The team at both St. Luke's and Roosevelt Hospitals include the following:

Physiatrists
These physicians specialize in physical medicine and rehabilitation and focus on restoring function to people in all age groups, with a wide range of problems in all the major systems of the body.

To become a physiatrist, individuals must successfully complete four years of graduate medical education and four additional years of postdoctoral residency training. Residency training includes one year spent developing fundamental clinical skills and three additional years of training in the full scope of the specialty.

To become board certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, physiatrists are required to pass both a written and oral examination administered by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Our team has the following full-time, board-certified physiatrists on staff:

	Malcolm D. Reid, MD, MPP Division Chief, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at St. Luke's and Roosevelt Hospitals Board Certifications: American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1992 Medical School: Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 1987 Residency: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, NY, NY 1988-1991
	Sal A. Girardi, MD Assistant Chairman, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at St. Luke's and Roosevelt Hospitals Board Certifications: American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1994 Medical School: Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv, Israel, 1987 Residency: Internal Medicine, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY, 1987-1990; Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx Memorial Hospital Center, Bronx, NY, 1990-1993

Chin-Ting Chiu, MD
Senior Attending, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at St. Luke's and Roosevelt Hospitals
Board Certifications: American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1981; certified in acupuncture in 1982
Medical School: Taipei Medical College, Taiwan, 1969
Residency: Surgery, Booth Memorial Medical Center, NY, NY, 1973-1975; Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, NYU Medical Center, NY, NY, 1975-1977

Other key members of the team include:

Physical Therapists
Physical therapists specialize in the evaluation and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions that may affect an individual's basic mobility, function in work, and daily or leisure activities. These may include various pain syndromes (such as in the back, neck or foot), neurological conditions (such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis or head injury), athletic or repetitive-use injuries (such as tendonitis, muscle strains and tears, or herniated discs), or after an accident or surgery (such as after fractures, joint replacements or tendon repairs).

The physical therapist carefully evaluates each patient's range of motion and joint integrity, muscle strength and flexibility, cardiovascular fitness, and movement patterns to identify key problems and deficits.

A full range of therapeutic approaches may be used, such as therapeutic exercise, movement and muscle reeducation, various manual techniques (such as joint mobilizations, massage, myofascial release, strain-counter-strain, muscle energy and others), taping, and gait, balance, transfer and endurance training.

Patient education is an integral part of all treatments. Patients are instructed in improved body mechanics, proper usage of assistive devices (such as cane, walker, wheelchair, prosthetics or orthotics), and self-management through a home exercise program from post-discharge through outpatient therapy to maintain high levels or function and well being.

Occupational Therapists
Occupational therapists specialize in the evaluation and treatment of daily living skills, upper extremity and hand function, splinting and positioning, work-related injuries, and cognitive perceptual remediation. Their goal is to maximize independent functioning in home, work, school and leisure activities.

Occupational therapists recommend and train in the use of adaptive equipment, specialize in splinting and therapeutic exercise to improve upper extremity function, and guide family members and attendants in safe and effective methods of caring for individuals. To further promote independence at home, patients may be educated in body mechanics, energy conservation techniques, and home exercise programs.

Speech-Language Pathologists
Speech-language pathologists help patients develop or recover reliable communication and swallowing skills so they can fulfill their educational, vocational and social roles. Speech-language pathologists work with patients who cannot produce speech sounds, or cannot produce them clearly; those with problems understanding and producing language; and those with cognitive communication impairments, such as attention, memory, and problem solving disorders. They also work with people who have swallowing difficulties and teach these individuals how to strengthen muscles or use compensatory strategies to swallow without choking or inhaling food or liquid.

Audiologists
Audiologists work with people who have hearing, balance and related ear problems. They examine individuals of all ages and identify those with the symptoms of hearing loss and other auditory, balance, and related sensory and neural problems. Our audiologists are licensed by New York State and certified by the American Speech and Hearing Association. Our facilities have state-of-the-art equipment to provide a wide range of services. Additionally, we test every infant born in the hospitals through the New York State-mandated hearing screening.