Medical Staff
 John E. Bertini Jr., M.D.
Neuro-urology
A Texas native, Dr. Bertini has staffed the impotence and infertility clinic at Memorial Hermann|TIRR since its inception more than a decade ago. He received his degree in psychology from Trinity University in San Antonio and attended medical school and urology residency training at UT Medical School.
The author of numerous scientific articles, Dr. Bertini is board-certified in urology and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He holds leadership positions in several community, business and medical organizations.
He also holds teaching appointments at both UT Medical School and St. Joseph Medical Center, where he is the academic chief of urology, director of continuing medical education and chief of staff.
 Carol Bodenheimer, M.D.
Director, Specialty Rehabilitation Program
Dr. Bodenheimer serves as medical director of the Specialty Rehabilitation Program at TIRR. The program provides rehabilitative services for individuals with multiple trauma, complex orthopedic diagnoses and neurological and neuromuscular disorders, such as multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.
Dr. Bodenheimer is board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation and electrodiagnostic medicine. She has a subspecialty certification in spinal cord injury medicine. She is also an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine.
Prior to joining TIRR and Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Bodenheimer was clinical assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia and a member of the medical staff at Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
Dr. Bodenheimer received her medical degree from Temple University School of Medicine, completed her internship in internal medicine at Pennsylvania Hospital and her residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) at Temple University. She completed her master teachers fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
She has held hospital appointments on the medical staff at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore and Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Houston. Dr. Bodenheimer is the author of numerous scientific papers and has published several book chapters in medical textbooks.
 Teodoro A. Castillo, M.D.
Co-director, Spinal Cord Injury Program
Dr. Castillo is clinical assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at UT Medical School and adjunct assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine. Prior to joining TIRR, Dr. Castillo served as a staff physician for the Spinal Cord Injury Service at the VA North Texas Healthcare System in Dallas.
He was assistant clinical professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical School at Dallas.
Dr. Castillo received his medical degree from University of East Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center in the Philippines and completed his internship at St. Michael’s Medical Center, Seton Hall University in New Jersey. His residency in PM&R was at New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY, where he served as chief resident.
Dr. Castillo completed his postdoctoral fellowship in Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation at TIRR through the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance of the Baylor College of Medicine and UT Medical School. He is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Spinal Cord Injury Medicine. He is also certified to practice acupuncture.
Dr. Castillo is a member of the Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the International Spinal Cord Injury Society, the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) and the American Paraplegia Society. He was awarded Faculty Attending of the Year in 2001 and Most Outstanding Teacher of the Year in 2007.
 William H. Donovan, M.D.
Medical Director and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs
Director, Amputee Program
Dr. Donovan has been associated with TIRR since 1980. An internationally recognized academic physiatrist who specializes in the areas of spinal cord injury and amputations, he is known for his expertise in these fields and is involved in numerous research projects, many in a leadership position.
The American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation recognized him with one of its highest honors, the Distinguished Clinician Award, during the organization’s 62nd Annual Assembly in November 2000. He was cited as an individual who has made important contributions to both the specialty and the Academy.
Dr. Donovan is medical director at TIRR and also serves as executive vice president for medical affairs. He is chairman and professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, UT Medical School at Houston and adjunct professor at Baylor College of Medicine.
He is also director of the amputee program at TIRR and carries a full inpatient service for both amputees and spinal cord injury patients. Dr. Donovan sees patients in TIRR Outpatient Clinic and also serves as chief of service for PM&R at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center.
Dr. Donovan is director and principal investigator of the Texas Model Spinal Cord Injury System grant, awarded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department of Education. The research is conducted by TIRR, UT Medical School at Houston and Baylor College of Medicine. The Spinal Cord Injury Program at TIRR has been named a Model System every renewal period since 1973.
IMSoP (now called the International Spinal Cord Society or ISCoS) elected Dr. Donovan president-elect at their annual meeting in 2002. He has served on the Board of Councilors for the International Medical Society of Paraplegia since 1986.
He has been a member of the board of directors for the American Spinal Injury Association since 1976 and was president of that organization from 1987-1989. In 1984, he was named Physician of the Year by the Texas Governor’s Committee for Disabled Persons and in 1990 he received the John S. Young Lectureship Award from Craig Hospital in Denver.
He also has served as associate editor of the Journal of Paraplegia since 1986, made more than 230 presentations to medical and professional organizations and written more than 65 articles in peer reviewed journals.
 Gerard Francisco, M.D.
Co-director, Brain Injury and Stroke Program
Dr. Francisco is one of the nation’s leading physicians in the field of brain injury rehabilitation. A frequent lecturer nationally and internationally on a number of related subjects including spasticity management, he is currently conducting research on the use of botulinum toxin and intrathecal baclofen for the treatment of spasticity.
Dr. Francisco is clinical associate professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston and adjunct associate professor at Baylor College of Medicine. He received his medical degree from the University of the Philippines and completed his internship at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago. His residency in PM&R was at the University of Medicine and Dentistry-New Jersey Medical School, where he was chief resident.
He was awarded the Dean’s Teaching Award from UT Medical School in 2001 and 2004 and the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance of the Baylor College of Medicine and University of Texas Health Science Center Teacher of the Year Award in 2000.
Dr. Francisco completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Brain Injury Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine. Before joining the Brain Injury Program at TIRR in 1997, he served as director of the Brain Injury Program at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation and assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at New Jersey Medical School.
Currently the co-director of the Brain Injury and Stroke Program at Memorial Hermann|TIRR, Dr. Francisco also serves as Medical Director of Project Victory. A collaboration between Memorial Hermann|TIRR and TIRR Foundation, the goal of Project Victory is to help wounded service members recover and successfully re-integrate back into the community.
 Martin Grabois, M.D.
Executive Vice President, Medical Policy
Dr. Grabois is professor and chairman of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine and adjunct professor of PM&R at UT Medical School. He is executive vice president for medical policy at TIRR and has been a member of the facility’s medical staff since 1973.
He is now serving as president of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM); past president of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPMR), American Pain Society (APS), International Rehabilitation Medicine Association (IRMA) and Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP).
His awards include the ACRM Gold Key Award, AAPMR Krusen Award, APS Distinguished Service Award and AAP Distinguished Member Award. Well-known for his expertise in evaluation and treatment of chronic pain syndromes, he is invited to speak worldwide on the topic.
 John C. Hairston, M.D.
Co-director, Neuro-urology Center
Dr. Hairston completed urology and general surgery training at Northwestern University McGaw Medical Center Hospitals in Chicago. His training included one year of basic science research evaluating various molecular aspects of erectile dysfunction in two different animal models. He completed a clinical fellowship in female urology, voiding dysfunction and pelvic reconstruction at The Cleveland Clinic Florida.
Having received his medical degree from UT Medical School in 1995, Dr. Hairston returned to the school as assistant professor of surgery in the Division of Urology in July 2002. While there, he played an active role in the education of residents and served as co-director of the clinical fellowship program in female urology, neuro-urology and urinary tract reconstruction at the University.
Currently in private practice, Dr. Hairston specializes in both male and female incontinence, neuro-urology and urinary tract reconstruction. He has presented abstracts both nationally and internationally, and has co-authored several book chapters.
He is co-director of the Neuro-urology Center at TIRR, a collaborative effort between Baylor College of Medicine, UT Medical School and TIRR. His interests include working to develop an active clinical research and basic science program regarding neurogenic incontinence and lower urinary tract dysfunction through collaborative partnerships with institutions throughout the Texas Medical Center.
 Cindy B. Ivanhoe, M.D.
Attending Physician, Brain Injury and Stroke Program
Dr. Ivanhoe served as director of the Brain Injury and Stroke Program at TIRR from 1996 to 2006. She was co-director of the program from 1993 to 1996. She is currently an attending physician at Memorial Hermann|TIRR and chief medical officer of Mentis Neurorehabilitation.
Dr. Ivanhoe is associate professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation for Baylor College of Medicine and adjunct associate professor for University of Texas at Houston. She continues to mentor fellows in brain injury rehabilitation, residents in physical medicine and rehabilitation and medical students.
Dr. Ivanhoe speaks nationally and internationally and has been the principle investigator on studies regarding stroke and spasticity management, including intrathecal baclofen. She is a reviewer for articles for the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
In 2007, Dr. Ivanhoe received the Elizabeth and Sidney Licht Award presented by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. This award is presented to authors whose paper presents potential significance and empirical and theoretical contributions to rehabilitation medicine. The same year, Dr. Ivanhoe received the Roy H. Cullen Quality of Life Award presented by the Houston Area Parkinson Society.
In 2004, Dr. Ivanhoe received the R. Edward Carter Award from the Texas Brain Injury Association for Clinical Achievement and Continuing Accomplishments. In 2002, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Texas Brain Injury Association, and in 2001 received the R. Edward Carter Award from the Texas Brain Injury Association for Clinical Achievement and Continuing Accomplishments. In 2000, Dr. Ivanhoe received the Professional Contributions Award from the Texas Brain Injury Association.
 Sunil Kothari, M.D.
Attending Physician, Brain Injury and Stroke Program
Dr. Kothari joined the TIRR Brain Injury Program soon after completing a fellowship in Brain Injury Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine. He graduated from UT Medical School, where he also completed his internship in internal medicine.
He was chief resident during his residency in PM&R at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. He has a bachelor's degree from Yale University and a master's degree in philosophy from The University of Texas in Austin.
Dr. Kothari is assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine and adjunct assistant professor at UT Medical School.
His background and interest in ethics, neurobehavioral issues and other aspects of brain injury have enhanced the TIRR Brain Injury Program. He is a member of a committee studying ethical issues surrounding brain injury sponsored by the Hastings Center, a leading bioethics center located in New York. He is also co-author of the chapter on brain injury rehabilitation in one of the leading textbooks of rehabilitation medicine.
In addition to seeing patients at TIRR, Dr. Kothari is available for acutely injured brain injury patients at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center. This strengthens the transition of patients from the trauma setting to rehabilitation, which is one of the guiding principles of the NIDRR Model System grant.
 Juan Latorre, M.D.
Co-director, Spinal Cord Injury Program
Dr. Latorre joined the Spinal Cord Injury Program at TIRR in October 2004. He completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) at Baylor College of Medicine in 2002 and completed a fellowship at TIRR in spinal cord injury in 2003 prior to participating in an advanced spinal cord injury fellowship at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center – Department of Veteran Affairs in Dallas, Texas, in June 2004. He graduated from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, Colombia, where he received his Bachelor of Science and medical degree and completed his internship in internal medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Dr. Latorre is currently the medical director of the Christopher Reeve Foundation NeuroRecovery Network - Body Weight Supported Treadmill Locomotor Training project at Memorial Hermann|TIRR and is part of several ongoing research studies at the facilitiy. In addition, Dr. Latorre serves as the director of The University of Texas Spinal Cord Injury Fellowship training program.
One of Dr Latorre’s interests is the rehabilitation and management of the amputee population. He currently serves as the inpatient admitting physician for the renowned TIRR amputee pre-prosthetic and prosthetic training program.
Dr. Latorre is dual board-certified in PM&R and spinal cord injury. He also serves as an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
 Monika Shah, D.O.
Clinical Director, Brain Injury and Stroke Program
Dr. Shah joined the Brain Injury and Stroke program at Memorial Hermann|TIRR in September 2005. Dr. Shah currently serves as the clinical director of the Brain Injury and Stroke Program.
Her clinical responsibilities include inpatient and outpatient management of persons who have sustained traumatic brain injury, stroke, aneurysm, brain tumor, anoxic brain injury and other diagnoses. She also performs outpatient procedures for spasticity management, including management of intrathecal baclofen pumps.
In addition to her responsibilities at TIRR, she provides consultation services at Kindred Hospital in the Texas Medical Center, where she serves as the director of the Long-Term Brain Injury Program, as well as interim director of Rehabilitation Services.
Dr. Shah has authored book chapters on topics related to stroke rehabilitation. She has a special interest in issues related to intimacy after stroke and is currently involved in research on this subject.
Dr. Shah is assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine and adjunct assistant professor at UT Medical School. She is involved in the training and education of residents in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance of the Baylor College of Medicine and UT Medical School, as well as medical students from around the country.
Prior to joining TIRR, she completed a traumatic brain injury and stroke fellowship at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine. She completed her residency at Baylor College of Medicine, where she served as chief resident. Her medical training was completed at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth.
 Christopher P. Smith, M.D.
Co-director, Neuro-urology Center
Dr. Smith is a specialist in field of neurology and voiding disorders. He serves as co-director of the Neuro-urology Center at TIRR, a collaborative effort between Baylor College of Medicine, UT Medical School and TIRR. Dr. Smith is an assistant professor in the Scott Department of Urology at Baylor College of Medicine.
He received his medical degree from Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. He completed his residency training at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and his fellowship training in neuro-urology and female urology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
He was an American Foundation of Urological Disease scholar from 2000 to 2002. His research interest is in the use of botulinum toxin to treat various lower urinary tract disorders and spinal cord injury.
 Luz Viviana Tastard, M.D.
Attending Physician
Luz Viviana Tastard, M.D., returns to TIRR to treat brain injury and dual-diagnosis patients following her appointment as an attending medical physician at the prestigious regional rehabilitation facility at Sunnaas Hospital in Nesoddtangen, Norway, in their spinal cord injury unit.
A diplomate of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, she received her medical degree at National University in Bogotá. She completed her medical residencies at Bogotá’s National University, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance of the Baylor College of Medicine and UT Medical School. She completed a second postdoctoral fellowship in spinal cord injury within the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Alliance.
Dr. Tastard’s research experience includes treatment of chronic neuropathic pain in patients with spinal cord injury and the incidence of dysphagia and/or dysphonia in patients with acute cervical spinal cord injury and correlation with treatment interventions. Other research experience includes the design of a rehabilitation management protocol for children with neuromuscular diseases. Her research has been published and presented at various medical conferences. Dr. Tastard is board-certified in spinal cord injury medicine.
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Memorial Hermann|TIRR
