The Brain Injury Research Center at Mount Sinai Appoints New Director
Clinical neuropsychologist Kristen Dams-O’Connor, PhD, has been named Director of The Brain Injury Research Center (BIRC) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (ISMMS). Dr. Dams-O’Connor, currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at ISMMS, will replace Wayne A. Gordon, PhD, the Jack Nash Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, who is stepping down from his position as Director of BIRC after nearly thirty years of remarkable leadership. Dr. Gordon will continue to be actively engaged in research, teaching and clinical care. He remains the principal investigator of the Injury Control Research Center of Mount Sinai and of the New York Traumatic Brain Injury Model System. Dr. Dams-O’Connor’s research focuses on improving the health, longevity, and quality of life for survivors of traumatic brain injury (TBI) by understanding factors associated with long-term health and functioning.
“We are grateful for Dr. Wayne Gordon’s leadership of the BIRC over the last three decades,” said Joseph E. Herrera, DO, Chairman of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine for the Mount Sinai Health System. “The collective knowledge, expertise and experience that Kristen brings to the Rehabilitation Department will only strengthen the BIRC and reinforce Mount Sinai as a leader in this important field.
Dr. Dams-O’Connor’s research investigating long-term clinical and pathological outcomes associated with TBI is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She serves as Co-Project Director of the New York TBI Model System and Director of Research in The Mount Sinai Injury Control Research Center, a program funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Since 2014, she has also served as Co-Director of the BIRC at Mount Sinai.
“This is a very exciting time for TBI research, as we are getting closer to answering some of the questions about long-term outcomes that matter most to people living with brain injury,” says Dr. Dams-O’Connor. “I look forward to leading a collaborative team that will make major contributions to this important area of work.”
Dr. Dams-O’Connor has an extensive background in clinical neuropsychology. She completed post-graduate training in advanced statistical and psychometric methods, and has expertise in the design and implementation of TBI clinical trials, measurement, and outcome research. She has built interdisciplinary collaborations with researchers across the United States and has led local and multi-center research projects. Her research is currently supported by federal grants from the NIH, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, and the CDC. Dr. Dams-O’Connor has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed scientific manuscripts and book chapters, and has presented her work nationally and internationally.
The Brain Injury Research Center at Mount Sinai is one of 16 Model Systems Centers across the United States funded by the National Institutes on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. The BIRC is also a CDC-funded Injury Control Research Center, which conducts research in all three core phases of injury control: prevention, acute care, and rehabilitation. Since 1987, the BIRC has conducted cutting-edge research aimed at improving the health and quality of life of individuals living with brain injury.
About the Mount Sinai Health System
Mount Sinai Health System is one of the nation’s leading integrated academic health systems and one of the largest in the New York metropolitan area. Its comprehensive system includes seven hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, over 600 research and clinical laboratories, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and the Mount Sinai Phillips School of Nursing. Together, the Health System comprises approximately 48,000 employees, more than 9,000 physicians, and 8,600 nurses.
As a leading learning health system, Mount Sinai combines clinical expertise with scientific discovery to improve patient care while training the next generation of health care and biomedical leaders. The Health System provides care across every stage of life, from prenatal care through geriatrics, while advancing personalized medicine through artificial intelligence, data science, and biomedical research.
Mount Sinai is consistently recognized among the nation’s leading academic health systems for patient care, research, and education. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked No. 1 in New York by Newsweek and No. 5 on the magazine’s World’s Best Hospitals list. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai ranks No. 11 among U.S. medical schools and No. 1 among freestanding medical schools for National Institutes of Health funding, reflecting the strength of its scientific enterprise and leadership in biomedical research.
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