Carl R
01-26-2002, 11:23 AM
HOUSTON - Jan. 25, 2002 - Guy L. Clifton, M.D., a neurosurgeon and clinical investigator who is Runnells Distinguished Chair and Professor, Department of Neurosurgery, The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, has been named Director of Mission Connect. The announcement was made by E. Ashley Smith, President and CEO, TIRR Systems following a vote by the TIRR Foundation Board of Trustees
"With the naming of Dr. Clifton to head Mission Connect, we will continue to aggressively move forward with the work TIRR and our consortium partners are prepared to do," Smith said. "With more than 20 years experience in clinical research, Dr. Clifton will lead all scientific and clinical aspects of Mission Connect.
Mission Connect is the TIRR-led initiative to conduct collaborative research in central nervous system injuries, diseases and disorders. The initial clinical goal of the research project is to reverse the consequences of spinal cord injury. TIRR (The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research) is a 42-year-old not-for-profit rehabilitation hospital in the Texas Medical Center, known internationally for its patient care work with individuals with catastrophic injuries and illnesses.
At the Jan. 21 TIRR Foundation board meeting the trustees approved a second phase of funding for Mission Connect partners. On the recommendation of a Scientific Review Panel, the board awarded funding to the following scientists: Stephen Davies, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine; Ray Grill, Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical School at Houston; Ping Wu, M.D., Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, and David McAdoo, Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
(more)
add 1
Howard Wolf, a 20-year TIRR trustee and Chairman, TIRR Foundation Board of Trustees, said, "The success of Mission Connect will depend upon the translation of 21st century scientific breakthroughs into practical clinical applications. Dr. Clifton is uniquely qualified, based on his background in research and clinical practice, to be the director of Mission Connect."
"Guy Clifton and TIRR have enjoyed a close relationship for years. Many of the patients he sees in the operating room at Memorial Hermann Hospital are later transferred to TIRR for rehabilitation," Smith said. "Dr. Clifton knows the life-changing consequences of severe injuries for individuals and their loved ones. Dr. Clifton also knows the hope that Mission Connect affords these patients and their families."
In addition to chairing the Department of Neurosurgery at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Dr. Clifton is Chief of Neurosurgery Service at Hermann Hospital and Director of the Vivian L. Smith Center for Neurologic Research. He maintains an active clinical practice and directs the research program in the Department of Neurosurgery.
Dr. Clifton has been principal or co-investigator on 16 grants studying various aspects of brain injury and spinal cord injury. He is Principal Investigator for an NIH (National Institutes of Health) funded $7.2 million multi-center randomized study designed to test moderate systemic cooling as a treatment for acute, severe brain injury, a treatment developed by Dr. Clifton. The study is scheduled to enter its second phase in March.
He serves on the editorial boards of Spinal Cord and Journal of Neurotrauma. He is one of the authors of Guidelines for the Management of Severe Head Injury, the first guidelines to be approved by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. Dr. Clifton is a member of the NIH/NINDS Clinical Trials Initial Review Group. Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare, Best Doctors in America, and other publications have listed Dr. Clifton among their honorees. McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, Canada selected him as the 7th Annual H. Rocke Robertson Visiting Professor in Trauma.
A fifth-generation Texan, Dr. Clifton earned a B.S. degree from Texas A&M University in 1971 and received a M.D. degree from UT Medical Branch in Galveston with high honors in 1975. Dr. Clifton is a member of the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System Foundation Board, co-chairman of "Save Our ERs", and a member of St. Cecilia Catholic Church. Dr. Clifton and his wife Karen are the parents of five children.
###
"With the naming of Dr. Clifton to head Mission Connect, we will continue to aggressively move forward with the work TIRR and our consortium partners are prepared to do," Smith said. "With more than 20 years experience in clinical research, Dr. Clifton will lead all scientific and clinical aspects of Mission Connect.
Mission Connect is the TIRR-led initiative to conduct collaborative research in central nervous system injuries, diseases and disorders. The initial clinical goal of the research project is to reverse the consequences of spinal cord injury. TIRR (The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research) is a 42-year-old not-for-profit rehabilitation hospital in the Texas Medical Center, known internationally for its patient care work with individuals with catastrophic injuries and illnesses.
At the Jan. 21 TIRR Foundation board meeting the trustees approved a second phase of funding for Mission Connect partners. On the recommendation of a Scientific Review Panel, the board awarded funding to the following scientists: Stephen Davies, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine; Ray Grill, Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical School at Houston; Ping Wu, M.D., Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, and David McAdoo, Ph.D., The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.
(more)
add 1
Howard Wolf, a 20-year TIRR trustee and Chairman, TIRR Foundation Board of Trustees, said, "The success of Mission Connect will depend upon the translation of 21st century scientific breakthroughs into practical clinical applications. Dr. Clifton is uniquely qualified, based on his background in research and clinical practice, to be the director of Mission Connect."
"Guy Clifton and TIRR have enjoyed a close relationship for years. Many of the patients he sees in the operating room at Memorial Hermann Hospital are later transferred to TIRR for rehabilitation," Smith said. "Dr. Clifton knows the life-changing consequences of severe injuries for individuals and their loved ones. Dr. Clifton also knows the hope that Mission Connect affords these patients and their families."
In addition to chairing the Department of Neurosurgery at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Dr. Clifton is Chief of Neurosurgery Service at Hermann Hospital and Director of the Vivian L. Smith Center for Neurologic Research. He maintains an active clinical practice and directs the research program in the Department of Neurosurgery.
Dr. Clifton has been principal or co-investigator on 16 grants studying various aspects of brain injury and spinal cord injury. He is Principal Investigator for an NIH (National Institutes of Health) funded $7.2 million multi-center randomized study designed to test moderate systemic cooling as a treatment for acute, severe brain injury, a treatment developed by Dr. Clifton. The study is scheduled to enter its second phase in March.
He serves on the editorial boards of Spinal Cord and Journal of Neurotrauma. He is one of the authors of Guidelines for the Management of Severe Head Injury, the first guidelines to be approved by the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. Dr. Clifton is a member of the NIH/NINDS Clinical Trials Initial Review Group. Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare, Best Doctors in America, and other publications have listed Dr. Clifton among their honorees. McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, Canada selected him as the 7th Annual H. Rocke Robertson Visiting Professor in Trauma.
A fifth-generation Texan, Dr. Clifton earned a B.S. degree from Texas A&M University in 1971 and received a M.D. degree from UT Medical Branch in Galveston with high honors in 1975. Dr. Clifton is a member of the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System Foundation Board, co-chairman of "Save Our ERs", and a member of St. Cecilia Catholic Church. Dr. Clifton and his wife Karen are the parents of five children.
###