Magnuson award to medical director of the functional electrical stimulation program
Robert. Louis Ruff, M.D., Ph.D. is the recipient of the 2008-2009 Magnuson Award, VA’s highest honor for rehabilitation investigators in appreciation for his selfless dedication to the care and well-being of Veterans with disabilities, exceptional leadership in developing effective interdisciplinary teams for clinical care and research, instrumental in bringing advances in research to Veteran care, and for his work at Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Health Care System in the Functional Electrical Stimulation Center of Excellence, Rehabilitation, Spinal Cord Injury and Neurology Services and Pain Clinic. Dr. Ruff is the National Director for Neurology in VHA. He received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Washington. His academic rank is Professor of Neurology and Neurosciences at Case Western Reserve University. He has been Chief of the Neurology, Rehabilitation and Spinal Cord Injury Services at the Louis Stokes VAMC. He is the Medical Director of the FES Center in Cleveland, a VA Rehab Research Center of Excellence. Dr. Ruff was the Associate Editor of the journal Neurology from 1994 through 1996. He was a member of the editorial Board of Muscle & Nerve 2004 to 2007. He has been on the editorial board of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development since 1999. He became Deputy Editor of JRRD in 2004 and Editor-in-Chief in from 2005 to 2007. He is now the Deputy Editor of JRRD. His research interests include stroke rehabilitation and combat-related traumatic brain injury. |
 Robert. Louis Ruff, M.D., Ph.D. |
The Magnuson Award is named for Paul B. Magnuson, a bone and joint surgeon and chief medical director for VA in the years after World War II. The award is given annually to VA rehabilitation investigators who display entrepreneurship, humanitarianism and dedication to veterans, in the spirit of Magnuson. Known for his pursuit of creative, individualized solutions for meeting the needs of disabled veterans, Magnuson is quoted as saying, “People are no more alike in the shape and functional movements of their bodies and limbs than they are in their faces.”
Magnuson Award winners receive a $5,000 cash award and a plaque, along with an additional $50,000 per year for three years to supplement ongoing peer-reviewed research.
