Craig Hospital Research Staff

Gale Whiteneck, PhD, FACRM – Research Director Dr. Whiteneck has directed the Craig Hospital Research program since October 1982 and has conducted research focusing on the full range of life-time outcomes following disability. He has advocated for full participation in society and quality of life as the primary outcomes appropriate for disability and rehabilitation research. He contributed to the World Health Organizations revised model of disability—the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF)—and he continues to suggest conceptual improvements in the ICF. Dr. Whiteneck and his research team have developed two widely used tools to assess participation in society by people with disability—the Craig Handicap Assessment and Reporting Technique (CHART)—and to assess environmental barriers that restrict full participation—the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors. In addition to overall responsibility for research projects, Dr. Whiteneck is the Principal Investigator of the NIDRR-funded SCI Collaborative study “Measuring Rehabilitation Outcomes”.

Cindy Harrison-Felix, PhD, Assistant Director of Research Dr. Harrison-Felix has graduate training in Clinical Sciences and Community Medicine, and is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Colorado Denver. She has more than 30 years experience working in disability and rehabilitation research with an emphasis in TBI and SCI. She serves as the Project Director for the TBI Model Systems National Data and Statistical Center located at Craig Hospital, and is Co-Project Director for the Rocky Mountain Regional Brain Injury System (RMRBIS), the TBI Model System at Craig Hospital.

Amitabh Jha, MD, MPH – Research Physiatrist After receiving his undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering from Northwestern University and a medical degree from the University of Colorado, in 1994, Dr. Jha completed his residency training in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington and subsequently completed a research training fellowship, receiving an MPH in Health Services from the UW School of Public Health in 2000. In addition to his medical and research expertise, Dr. Jha has personal experience living with spinal cord injury (SCI) since 1986. In 2001 Dr. Jha joined the University of Colorado Denver, where he is an associate professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, splitting his time equally between clinical and residency training responsibilities at Denver Health Medical Center and serving as the Research Physiatrist at Craig Hospital.

Daniel P. Lammertse, MD, Principal Investigator Dr Lammertse joined CNS Medical Group in 1981, and has served as Medical Director of Craig Hospital since 1984. He is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation with a sub-specialty certification in Spinal Cord Injury. He serves as Program Director of the Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Cord Injury System, Chair of NIDRR SCI Model Systems Project Directors Committee, and past-president of the American Spinal Injury Association. Dr. Lammertse is an Associate Clinical Professor of Rehabilitation at the University of Colorado, and is internationally recognized as an expert in SCI rehabilitation.

David L. Ripley, MD, MS, CRC, FAAPM&R, Principal Investigator Dr. Ripley joined CNS Medical Group in 2004, and directs one of Craig's TBI treatment teams. Prior to Craig, he served as Medical Director of Post Acute Services, and as Medical Director for Brain Injury Research at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Ripley is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, is a Fellow of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and is a Certified Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor. Dr. Ripley is the Medical Director for the Rocky Mountain Regional Brain Injury System at Craig and is the Principal Investigator of a study looking at endocrine functioning following TBI, funded by the Colorado TBI Trust Fund.

Susan Charlifue, PhD, Principal Investigator Dr. Susan (Susie) Charlifue started her career at Craig Hospital in 1976, and completed her doctorate in Health and Behavioral Science at the University of Colorado, Denver in 2004. She is Co-Principal Investigator SCI Model System at Craig Hospital in addition to coordinating several SCI research clinical trials. Since 1990 she has managed and completed six major investigations of aging with SCI in the US and Great Britain. Susie serves on the Executive Committee of the International Data Sets and also on the Steering Committee for the Consortium for Spinal Cord Medicine. She is a member of the Editorial and Education Committees and is vice-chair of the Scientific Committee of the International Spinal Cord Society. Susie serves on the editorial boards for the journals Spinal Cord and Topics in Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation, and is a Board member of the Colorado Traumatic Brain Injury Trust Fund.

Dave C. Mellick, MA, Information Technology Project Manager Mr. Mellick has graduate training in Health Psychology and relevant experience in the area of database design and management, and data analysis, including the creation of data-driven risk models and web-based applications. Mr. Mellick has been with Craig Research since 1995. Mr. Mellick is the Director of the Database and Information Technology Core for the National Traumatic Brain Injury Data and Statistical Center (www.tbindsc.org), where his focus is to optimize the acquisition, storage, and retrieval of data. Dave has been a member of the American, Medical Informatics Association since 2004.

C. A. Brooks, MSHA, Project Manager Ms. Brooks has graduate training in health administration and joined the Craig Research team in 1985. She currently coordinates training and technical support for the TBI National Data and Statistical Center at Craig Hospital. Her special interests include public health and Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) therapies. She serves on the Craig Hospital CAM Advisory Board and is the Project Manager for an NIH-funded randomized controlled study looking at acupuncture and neurological recovery in people with new spinal cord injury.

Laura R. Beck, BA - Research Assistant Ms. Beck received a bachelor’s degree in Integrative Physiology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and has worked as a Physical Therapy Aide and Rehabilitation Technician prior to joining the Craig Hospital Research Department in 2008. Laura works primarily on projects for the Rocky Mountain Regional Brain Injury System and the TBI National Data and Statistical Center.

Chris Cusick, BA, Research Database Manager Mr. Cusick came to Craig Hospital as a Research Assistant in 1998 when the Rocky Mountain Regional Brain Injury System (RMRBIS) was awarded its first Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Model Systems grant. In the decade since, he has worked on numerous TBI and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) studies with roles ranging from data collection and coordination to data management, and data analysis. Chris is currently working as a Research Database Manager and is primarily responsible for database development and management, database report automation, and data analysis for the TBI Model Systems National Data and Statistical Center (TBINDSC) at Craig Hospital.

Cindy Dahlberg, MA, CCC – Co-Project Director, RMRBIS Ms. Dahlberg is certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the Healthcare Quality Certification Board. A 35-year veteran of Craig Hospital, she served as the as Director of Speech and Language Pathology for 22 years, before being appointed as the Director of Quality Management, responsible for Accreditation and Quality of Care activities, in 2002. She is a Co-Project Director for RMRBIS, a Co-PI on the current RMRBIS clinical trial titled: “A Health and Wellness Intervention for Individuals with TBI”, and the PI on the Colorado TBI Trust Fund Social Skills study.

Amy Dannels-McClure, RN, CNS, ND – Research Nurse Dr. Dannels-McClure received her doctorate in nursing from UCHSC in 2003 and was a staff nurse and research nurse at Craig Hospital from 2001-2005. Since 2005 she has focused on clinical research. She serves as research nurse for the SCI Model Systems grant projects, as well as assists with the staff and data management of other SCI clinical trials and studies. She is responsible for recruitment, data collection and interpretation, coordinating projects and writing consumer and professional publications.

Charlotte Dragon, BS, Research Assistant Ms. Dragon received her BS in Biological Sciences with a minor in Anatomy and Neurobiology from the Colorado State University in 2004. She worked at Craig Hospital as a Rehabilitation Technician providing patient care for three years prior to joining the Research Department in 2008. Charlotte is the Study Coordinator for the NIDRR-funded SCI Collaborative project “Improving SCI Rehabilitation Outcomes” which is lead by Craig Hospital.

Denise Hart, RHIT, Research Assistant Ms. Hart has an Associate of Applied Science degree in medical record technology and is a registered health information technologist. She has 13 years of experience as a health information technologist and specializes in record abstraction. She joined the Craig Research Department in 1998 working on both SCI and TBI projects. Ms. Hart is responsible for data abstraction for both the SCI and TBI Model Systems projects at Craig as well as working on site-specific and module research projects.

Lenore A. Hawley, LCSW, CBIST, Clinical Professional - Research Ms. Hawley has worked with people with brain injuries and their families for more than 30 years in the areas of cognitive rehabilitation, group therapy, individual therapy, family therapy, administration and research. She is the Director of Advocacy for the Brain Injury Association of Colorado, and has served as the Director of a post-acute rehabilitation program. Ms. Hawley is the Co-Developer of Social Skills and Traumatic Brain Injury: A Workbook for Group Treatment and is the Co-Investigator for the RMRBIS Health and Wellness study as well as Co-Investigator for a Social Skills intervention study funded by the Colorado TBI Trust Fund.

Nancy Kamenoff - Administrative Assistant Ms. Kamenoff, has served Craig Hospital since 1999 and joined the Research Team in 2002. She supports the SCI and TBI Model Systems’ projects, the TBI National Data and Statistical Center and a number of other studies. She provides comprehensive clerical support and assists with research projects in many aspects, including phone and written communications, scheduling of Consumer Advisory Board Meetings as well as interdepartmental and teleconference meetings. In addition to research staff, Ms. Kamenoff provides support to clinicians working on research projects and as a contact person for the Research Website.

Clare E. Morey, MA CCC-SLP, Clinical Research Coordinator Ms. Morey has been at Craig Hospital since 1996 working first as a Speech-Language Pathologist for five years before transitioning into a position in the research department. Ms. Morey received her BA in Psychology from College of the Holy Cross in 1984 and her MA in Communication Disorders from University of Colorado in 1995. Ms. Morey currently serves as a co-investigator and study coordinator for a number of clinical trials in the area of traumatic brain injury. Additionally, Ms. Morey serves as the IRB coordinator for all research projects at Craig Hospital.

Jody Newman, MA, CCC, Clinical Research Liaison Ms. Newman has more than 30 years of experience as a Speech Language pathologist of which all years have been working with individuals with TBI. She joined Craig in 1998 and joined the Craig Research Department in 2002 as a Clinical Research Liaison. She is the co-developer of Social Skills and Traumatic Brain Injury: A Workbook for Group Treatment and is the Co-Investigator for the RMRBIS Health and Wellness study as well as Co-Investigator for a Social Skills intervention study funded by the Colorado TBI Trust Fund.

Kendy Noble, BS – Research Assistant Ms. Noble received her degree in Sociology at the University of Colorado in Boulder. She has been an employee of Craig Hospital since 1993, joining the research staff in 1998. Ms. Noble has worked in health care for 22 years, and in addition to Research Interviewing has experience in Health Information Management. She is currently working for the TBI National Data and Statistical Center (TBINDSC) as a Quality Support Liaison, and as a research assistant for the Rocky Mountain Regional Brain Injury System (RMRBIS), conducting annual participant follow-ups. Ms. Noble is also Project Coordinator for the current RMRBIS module “The Natural History of Headaches After TBI”.

Melissa Sendroy Terrill, MA – Research Associate, Project Coordinator Ms. Terrill received both her BA, in Psychology, and her MA, in Counseling Psychology, from the University of Denver and has been with Craig Research since 1998. Ms. Terrill serves as a Project Coordinator for several projects including the NIH-funded “Acupuncture for Treatment of Acute Spinal Cord Injury”, the TBI Endocrine study funded by the Colorado TBI Trust Fund, and a collaborative study of menopause and SCI. Her responsibilities also include work with the TBIMS National Data and Statistical Center

Jacob Shane, MS – Research Assistant Mr. Shane received his MS in Psychological Research (Music Psychology) from Keele University in England. He is currently responsible for medical record abstracting for the “Measuring Rehabilitation Outcomes” SCI study.

Linda Singer, RHIT – Research Assistant Ms. Singer received her training and degree in Health Information from the Arapahoe Community College and has been with the Craig Research Department since 1995. She has been involved with multiple projects involving both TBI and SCI and has primary responsibility for telephone interviewing and data collection for the Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Injury System at Craig.

Kristi Staniszewski, RPT – Clinical Research Liaison Ms. Staniszewski has a BS in Physical Therapy from the University of Texas, Southwestern Medical School and been a member of the Craig Hospital Clinical team since 1991. She joined the Research Department in 2007 and is responsible for facilitation of classes conducted as part of the RMRBIS Health and Wellness intervention.

Susan Solnick, RHIT - Research Assistant Ms. Solnick, has been with the Craig Research Department since 1980. She coordinates the National Database participation for the Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Injury System overseeing all enrollment and data collection.