David Clark hates laziness. He believes in working hard for what he earns. A resident of Grenada for more than 21 years, Clark built his business, Clark Construction, from nothing but honest work.

He’s taking the same approach for his latest project–a rebuild of his body following a spinal cord injury.

In a physical therapy session with Erin Perry, Clark urged Perry to let him walk further than his goal for the day. She reminded him, “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Clark grumbled, “Yeah, but I’m sure they had it studded up and ready to go.”

Kalisa Conley of Vicksburg lives with a long list of don’ts.
 

Don’t drink alcohol, smoke, take hormones, go on low-carb diets or fasts. Don’t take certain pain relievers, antibiotics or seizure medication. And don’t stress out or invite infections.
 

All are triggers for porphyria, a condition that nearly killed Conley before two Methodist Rehabilitation Center researchers identified the mysterious disease.

When Melanie West of Hickory rolled into Methodist Rehabilitation Center on St. Patrick’s Day, the 27-year-old was hardly feeling the luck of the Irish.

She hadn’t been able to care for her 7-month-old daughter, Freya, since a strange illness began paralyzing her body on March 2. But she felt more hopeful once she met the two therapists who’d be guiding her recovery.

The first time Chris Williams donned a prosthetic leg, “I walked out with it,’ he said.

The Byram resident had spent months fighting a diabetes-related foot infection, only to endure the disappointment of a below-the-knee amputation.

So he was more than ready to move on—whatever it took.

“My mentality was I’m going to beat this. I pushed the envelope, and I was back to normal pretty fast,” he said. “A lot of people didn’t know anything was wrong with me.”

Methodist Rehabilitation Center has announced Clinical and Support Service Employees of the Quarter for its Jackson hospital and external campuses.

The honorees include K.K. Ramsey of Madison, a nurse practitioner for MRC’s outpatient hospital clinic; Lisa Webster, a rehab tech for the spinal cord injury/orthopedic program; and Methodist Specialty Care Center employees Joyce Dempsey of Flowood, a registered nurse supervisor, and Mary Triplett of Carthage, a certified nursing assistant.

Methodist Rehabilitation Center has announced Clinical and Support Service Employees of the Quarter for its Jackson hospital and external campuses.

For the third quarter of 2021, the honorees include Julie Bronson of Terry, an RN shift manager for MRC’s brain injury program; Sarah Simpson of Pearl, a therapy tech for MRC’s spinal cord injury program; Patricia Oyarce of Ridgeland, a physical therapist at Methodist Outpatient Therapy in Ridgeland; and Torrey Lenford of Monroe, La., office coordinator for Methodist Orthotics & Prosthetics in Monroe, La.

Arash Sepehri of Madison has been named director of Quality Management and Medical Informatics for Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson.

Sepehri has a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Indiana University and a master’s in clinical psychology from Spalding University.

He joined MRC’s neuropsychology staff in 2005 and most recently served as Spinal Cord Injury Care Coordinator and Research Coordinator.

Dobrivoje Stokic of Ridgeland, M.D., D.Sc, has been named vice president of research and innovation at Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson.

Dr. Stokic is a senior scientist for MRC’s Center for Neuroscience and Neurological Recovery and most recently served as the hospital’s administrative director of research. During his tenure, the CNNR received more than $8 million from external funding and more than $9 million from the donor-supported Wilson Research Foundation at MRC.