Biography
In 1978, I started the Industrial Occupational Clinic at the Occupational Industrial Orthopaedic Center, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Gothenburg, Sweden in collaboration with Alf Nachemson, M.D., Ph.D. and Gunnar Andersson, M.D., Ph.D. This was the first clinic, research facility, and educational center geared toward prevention of musculoskeletal injuries for industry. Universities in several countries have subsequently adapted the model. In 1983 I started the Occupational and Industrial Orthopaedic Center and Clinic (OIOC) at the Hospital for Joint Diseases, in New York, for the evaluation of occupational and industrial injuries. The Center and Clinic were modeled after the Gothenburg experience, but were adapted to the needs of the New York area. For both the Gothenburg and New York Clinics I had the primary responsibility for setting up the physical facilities, planning research activities and patient care programs, researching and acquiring equipment, planning and implementing the budget, selecting and supervising staff and marketing the services of the Clinic and Center to industry, community and major healthcare providers. During my career I have had the opportunity to serve the following major companies: The Scandinavian Airline System, Volvo, The Boeing Company, Ciba-Geigy, Pan American, United Airlines, TWA, SAAB, HBO, Consolidated Edison, New York City Transit Authority, New York 1 News, United Parcel Service, Amtrak, SONY Music Entertainment, Deutsche Bank, Allergan, JP Morgan, SUVA, US Veteran Administration, US Navy and others. I have also served the following organizations with consultation or research projects: World Health Organization, United Nations Development Fund, Brazil Airforce, Transport Workers Union, Labor International Union of North America, America’s Utility Workers and others. My environment is the interest of work and health and a productive life for all. As part of a team effort at the Occupational and Industrial Orthopaedic Center in New York, I was the project leader of the medical standards project for the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) in New York City. This project included an epidemiological study, a job profile analysis and the production of a physician's manual for medical standards. The scope of the project involved 800 employees at the NYCTA and 12 full-time researchers from OIOC at work for the period of one year. In 1990, Dr. William B. Rom and I were awarded a grant of US$ 2.5 million by the National Institute for Safety and Health (NIOSH). The purpose was to set up a Model clinic for musculoskeletal and pulmonary occupational disorders. The funding, which began in 1990, was for five years. I was and am responsible for the management of the Model Clinic, as well as, for the design, implementation and scientific soundness of the research. I was the co-principal investigator of this grant and the principal investigator for occupational musculoskeletal disorders. In 1996, the OIOC team was awarded a grant from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disorders (NIAMS) for US$661,329. The funding was for exploring predictors of disability in individuals with acute low back pain. As the model clinic had grown we could now implement a model for prevention of disability. In 1997-2003 the OIOC -team was again awarded with a grant from the Arthritis Foundation (New York Chapter) (US$300,000) and from the Social Security Administration (US$307,000) in a collaborative effort with the American Institutes of Research. Continuos funding have always been a priority, however I have purposely diversified the funding sources to better serve the industry community. Our funding from grant agencies and industry are today equally important. In 2005-2010 the OIOC-team/ERBI faculty was awarded the National Institute for Occupational and Safety Health (NIOSH) NY NJ Educational and Research Center (ERC) Designation in collaboration with 5 other Universities in the greater Metropolitan Area (Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Hunter College School of Health Sciences, New York University, New Jersey Institute of Technology and University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey). Since 1984, I assumed the responsibility as the Director of the Program of Ergonomics and Occupational Biomechanics, New York University, New York, New York. Responsibilities include curriculum development, selecting and supervising faculty, interviewing and screening program applicants, teaching courses, and developing and implementing the program budget. The Program has a student body of about 10 Ph.D. students and about 10 Master of Science students every year. I have a true interest and dedication to education. I have created a multidisciplinary research faculty and multi- disciplinary clinical faculty to meet the increasing demands to prevent disability at work. The occupational environment and non-occupational environment need a multidisciplinary team to better understand ill health and to promote well-being. I retired from my post as Director of the Occupational and Industrial Orthopedic Center, NYU Langone Medical Center in Mars 2012 but maintain my Professor ship at the Departments of Orthopedic Surgery and Environmental Medicine, School of Medicine, New York University, to be able to spend more time on special projects and World Spine Care as a Vice President.
Research Interest
Margareta Nordin completed her PT and Dr. Med. Sci. at the University of Goteborg, Goteborg, Sweden. Her main interest since has been prevention of disability for spine pain and translating evidence into practice in different cultural communities. Dr. Nordin is the founder of the Occupational and Industrial Orthopedic Center, New York University, New York, NY, USA. She has published more 200 peer reviewed articles and published 5 books. Dr. Nordin has participated in 5 evidence based international task forces and is currently the Vice president of World Spine Care, the Vice Preisdent of Eurospine and a council Member of the WHO Bone and Joint Decade.
Biography
Dr. Engineer is currently the Director of the Healthcare Management Program and Clinical Professor at Towson University in Baltimore, Maryland. He is an adjunct Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the department of International Health and the Strathmore Business School in Kenya. Dr Engineer has over two decades of healthcare management experience working in diverse US and international healthcare settings. After obtaining his Masters in Hospital Administration from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, he pursued administrative careers at Hinduja and Breach Candy Hospitals in Mumbai. He led the first hospital in India to become certified to the ISO 9000 quality standard at a time when few formal accreditation programs existed. His passion for quality led him to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore where he worked and simultaneously obtained a Doctorate in Public Health in health care management and leadership. Thereafter, he joined World Health Organization's Patient Safety program in Geneva where he was a team member of the First Global Patient Safety Challenge and led a multi country campaign to eliminate health care associated infections through implementation of national hand hygiene programs. Over 130 member nations signed a pledge to address the cause of health care associated infections. 5000 hospitals signed up to the “Save Lives Clean Your Hands Campaign†in the first year itself and provided hand hygiene compliance data. Since then over 17,000 health care organizations have endorsed the campaign. Dr. Engineer was most recently the country director for Johns Hopkins University’s operations in Afghanistan where he led a team of over 500 personnel involved in evaluating the performance of health facilities, conducting household surveys, estimating prevalence of HIV, obtaining maternal mortality estimates (RAMOS) and assessing World Bank’s Results Based Financing (RBF) Scheme. He was invited by the Ministry of Public Health in Afghanistan to be a member of the Technical Advisory Group on Health Systems. Most recently he was awarded the “Global Achievement Award†by Johns Hopkins University for his contribution in the international health arena in enhancing knowledge for the world and implementing the same to improve health care delivery. He is a member of the Alpha Omega Honor Society and teaches courses on evaluation, quality and patient safety, health care management and has presented and published internationally. He currently serves on the Board of the American Society for Quality for the Baltimore section and serves as a senior Baldrige Examiner for the Maryland Performance Excellence Foundation.
Research Interest
Global health care
Biography
Guy H Fontaine who had a complete training in Physics and Electricity before to learn Medicine has made 17 original contributions in the design and the use of the first cardiac pace makers in the early 60s. He has serendipitously identified ARVD during his contributions to antiarrhythmic surgery in the early 70s. He has developed the technique of Fulguration to replace surgery in the early 80s (technique used during 30 years in Jean Rostand and La Salpêtrière hospitals). He has been one of the 216 individual who has made a significant contribution to the study of cardiovascular disease since the 14th century, one of the 500 greatest geniuses of the 21th century (USA Books), one of the 100 life time of achievement (UK Book). He has 900+ publications including 201 book chapters. He has been the reviewer of 23 scientific journals both in basic and clinical science. He has served during 5 years as a member of the Editorial Board of Circulation after reviewing during decades’ articles for this Journal. He has given 11 master lectures of 90’ each in inland China in 2014. He has recently developed new techniques of hypothermia for brain protection in OHCA, brain trauma, stroke, spinal cord injury and children hyperthermia. He has also invented a high-tech device which can be considered as the ultimate in palliative care.
Research Interest
Childrens Health, Public Health
