RMSTP Graduates

Anthony S. Burns, MD

Anthony S. Burns graduated from the Yale University School of Medicine in 1994. Afterwards, he completed a combined Internal Medicine/PM&R residency training in the Johns Hopkins/Sinai Hospital of Baltimore residency program in Baltimore, Maryland. During his residency training, he received the Arthur A. Siebens Memorial Award presented annually to a senior resident in the Johns Hopkins/Sinai PM&R residency for excellence in academic pursuits and devotion to patient care. He is board certified in two medical specialties: Internal Medicine and PM&R. In addition, he completed a spinal cord injury (SCI) fellowship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham medical center and has additional certification in the subspecialty of Spinal Cord Medicine. He is also a past participant in the Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program (RMSTP), an initiative funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). From August 2000 through October 2007, he held an appointment as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia PA, and was the Assistant Director of the Regional SCI Center of the Delaware Valley. During this time, he was also appointed an adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia PA. In November 2007, Dr. Burns joined the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute as the Medical Director of the Spinal Cord Rehabilitation Program, the largest program of its kind in Canada. He also holds a faculty appointment as an Associate Professor in the Division of Physiatry, Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on prognosis following traumatic SCI, neurorecovery and plasticity following SCI, and peripheral nervous system function following SCI.

Pablo Celnik, MD

Dr. Celnik is a board certified Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) physician. Originally, he completed residency training in neurology in Argentina, followed by a fellowship in Neurological Rehabilitation at the University of Maryland and later a research fellowship in the laboratory of Dr. Mark Hallett at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NIH). After this work, he entered the PM&R residency program in Johns Hopkins University where he was ultimately appointed chief resident. After this training, he was awarded a K12 Career Development Award, the “Rehabilitation Medicine Scientific Training Program” (RMSTP), sponsored by the Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP) and NIH, under the mentorship of Dr. Leonardo Cohen in the Human Cortical Physiology Section of the NIH. At the same time, he joined as an assistant professor the PM&R and Neurology Departments at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. At the completion of his training in the RMSTP he was awarded the “Clinician Scientist Award” from Johns Hopkins University, the “2006 Dennis W. Jahnigen Career Development Scholars Award” from the American Geriatric Society, and obtained a Beginning Grant in Aid from the American Heart Association. More recently, he has received funding from the NIH to continue his investigations and to start the Human Brain Physiology Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University. Dr Celnik’s research has focused on investigating the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying motor learning, aging and the effects of brain stimulation to enhance motor function after stroke. This research is accomplished with the use of different techniques such as behavioral measures, transcranial magnetic stimulation and function MRI.

Dr Celnik has published several manuscripts in highly regarded peer reviewed journals, as well as chapters in prominent books, received numerous awards including the 2007 “Young Academician Award” from the AAP, organized workshops and lectured in different universities, and national and international meetings. Finally, Dr. Celnik also performs as the Medical Director of the Outpatient Neurorehabilitation Program of Johns Hopkins Medicine, where care is provided to patients with rehabilitation needs due to neurological conditions.

Jay J. Han, MD

I am exploring the possibility of combining my interest in neuromuscular disorders with my previous experience in molecular biology and genetics. My mentor is Dr. Jeffrey S. Chamberlain at the University of Washington, Seattle. The laboratory’s focus is in the development of gene therapy for muscular dystrophy. Currently, my research focus is in the development of gene transfer method that can deliver and express the "therapeutic" genes, including dystrophin and muscle transcription factors in the case of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, specifically in the muscle tissue. My training involves learning the various techniques and application of: molecular biology, viral vector production, cell culturing, and measurements of muscle function both in vitro and in vivo models. My long-term goal is to contribute by improving the efficacy of gene therapy in the treatment of neuromuscular diseases by effectively combining it with conventional therapies and modalities.

Preeti Raghavan, MD

Dr. Preeti Raghavan obtained her MD degree from Rajah Muthiah Medical College, India. She completed her residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Albert Einstein School of Medicine, New York. Dr. Raghavan is pursuing her research fellowship in motor control under the mentorship of Dr. Andrew Gordon at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is studying the kinematic and kinetic features of prehension during functional tasks in normal individuals and patients after stroke. Her research goal is to understand the neural mechanisms underlying the recovery of voluntary motor functions in brain-injured patients. In addition she is an attending physician on the brain injury rehabilitation unit of Mount Sinai Medical Center.

Yonghua Tai, MD, PhD

Dr. Tai is a staff physician of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and research scientist of Kaiser Foundation Rehabilitation Center. Dr. Tai completed his medical education at The Second Military Medical University, Shanghai and holds a PhD in Neuroanatomy from The University of Iowa. His major areas of research are in visual rehabilitation and training programs to treat deficits of visual field and visual spatial processing. Dr. Tai is currently developing visual rehabilitation programs to train patients with homonymous hemianopia to develop conscious vision in the blind field.

Yejia Zhang, MD, PhD

Dr. Zhang earned her PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology at the University of Pennsylvania after completing medical school in China. She started her Phase I training in the RMSTP program during her residency at the University of Rochester, Rochester, NY. In 2002, Dr. Zhang began Phase II training in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Rush Medical College, Chicago, IL. After completing the three-year training period, she joined the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University as an assistant professor. She is currently funded by the National Institutes of Health (K-08) to continue her studies on the effects of growth factors on intervertebral discs regeneration and the mechanism of disc degeneration under the mentorship of Dr. Maurizio Pacifici, PhD, and Dr. Irving Shapiro, DDS, PhD Since the initiation of her training with the RMSTP, Dr. Zhang has received numerous awards, including the PM&R Foundation New Investigator Research Grant, the Scott F. Nadler, DO, Research Grant from PASSOR, a Stryker Research Grant from the Cervical Spine Research Society (CSRS), a 21st Century Research Grant from the CSRS, and a Research Grant from the North American Spine Society. Her research will provide guidance on the development of treatment strategies for degenerative disc disease, which is associated with low back pain.