BRAIN INJURY ALLIANCE OF UTAH OFFICERS
President: Antonietta Anna Russo, Ph.D.
Antonietta is a rehabilitation/clinical – psychologist/neuropsychologist at Intermountain Outpatient Neuro Rehabilitation. Her responsibilities include completing neuropsychological and psychological assessments on patients with various etiologies, cognitive rehabilitation and psychotherapy, biofeedback and relaxation training, as well as treatment of insomnia patients. Additional responsibilities are student teaching and supervision in the classroom and office. Her post-doctoral was on quantitative neuroimaging and patients with frontal lobe gliomas, specifically affective and cognitive changes. She is studying the relationship between MR imaging, affect, and cognition in patients with brain tumors who are referred for neuropsychological testing following tumor resection.
Past President: Teresa Such-Neibar, D.O.
Dr. Terry Such-Neibar is a pediatric rehabilitation physician at Primary Children’s Medical Center. She is an assistant professor at the University of Utah Health Sciences Center, as well as an adjunct faculty member for the Department of Pediatrics. She completed her residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Utah and a Fellowship in Pediatric Rehabilitation at Primary Children’s Medical Center. Her interests include pediatric brain injury, cerebral palsy, neuromuscular disorders, and spinal cord injury.
Terry is the past board president of both the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah and DDI Vantage Early Intervention Services. She is a member of the Advisory Board for the Traumatic Brain Injury Grant and of the Advisory Committee for the Utah Collaborative Medical Home Project Grant, both administered by the Utah Department of Health.
Treasurer: Pauline Fontaine
Pauline attended Brigham Young University and Ohio University, and was a paralegal for various firms. She served as executive director of the Utah Trial Lawyers Association (retired), which is now known as the Utah Association for Justice. Pauline is currently the legislative & political affairs coordinator for UAJ.
Secretary: Tony J. Washington, BS, CWDP
Tony Washington is the program director for Learning Services, Inc., a national provider of rehabilitation and supported living for individuals with acquired brain injuries. Mr. Washington has held the position for five years and is very interested in contributing information and services for the ABI/TBI population of Utah. He received his CBIS (certified brain injury specialist) certification in 2010, and his MBA with a healthcare administration emphasis in June 2012. Tony has also held management positions with Advanced Rehabilitation Management and ResCare during his professional career. He presently serves as secretary on the executive board for the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah. Tony has been on the BIAU board for approximately one year and is most interested in obtaining services for the “underserved” ABI/TBI population in his home state.
Executive Director: Ron S. Roskos
In his role as executive director for the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah (BIAU), Ron has provided an increase of services to individuals with brain injuries, their families, and helped create an increase of public awareness regarding brain injury. Ron coordinated and designed the TBI Return to Work Program, and designed the Being HeadSmart Program that provides training and education to elementary schools. He also co-chairs the Brain Injury Alliance’s Statewide Conference Committee. The BIAU Conference is recognized as one of the most successful brain injury conferences in the country. Ron was also instrumental in passing legislation for the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund in 2008. This fund will help provide services for the brain injury population. He also formed the Veterans Task Force Committee, which provides resources and links for veterans and servicemen/women. Ron serves on the Board of Trustees of the Disability Law Center, Community Shares of Utah, and on the Executive Committee of the Utah Brain Injury Council.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
(in alphabetical order)
Elizabeth M. Cardell, OTR/L
Beth is an occupational therapist and an assistant clinical professor at the University of Utah, Division of Occupational Therapy. Her clinical practice for the past twenty-four years has included providing OT services to people with acquired brain injuries in home and community rehabilitation settings, home health, sheltered workshops, and corrections. Although she is currently a full-time faculty member, she continues to serve this population through a monthly support group, student service learning projects, a weekly life skills class, consultation, and advocacy. Beth received her B.A. in occupational therapy in 1988 from Misericordia University. She received her Master’s in Health Promotion and Education from the University of Utah, where she is currently enrolled as a doctoral student. Beth’s areas of research interest include: promoting health in people with disabilities, increasing participation in people with cognitive disabilities, adaptation to sudden onset disability, and resilience as a concept of rehabilitation.
Edward Havas, Esq.
Edward (“Ed”) Havas is a founding member of the law firm of Dewsnup, King & Olsen. His practice is focused on representing victims in negligence, product liability, medical malpractice and other catastrophic injury, and death cases, including those resulting from brain injury. In addition to being a member of the Board of Trustees of the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah, Ed is a past president and member of the Board of Governors of the Utah Association for Justice (formerly Utah Trial Lawyers Association). He is also a member of the American Association for Justice, and a member and officer of a local chapter of the American Inns of Court. Ed is AV-rated (the highest possible) by Martindale-Hubbell (the preeminent national lawyer-rating organization), has been selected for the past several years as one of Utah’s Legal Elite by Utah Business Magazine, and was selected as a member of Utah Super Lawyers in 2008.
Cheryl Hostetter, MS, SLP
Cheryl graduated from Brigham Young University (1974) in Communicative Disorders – Special Education/Learning Disabilities. She is the Special Education Program Specialist/Administrator for Jordan School District (2003 – present), responsible for recruiting, interviewing, and hiring of all special education staff and Highly Qualified status of special education teachers. She has been a member of the Special Education Administrative Team as Team Leader for Traumatic Brain Injury, and participated in a variety of state responsibilities such as New Teacher Induction.
Julie McCauley, MSW
Julie works as a clinical therapist full-time with many patients having a dual diagnosis of mental health and brain injury. She is currently working to modify treatment to be more effective with the brain injury population. Julie also works at McKay Dee Hospital as a medical social worker, being cross-trained in every aspect of the hospital. Her main focus is trauma and rehabilitation with a specialization and focus on the brain injury population. Julie also has a son who is a six-year survivor of a severe TBI.
Miette Full Murphy, MS, CCC/SLP
Miette Full Murphy, MS, CCC/SLP, MBA is the executive director of Rehab Without Walls® in Utah. She received her B.S. and M.S. in speech-language pathology from the University of Utah and has extensive experience in the rehabilitation field, having worked in a variety of settings with both adult and pediatric populations. Miette started her career as a speech-language pathologist at Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, New York, and then at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago in both clinical and supervisory roles. Miette received her MBA from DePaul University in 1985 with an emphasis in marketing, and subsequently returned to Utah. She has held positions in the Marketing and Planning Department at IHC, as Program Director for Easter Seal Society of Utah, as Manager of Speech and Audiology at Holy Cross Hospital and as a regional manager at Mountain Land Rehabilitation. Miette has been with Rehab Without Walls since 2002 and has served on the Board of Directors for the Brain Injury Alliance of Utah since 2004.
Robert B. Sykes, Esq.
Robert B. Sykes, Esq. is president of the three-lawyer Salt Lake City law firm of Robert B. Sykes & Associates, P.C., which emphasizes cases involving serious brain, spinal cord, and other injuries. Over a 34-year period, his firm has successfully litigated or tried to jury verdict dozens of complex cases involving a variety of personal injuries and wrongs arising from traffic accidents, medical malpractice, defective products, industrial accidents, unsafe pharmaceuticals, birth injuries, slander, police misconduct, and civil rights. He is a frequently invited lecturer at legal seminars in Utah and around the country on a wide variety of topics including brain injury, evidence, and trial practice.
ADVISORY BOARD
(in alphabetical order)
