2026 AAP Award Winners
Distinguished Academician Award
Craig McDonald, MD; UC Davis
Early Career Academician Award
Dan Cushman, MD; University of Utah
Ryan Solinsky, MD; Mayo Clinic
Mclean Outstanding Resident/Fellow Award
Colette Piasecki-Masters, MD; Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Innovation & Impact In Education Award
Daniel Daneshvar, MD, PhD; Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Leslie Rydberg, MD; Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Outstanding Mentor Award
Vu Nguyen, MD; University of Alabama at Birmingham
AAP Outstanding Service Award
Brad Dicianno, MD; University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Prakash Jayabalan, MD, PhD; Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Outstanding Student Interest Group Award
Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine
Student Chair: Holly Williamson
Faculty Advisor: Lauren Rudolph, MD
Carolyn Braddom Ritzler Research Award
David Morgenroth, MD; University of Washington
Distinguished Member Award
Larry Robinson, MD; University of Toronto
American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (AJPM&R) Awards
Excellence In Research Writing Award
“Effect of Wearable Robot-Assisted Gait Training on Balance and Walking Ability in Subacute Stroke Patients”
Yonghoon Kim, PT, MS, Suhyeon Baek, PT, Reema Priyanka Suram, PT, Rida Fatima, PT, Sun-Joung Leigh An, OT, OTD, Yonggeun Hong, DVM, PhD
Excellence in Research Writing Award
“Effects of Vibration Therapy on Muscle Strength, Shoulder Range of Motion, and Muscle Biomechanical Properties in Patients with Breast Cancer Undergoing Radiotherapy: A Randomized Controlled Trial”
Özlem Feyzioğlu, Selvi Dinçer, MD, Binnur Dönmez Yılmaz, MD, Tülay Çevik Saldıran, Özgül Öztürk
Ernest W. Johnson Excellence in Research Writing In-Training Award
“Association Between Corticosteroid Dose and Pain Reduction After Sacroiliac Joint Injections”
William Naber, DO, Darin Scribner, DO, Claire Kalpakjian, PhD, Rishi Bakshi, DO
William Rush Dunton, Jr, Md Award (Top Reviewer)
James Sliwa, MD, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Top Paper & Poster Awards
First Place: Kimberly Waddell, PhD
Assistant Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Pennsylvania
Discrepancies in the Recommended versus Actual Discharge Disposition Following an Acute Stroke Hospitalization
Second Place: Isabel Gippo, MD
Medical Student, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine
A Pilot Educational Intervention to Improve Diet-Related Self-Efficacy and Adherence: Knee Osteoarthritis Lifestyle Education (KALE) Study
2026 AAP Program for Academic Leadership (PAL) Graduates
Unoma Akamagwuna, MD, Baylor College of Medicine
Cody Andrews, MD, University of Michigan
Priya Bolikal, MD, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital
Sima Desai, MD, MS, Atrium Health Carolinas Rehabilitation
Raju Dhakal, MD, Spinal Injury Rehabilitation Center
Stephen Hampton, MD, Penn Medicine
Jennifer Hankenson, MD, University of Mississippi Medical Center
Adam Lamm, MD, MA, Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital
Nimish Mittal, MBBS, MD, MSc, University of Toronto
Lindsay Mohney, DO, Medical University of South Carolina
Diana Molinares, MD, University of Miami
Aditya Raghunandan, MD, UT Health San Antonio
Asad Siddiqi, DO, Weill Cornell Medical College / NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital
Juliet Zakel, MD, MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute
2026 RMSTP Graduates
Ronald Cotton, MD, PhD, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Justin Huber, MD, MS, University of Kentucky
Shanti Pinto, MD, Spaulding Rehabilitation/Harvard Medical School
Ishan Roy, MD, PhD, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Ryan Solinsky, MD, Mayo Clinic
Sruthi Thomas, MD, PhD, Baylor College of Medicine