Penn Memory Center neurologist Roy Hamilton, MD, MS will be taking a leave from his PMC clinical duties from January until June as he launches a new center at the University of Pennsylvania devoted to stimulating the human brain.
The new Brain Stimulation, Translation, Innovation, and Modulation Center (brainSTIM Center) has been a goal Dr. Hamilton has been working towards in the two decades since he started working in the field of neuromodulation, he said.
“I’m humbled and deeply inspired,” said Dr. Hamilton of the opportunity to start the center. “I’m truly excited to take a leading role in these efforts.”
The center will be a hub for developing new treatments that use neuromodulation—direct stimulation of the brain with electrical signals or magnets—to reorder, reorganize, and restore brain function in patients suffering from types of neurologic disorders such as dementia and stroke.
BrainSTIM will gather together experts and rising pioneers in the field to develop innovative and personalized techniques for their patients.
“The center will aim to investigate how cognition works in the neural networks in the brain and hopefully translate that knowledge into novel simulation-based therapies,” Dr. Hamilton said.
He wants brainSTIM to be a collaborative effort that reaches out to the Penn community and beyond, combining talents, resources, and infrastructure of institutions across the world.
While he won’t see patients as a clinician again until the summer, Dr. Hamilton said he will remain focused on treating disorders and will always be motivated by his patients.
“They teach me every day how to live with resilience, dignity, and grace no matter what,” said Dr. Hamilton, “I will remain you neurologist for as long as you will have me.”