Dr. James Malec Honored as Colts Horseshoe Hero

On December 15, 2013, the Indianapolis Colts honored Dr. James Malec as the Horseshoe Hero. The Horseshoe Hero award is presented to an individual whose contributions to their community or the country are far reaching. WKW has been the Horseshoe Hero sponsor for the Indianapolis Colts for several years.

Dr. James Malec

Why would a neuropsychologist leave a director position at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic to come work at the Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana (RHI) on the west side of Indianapolis? According to Dr. James F. Malec, it was “the difference between steering an ocean liner and a speedboat.” Dr. Malec is the current Research Director at RHI, and his research focuses on treatment and rehabilitation of persons suffering from traumatic brain injury.

When Dr. Malec came to RHI in 2008, his mission was to develop the rehabilitation research program. The program is currently flourishing and has resulted in RHI being able to provide state-of-the-science evidence-based rehabilitation care in Indianapolis. Dr. Malec’s presence has spurred the hiring of numerous  rehabilitation clinician/researchers at RHI as well as nationally-recognized medical director, Dr. Flora Hammond. He was also honored with the prestigious Robert L. Moody Prize for Initiatives in Brain Injury Research, which is the highest of such an honor on a national level.

Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana

RHI is a twenty-two year community collaboration between Indiana University Health and St. Vincent Health. RHI has five locations to serve patients, offering a full range of acute inpatient, outpatient, and vocational rehabilitation services for adults with life-changing illness and injuries due to brain injury, spinal cord, stroke, amputation, orthopedic conditions, neuromuscular disease, burns, and related disabilities.

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