Center for Excellence in Neurological Health is Open to Community
Patients find services, students gain experience and faculty can build upon research
Learning you or a loved one has a neurological disorder can feel overwhelming. There are so many questions: How did it develop? Is it genetic? Does it require surgery or medication? Will life ever be “normal” again?
There are multiple nervous system disorders that require the care of professionals, such as Alzheimer’s disease, brain tumors, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. Questions are natural following a diagnosis, and Sacred Heart University’s Center for Excellence in Neurological Health (CENH) has answers.
The center focuses on prevention and treatment of neurological conditions and diseases across a person’s lifespan. Housed within SHU’s College of Health Professions since 2016, the CENH provides excellence in neurological rehabilitation, doubling as a faculty research center and an interprofessional faculty- and student-run rehabilitation clinic. It also serves as a knowledge translation center for rehabilitation practitioners.
The center offers a multitude of services to promote and enhance the care of people with neurological conditions and diseases. Educational seminars are available for people living with these disorders, as well as for their families. Liaison services connect people with local resources and businesses that can help, and the center is available to area residents for screening, preventive and rehabilitative services. Additionally, evidence-based professional seminars are accessible for local clinicians and medical providers, as are consulting services for neurological rehabilitation practitioners.
Students in all health profession majors have access to interprofessional, educational opportunities and integrated clinical experience from the CENH. The center’s Stronger After Stroke program, started by SHU’s speech-language pathology program, gives students clinical education experiences. The program becomes interdisciplinary during the summer with physical and occupational therapy. People from the community who have suffered from strokes can receive treatment from students in all three of these programs, under faculty guidance.
The Pioneer Performance Center has partnered with the CENH to create exercise programs aimed at improving walking and balance for those whose gait is affected by neurological issues, while providing students with hands-on learning opportunities. “We monitor heart rate and blood pressure and train individuals at high intensities such as 75%-85% of heart rate maximum,” said Wendy Romney, clinical assistant professor of physical therapy. “Training includes walking on treadmills, over ground and on the stairs at the fastest speeds possible. Harnesses are worn for safety.”
Romney is a member of the CENH committee. The committee includes College of Health Professions faculty members who set yearly goals for the CENH. At the center, Romney works on high-intensity gait training for individuals with neurological disease. She is a board-certified specialist in neurological physical therapy with a Ph.D. in health science. She has been practicing at inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation settings and working with neurological diseases for the past 14 years. As a faculty member at SHU, she has taught courses in physical therapy examination for patients with neurological disease.
Photo caption: Doctor of physical therapy students Mary Claire Hemmer, left, and Jenna Arrigo, right, work with stroke survivor Laurie Weinstein of Bridgeport at the Center for Healthcare Education.