Associate Professor and Director of the Stereotactic and Functional Fellowship at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Dr. Rushna Ali is an Associate Professor and Director of the Stereotactic and Functional Fellowship in the Department of Neurological Surgery. She is a board-certified neurosurgeon with expertise in all salient aspects of stereotactic and functional neurosurgery including advanced surgical treatments to treat chronic and cancer-related pain, facial pain and other neuralgias, movement disorders, stroke rehabilitation and recovery, as well as surgical management of epilepsy. Her research interests are centered around the theme of innovation and education. Her research focuses on studying the disease-modifying role of neuromodulation for various indications and improving functional outcomes through innovation.

Shrinit Babel is a medical student at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, FL, and a Master’s student in Artificial Intelligence at Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on integrating machine learning and computational modeling to enhance predictive models in neurosurgery. In his free time, he likes to play the bass guitar and string instruments from different parts of the world.

Professor of Neurosurgery at Columbia University in New York

Dr. Baltuch MD is a Professor of Neurosurgery at Columbia University in New York where he is Co-Chief of the Division of Functional and Restorative Neurosurgery. He attended and graduated from Harvard College and Stanford University. He obtained his medical degree at McGill University and his Neurosurgical training at the Montreal Neurological Institute. He subsequently completed a fellowship at the University Hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland under the direction of Professor deTribolet.

Professor Baltuch specializes in the surgical management of movement disorders as well as epilepsy surgery. He was one of a few surgeons who pioneered the adoption of deep brain stimulation(DBS) for Parkinson’s Disease as well as other movement disorders and with 1500 DBS cases completed, has one of the largest international series.  He was an early adopter of Focused ultrasound(HiFU) for movement disorders and has one of the busiest HiFU practices in the US. He has numerous peer reviewed publications in prestigious journals with an h index of 53 and over 15000 citations. He has edited 4 textbooks including the recent 2^nd edition of Thieme’s “Operative techniques in epilepsy surgery”. He has received numerous grants and awards, and has travelled internationally lecturing on the surgical management of movement disorders and epilepsy.

Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Drexel University, Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh, PA  

Boyle C. Cheng, PhD, is the Director of Research for the Neuroscience Institute at Allegheny Health Network and a professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at Drexel University and Allegheny General Hospital. He maintains an adjunct appointment in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University and serves as an advisor to graduate students in the practicum course and teaching the Medical Devices class. His grant-funded research has included topics including NIH funded clinical research trials, the evaluation of anterior cervical disc replacements and novel biomaterials in a sheep model, biomechanical studies of a biased angle posterior cervical system, facet motion preservation technologies as well as dynamic and physical modeling based on specimen specific imaging and kinematic studies.

Giselle Coelho, MD, PhD, MA
STR-X Mayo Clinic Fellow
Mayo Clinic Florida, Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Coelho is a pioneer in developing new teaching and learning techniques in neurosurgery. In 2014, she developed the first infant simulator for training neurosurgeons in the treatment of hydrocephalus and other conditions. Dr. Coelho was the scientific director of the SIEDI Institute, where she coordinated more than 45 courses in medical education and realistic simulation. Between 2014 and 2021, she ran the Pediatric Neurosurgery Preceptorship at Santa Marcelina Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil. Giselle is passionate about improving the lives of her young patients and their families, and is excited to help advance the mission of NeuroKids.

Neurosurgeon, Wellington, FL

Dr. Amos Daré is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons Florida Medical Association, the American Medical Association, the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and the Yale Minority Medical Association. He maintains affiliations with several Florida hospitals, including Wellington Regional Medical Center, Good Samaritan Medical Center, and Jupiter Medical Center where he provides treatment options for numerous ailments of the brain and spine, including benign and malignant tumors, ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, and vertebral compression fractures. He treats traumatic injuries affecting the spine and spinal cord as well, such as disc herniations, fractures, and whiplash. As a proponent of minimally invasive surgery, Dr. Daré possesses considerable skill in performing kyphoplasties, lumbar laminectomies, and anterior cervical discectomies, as well as a number of other innovative treatments. Outside his surgical practice, Dr. Daré has contributed to the advancement of medical science as the author of nearly 20 peer-reviewed articles, as well as several abstracts and book chapters.

Attending Neurosurgeon at Allegheny Health Network
Clinic, Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Davanzo is an attending neurosurgeon at Allegheny Health Network specializing in functional neurosurgery and neurocritical care. He is also an assistant professor of Neurosurgery at the Drexel College of Medicine and the co-director of the Neurologic Intensive Care unit at Allegheny General Hospital. He has clinical interests in traumatic brain and spinal cord injury and the surgical treatment of chronic pain. In addition, his research interests include patient outcomes in the neurocritical care setting and new indications of neuromodulation in the treatment of chronic pain.

Neurosurgical Resident
Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh, PA

Dr. Shahed Elhamdani is a PGY-7 at Allegheny Health Network, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He received his medical degree from Marshall University School of Medicine and his clinical interests include skull base, vascular, spine. Shahed's research interest are Neuro-oncology, vascular, deformity.

Neurosurgeon
Mayo Clinic, Florida, Jacksonville, FL

Jan T. Hachmann, M.D., M.S., M.B.A., is a neurosurgeon specializing in neurosurgical oncology as well as stereotactic and functional neurosurgery. His clinical interests include the comprehensive treatment of benign and malignant tumors of the brain and skull base, minimally invasive and complex cranial surgery, awake brain mapping, endoscopic surgery, robot-assisted neurosurgery, and the surgical treatment of epilepsy, movement disorders, and chronic pain.

Director of the Baptist Neurological Institute
Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Hanel is Director of the Baptist Neurological Institute, Co-Director of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Surgery, Endowed Chair of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Surgery and Director for Cerebrovascular Fellowship at Baptist Medical Center Jacksonville. He is a neurosurgeon with special training in endovascular, vascular and tumor neurosurgery and has remarkable experience in mechanical thrombectomy for stroke, endovascular and microsurgical treatment of cerebrovascular diseases, as well as extensive background in scientific research, with many academic achievements and one of the most successful clinical practices in the neurosurgical and cerebrovascular fields in the country. 

Chief of Neurological Surgery, Lehigh Valley Health Network, PA

Dr. Walter C. Jean is the Chief of Neurological Surgery at Lehigh Valley Health Network and Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine. He graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University and obtained his medical degree from Cornell University Medical College, where he earned the John Metcalf Polk Prize. Dr. Jean is also the creator of “Skull Base Surgery: Strategies,” a textbook published by Thieme in 2019, aimed at guiding trainees through the complex concepts of skull base approaches. He is the course director of “Surgeons’ Log,” the internationally-acclaimed webinar series of the North American Skull Base Society and has been recognized as an international pioneer in the use of Virtual and Augmented Reality in Neurosurgery. 

Neurosurgical Resident
Mayo Clinic, Florida, Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Paul Jeong is a PGY-7 at Allegheny Health Network, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He received his medical degree from New York Medical College and his clinical interests include skull base, vascular, spine. Paul's research interest are GBM/neuro-oncology, vascular.

Neurosurgeon
Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, PA  

Dr. Philip S. Lee is a neurosurgeon who specializes in epilepsy and movement disorders. He provides care for people with a variety of brain and spine conditions, including brain and spine tumors, facial pain, traumatic brain and spine injury and degenerative spine disease. He’s also received advanced training in awake and asleep intraoperative brain mapping, laser ablation and image-guided stereotactic neurosurgical procedures. Dr. Lee is an active member of the American Epilepsy Society, American Association of Neurological Surgeons. the Congress of Neurological Surgeons and received the Theodore Kurze Senior Prize in Neurological Surgery and Clinical Neuroscience from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. 

Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery, Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh, PA  

Lara Massie is an Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at Allegheny Health Network, Forbes Hospital. She completed neurosurgical training at Henry Ford Hospital and complex spinal deformity fellowship at Duke University. She oversees AHN's Women's Back Pain Multidisciplinary Working Group. Her practice spans minimally invasive thru complex spinal deformity cases, with a clinical research focus on improving patient outcomes. 

Neurosurgeon at St. Vincent’s Spine and Brain Institute,  Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Pirris is a neurosurgeon in Jacksonville, Florida, affiliated with St. Vincent's Medical Center Southside. His specialties include glioblastoma, brain tumors, aneurysms, laminectomy,  craniotomy. He also serves on the Executive Committee with the Southern Neurosurgery Society as the current President-elect, the Board of Directors with the Florida Neurosurgery Society as a former President, the Robotics and Navigation committee with the North American Spine Society and the Board of Directors for the Neurosurgery Outreach Foundation that provides outreach missions as well as education and mentoring for underserved areas of Southeast Asia. Dr. Pirris is the recipient of many honors and awards including the North American Spine Society Clinical Travelling Fellowship and has repeatedly been named as a Top Doctor by various outlets, including Vitals Patient Choice, Top Doctors of America, Best in Florida and Jacksonville Magazine. He is also an accomplished author with over 90 academic presentations and 38 peer reviewed publications.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Departments of Neurological Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL

Dr. Salman is a postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Departments of Neurological Surgery, Neurology and Critical Care at the Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL . His areas of interest include Vascular, Critical Care, CSF exchange and dynamics.

PGY3 at The Carilion Clinic-Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, Roanoke, VA

Board-Certified Neurosurgeon, Central Florida Neurosurgery Institute, Orlando, FL

Dr. Hunaldo J. Villalobos is a board-certified neurosurgeon practicing in the greater Orlando area. He completed his neurosurgical residency at the University at Buffalo, New York and was fellowship trained in Neurosurgical Oncology and Neurosurgery Trauma and Critical Care. Dr. Dr. Villalobos specializes in Minimally Invasive Spine surgery, Endoscopic procedures, Pituitary Tumors, trauma, and critical care.