How To Save A Life

A new residency – Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) – attained full accreditation last fall in record time— 15 months. Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education approved the residency with commendation and no citations.

PM&R, or physiatry, focuses on the diagnosis, treatment and management of conditions that cause disability.

The program received 329 applicants for four residency slots. The inaugural class of residents arrive in July 2023.

The program was a dream 20 years in the making of Roger Wolcott, MD, (Medicine ’92) – his leadership and that of community partners, Trustpoint Rehabilitation Hospital of Lubbock, Veterans Affairs Lubbock Outpatient Clinic, Covenant Health, Moody Neuro-rehabilitation Institute and a lead gift from the Moody Endowment.

“The medical care is going to be elevated in West Texas because of this,” John Norbury, MD, PM&R division chief, says.

Jim Dines is living proof of this care. The tingle in his hands at night, relieved by simply rolling over, was initially diagnosed as carpal tunnel syndrome, and then Dines’ condition worsened rapidly.

Conversations with his medical team turned to Dines making end-of-life plans. Norbury instead diagnosed Dines with an unusual neurological condition six months after the original diagnosis.

Norbury’s intervention with an out-of-the-box solution worked.

After several months, Dines walked out of the hospital and inpatient rehab on what he calls “the great escape.”

Norbury hopes this will be the hallmark for the future PM&R specialists trained in West Texas.