Medical Student Wins Fellowship to Train with Physical Therapy Researcher
A prestigious National Institutes of Health fellowship was awarded to a Rutgers medical student and Ph.D. candidate who is working with Professor Judith Deutsch, PT, Ph.D., director of the Rivers Lab at the School of Health Professions in Newark.
John Palmieri is a student at New Jersey Medical School and is completing his Ph.D. at the Rutgers School of Graduate Studies. The fellowship will fund completion of medical school and his Ph.D studies.
In the lab, Palmieri is working with Deutsch investigating the use of bicycling in virtual reality to help people with Parkinson’s Disease sustain and enjoy exercise at high intensity.
Exercise for people with Parkinson’s Disease has been shown to be effective at reducing the symptoms and severity of the disease, but there are significant barriers due to slowed movement and balance instability.
“This project explores how to make intense exercise more enjoyable and motivating for persons with Parkinson’s using virtual reality,” said Palmieri. His research will form the basis for his Ph.D. thesis.
In addition to being a faculty member at SHP, Deutsch is on the faculty at the School of Graduate Studies, and has mentored Ph.D. candidates in engineering and rehabilitation science. Palmieri, who has a degree in biomedical engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, said he was looking to continue his research into the implementation of technology that can help in physical rehabilitation.
He learned about Deutsch’s work, which he said aligned with his interests.
“He is a delightful fellow who is technically skilled and developing into solid clinician-scientist,” said Deutsch, who is a leading researcher in the field of virtual reality and rehabilitation.
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