coordinate and facilitate the clinical, administrative, and technical development activities.
Clinic is scheduled to open in August 2002.

Reviewer, RESNA 2001 Student Scientific Paper Competition.

Licensed Professional Engineer, having successfully passed, on first attempt, the Principles and Practices of Engineering exam.

2000- Assisted the University of Virginia Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in developing a grant proposal for funding as a Model Spinal Cord Injury System.
Responsible for developing a partnership with the Human Factors Engineering Program at Virginia Tech, whereby significant human factors engineering research would be conducted within the proposed Model System.
This represents a unique opportunity for a significant collaboration between the two universities, as well as a significant engineering contribution to Spinal Cord Injury research.

Reviewer, RESNA 2000 Student Scientific Paper Competition and Pre-Conference Educational Programs.

1999- Developed a comprehensive database for the Rehabilitation Engineering Program to document and track key operational components of the program.

1999- Reviewer, RESNA '99 Student Scientific Paper Competition.

1998-1999- Developed a one-day educational course entitled "Practical Approaches to Seating and Positioning" for clinicians who provide services to individuals with disabilities.
Delivered the training throughout the Mid-Atlantic states.

1997- Elected to the Professional Advisory Board of the Epilepsy Foundation of America.
This represents the first time ever that an engineer has been elected to the Board.

1997- Successfully passed, on the first attempt, the "Fundamentals of Engineering" exam, the first of two comprehensive exams administered by the Commonwealth of Virginia for registration as a Professional Engineer.

1997- Developed a proposal to independently test commercial medical devices manufactured by a leading manufacturer of medical devices.
The proposal included comparative testing against similar devices manufactured by the company's primary competitors.

Co-authored a $50,000 contract from the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services to provide management and technical support of the Department's statewide rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology programs.

1996- Co-author of the University of Pittsburgh's grant-funded curriculum for the Assistive Technology Training Program for Rehabilitation Technology Suppliers.
Author of the Engineering Principles and Biomechanics components of the curriculum.

1996- Co-author of CARTE, The Center for Assistive and Rehabilitation Technology Training and Evaluation, a one-year project funded by the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services to increase the availability of assistive technology evaluation services in Central Virginia.
Served as Training Coordinator for the Center.
Amount of award: $125,000.

1996- Collaborated in the design of an automatic braking system for manual wheelchairs.
This design has been submitted to the University of Virginia Patent Foundation for potential commercialization.

1996- Designed the front-latch subasis bar hardware and small-diameter subasis bar.
Collaborated with Metalcraft Industries, a manufacturer of assistive technologies, in the technology transfer process which resulted in the commercialization of these products.

1995-1996- Co-author of the RESNA document.
This work was supported by a grant from NIDRR.

1995-1996- As an activity of the Virginia Rehabilitation Technology Training Project, developed and delivered twenty high-level seminars focusing on the state-of-the-art in clinical and research practices within the rehabilitation technology arena.
Areas of focus included: specialized seating and positioning; mobility; augmentative and alternative communication; technology for personal vehicle transportation; robotics applications; assistive technology for older adults; computer applications and adaptations; human factors engineering; and, exemplary service models.
Subject matter was delivered by nationally-recognized clinical and research leaders to an audiences made up of professionals from a variety of backgrounds.

1995-present - Developed and implemented a rehabilitation engineering service contract a private non-profit corporation that provides assistive technology services to six school districts in Central Virginia.
Contract has been continued each successive school year.

1994- Author of the University of Virginia's proposal for its fourth Rehabilitation Long-Term Training Program in Rehabilitation Engineering/Technology.
Proposal was funded in the fall of 1995.
Served as Co-Project Director.
Amount of award: $289,017.

1994- Assisted the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services in the development of a statewide counselor training program focusing on assistive and rehabilitation technology training.
Training modules were developed for virtually every aspect of technology.
Chosen as on of the trainers for delivering the module on Seating and Mobility.

1993-1994- Developed and managed a $70,000 contract with the Virginia Department of Rehabilitative Services to provide management support to the Department's rehabilitation engineering program.
Developed a CQI Plan and a Technical Supervision Plan for the Department.

1991-1994- Reviewer of Scientific Papers submitted to RESNA for presentation at the 1992-1995 Annual RESNA Conferences and publication in the Conference Proceedings.

1991- Developed a Five Year Business Plan for the Department of Rehabilitation Engineering Services.
This plan was used for the on going development and expansion of the service at the University of Virginia.

1989 1996- Participated in the clinical training of twenty-eight residents in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

1983-1996- Trained and supervised 35 graduate biomedical and rehabilitation engineers enrolled in the University of Virginia's federally-funded Rehabilitation Engineering Training Program.

1990 1991- Managed the fiscal operations of the Rehabilitation Engineering Service.
Finished the Service's first year under budget, with charges exceeding costs by $20,000.

1989- Successfully established the University of Virginia's first Department of Rehabilitation Engineering Services.
Developed the formal program proposal for the creation of the department and presented it to the executive management of the University's Health Sciences Center.

1989- Co-authored the University of Virginia's proposal for its third Rehabilitation Long-Term Training Program in Rehabilitation Engineering.
Proposal was funded in the fall of 1990.
Served as clinical coordinator and educator for the project.
Amount of award exceeded $300,000.

1988- Developed new strategies to improve the fit and function of the Contour U seating system manufactured by Pin Dot Products. Collaborated with the manufacturer to transfer these strategies to a commercial domain.
These strategies continue to be used as a standard by Pin Dot Products in 1997.

1987- Developed a proposal to establish a Rehabilitation Engineering Consortium in Richmond, Virginia.
Proposed a model concept of the "sharing" of a rehabilitation engineering service program by the principle rehabilitation hospitals in Richmond.
Each hospital would fund the percentage of the rehabilitation engineering program that it utilized.
While proposal was not funded, the consortium concept has been successfully implemented by others.

1986 1988- As an invited speaker, presented rehabilitation engineering services at the University of Virginia to United States congressional aides.

1985 1991- Professional staff member of the RSA funded Rehabilitation Engineering Training Program and of the NIDRR funded Rehabilitation Engineering Center on Seating and Wheelchair Design.

1985- Established the Commonwealth's first comprehensive wheelchair seating program.
This program quickly earned a national reputation for its ability to successfully solve complex seating problems.

1984- Provided the technical lead in a three day study of the feasibility of rehabilitation engineering technologies applied in a total care facility at the Richfield Retirement Communities in Salem, Virginia.

1984- Awarded $15,000 contract from West Virginia's Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation to introduce rehabilitation engineering technologies to the state and to assess all residents in the state's MHMR facilities who possess multiple disabilities.

1984- Authored a proposal to establish the nation's first mobile rehabilitation engineering laboratory.
Received $50,000 grant from the Virginia Office of the Secretary of Human Resources for this project.
Successfully developed the mobile laboratory that same year.

1983 1985- Marketed DRS rehabilitation engineering statewide, speaking with consumers, employers, public health nurses, field counselors, and other professionals in the public and private sectors.

1983- Developed WWRC's first policies and procedures for rehabilitation engineering.

SELECT LECTURES, PUBLICATIONS WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

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