Neurology Department New Faculty Update

UH Neurological Institute physicians add expertise in sleep medicine, pediatrics and spine surgery

Innovations in Neurology & Neurosurgery – Winter 2019

 

University Hospitals Neurological Institute continues to grow and expand its staff, enhancing its ability to meet patient demand throughout the region.

Community Services

UH Neurological Institute Director and Vice President Nicholas C. Bambakidis, MD, says the institute has expanded its community neurology services, particularly in Portage County (Ravenna), where it has added Marvin Sih, MD.

 

Dr. Sih completed a fellowship in Sleep Medicine-Neurology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, as well as a fellowship in neurophysiology and a neurology residency at the same institution. He is a graduate of the University of the Philippines Manila College of Medicine.

Dr. Sih joins Deborah Ewing-Wilson, DO, and Karla Madalin, MD, in serving the Portage County area. Robert Richardson, MD, also sees patients in the eastern suburbs.

“We now can provide round-the-clock neurology coverage at all UH facilities,” Dr. Bambakidis says.

Neurosurgery

The neurosurgery division has also grown recently, adding Brian Rothstein, MD, a pediatric neurosurgeon, who joins Krystal Tomei, MD, MPH, at UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Rothstein completed a pediatric neurological surgery fellowship at Northwestern University/Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, and completed a neurosurgery residency at UH, graduating from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He obtained his undergraduate degree at the University of Miami.

Dr. Rothstein’s family is well known to many in the community. His father, Fred Rothstein, MD, a pediatric gastroenterologist, is the former and long-time president of UH Cleveland Medical Center.

Spine

UH Neurological Institute is actively working with colleagues in orthopedic surgery to support the new UH Spine Institute, Dr. Bambakidis says. “We are a significant partner in terms of planning, implementation and recruitment.”

Those efforts include recruiting Gabriel Smith, MD, who is anchoring the West Side neurosurgical rotation at St. John Medical Center in Westlake and Southwest General Hospital in Middleburg Heights.

“Dr. Smith will allow us to provide easy access to surgeons with spinal expertise in conjunction with the orthopedics department,” Dr. Bambakidis notes.

Dr. Smith completed a fellowship in complex spine surgery at Cleveland Clinic. He served his residency at UH, including one year serving as Chief Resident of Neurological Surgery, and attended Temple University School of Medicine. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Oregon.

Other Faculty Accomplishments

In the past year, four UH neurosurgeons achieved board certification from the American Board of Neurological Surgery, Dr. Bambakidis says. “This is a significant achievement requiring several years of practice as well as passage of a very rigorous oral board examination,” he says.

The four surgeons include Jennifer Sweet, MD, Alia Hdeib, MD, Manish Kasliwal, MD, and Dr. Tomei.

Dr. Sweet has also been named president of Women in Neurosurgery, one of the joint sections of the American Association of Neurological Surgery and Congress of Neurological Surgeons (AANS/CNS).

The search for a new Neurology Department chair is ongoing, Dr. Bambakidis adds.

Nicholas C. Bambakidis, MD, FAHA, FAANS is the Director and Vice President, University Hospitals Neurological Institute, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center; Professor of Neurological Surgery, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

You can contact Dr. Bambakidis at Nicholas.Bambakidis@UHHospitals.org.