Dr. Steven Flanagan is the Chair, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine and Howard A. Rusk Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine at Rusk Rehabilitation. He is highly recognized, nationally and internationally, as one of the leading experts in the area of brain injury rehabilitation. He serves on numerous medical advisory boards, including the Brain Trauma Foundation and is a peer reviewer for several scientific journals. He currently is chairperson of the Medical Education Committee and sits on the Board of Governors of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Medicine. The author of numerous chapters and peer-reviewed publications, he has received awards from several organizations and been continually listed as one of America’s Top Doctors by Castle Connolly.
In this interview, he discusses: the kinds of patients treated for TBI at Rusk, if a TBI sustained during early adulthood or mid-adulthood can pose a risk for dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases associated with aging, the role of brain reserve in developing an understanding of the interplay between TBI and neurodegenerative diseases associated with aging, treatment of chronic cognitive impairment in TBI, TBI and sleep disorders, inclusion of family members in the care giver team, the use of technological innovations in rehabilitation, and research on TBI being conducted at Rusk, along with any system enhancements underway or being planned.
