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Lynn Gerber, Chief of the Clinical Center Rehabilitation Medicine Department
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Lynn Gerber, chief of the Clinical Center Rehabilitation Medicine Department, received the Distinguished Academician Award from the Association of Academic Physiatrists in 2003. The award is given to an association member who has achieved distinction and peer recognition regionally or nationally by virtue of excellence as a teacher, researcher or administrator.
According to Dr. Gerber, as the population ages and more chronic illnesses arise, the focus is on rehabilitation needs—making the best of what people have and maximizing the potential for function. Physiatry is a branch of medicine that deals with treatment, prevention and diagnosis by essentially physical means, including manipulation, massage, and exercise, often with mechanical devices, and the application of heat, cold, electricity, radiation, and water. Physiatrists are specialists in this area of medicine also called physical medicine.
The Clinical Center Rehabilitation Medicine Department interacts with every research institute at NIH and numerous patients with different disabilities. This requires extensive knowledge and understanding of multiple diseases and disorders.
Dr. Gerber is a pioneer in establishing the subspecialty of rehabilitative rheumatology. She has conducted research in the evaluation of the mechanics of foot function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, functional assessments of patients with inflammatory arthritis and studies of the use of joint protection and energy conservation. A large portion of her work in this field has also centered on writing educational materials. She is board certified in Internal Medicine, Rheumatology, Physical Medicine, and Rehabilitation.
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