IONM4Life

Podcast host and Neuro Pathway recruiter Scott Mohr with some awesome people at ASNM 2024.

Conference Season is upon us! A Professional Society’s call to action. Are pre-set IONM test templates the right fit for every situation?

Joe Hartman, director of operations for US Neuro, recently fully formed from four different business units. What does Joe have to say about US Neuro’s goals in the neurodiagnostic field? How can they impact patient care and help hospitals solve some of their logistics problems?

Damaris Mohr, PA-C, has 15 years of experience as a Physician Associate. She started her career in neurosurgery for the first five years, and has spent the last 10 years working in orthopedic sports medicine. She is the secretary for a local APP council. She also runs a jewelry business called Empyrean Jewelry by Damaris, as well a Spanish greeting card business called “Say it In Spanish”. She resides in Pittsburgh PA with her husband (the host of the IONM4LIFE: Adventures in Neuromonitoring podcast!) and daughter.

VP of Clinical Development at Axis Neuromonitoring, LLC Kathryn Overzet Jaquez has served the neuromonitoring field in a variety of essential roles over the years, including on-site staff training, business development and quality assurance in the Dallas area. In addition to these roles, Kathryn teaches course at the University of Texas at Dallas and – essential to our “Under the Hood” series – heads the ASNM research committee. We talk about essential mindsets for success in neuromonitoring, the impact of traveling on the field, and how to better engage our colleagues with the important research and literature foundation on which our profession is built.

Clinical manager, Surgical Neurophysiologist, Pain researcher “Hani” Seyedeh Haniyeh Mortazavi works in both Australia and her home country of Iran as a neuromonitroing specialist. Harnessing her strong background in radiology and as an A&P educator, Hani provides intraoperative neuromonitoring services, deep brain stimulation microelectrode recording navigation for Parkinson’s patient treatment and has a zest for research. She is also a talented writer, and is working on a series of parables in the “Once upon a time” theme to serve as teachable stories for the neuromonitoring community. Check back in the near future as we hope to share some of her work!

“We are Neurodiagnostic professionals We solve problems you don’t know you have With waves you can’t understand.” -Bankole Murtala, R.EEG.T, scientist, poet Bankole Murtala works as a scientist and EEG technologist in Lagos, Nigeria. Bankole recently joined us on the IONM4LIFE: Adventures in Neuromonitoring podcast to talk about his work with epilepsy patients and his outreach initiative, The Epilepsy Ambassadors Initiative. Bankole also read some original works of poetry. “It’s Electrifying!” was originally posted on the ASET Central discussion board in honor of Neurodiagnostic Week 2023. “Still I Rise” is a poem Bankole is still working on, one that captures the spirit of diagnosing, treating, and living with epilepsy. Both are inspiring works. Full text for each work listed below. Please note that Bankole Murtala is the original author and these works were reproduced here with his permission. Its Electrifying! Not Electrocuting Procedural, all gains no pain We don’t need to see you fall To suggest areas of concern Sometimes we do see the epilepsy Not neccessarily the seizure We use our brain to monitor yours Its Electrifying! And physiological, With potentials from cell bodies To axon terminals and dendrites Over billions of neurons on call And foot soldiers, the neurotransmitters Your account with us, an account we give Because your brain matters Its Electrifying! Yet diagnosed symptoms and diseases Your choice of medication Sometimes becaons on our effort Oh! The tranquilizing drug of gradualism; They still need tobe trialed Count on us Having EEG is safe, easy and painless Its Electrifying! In all ramifications The breaking of a wave Can not explain the whole sea Nor does a single robin Herald the spring A single spike in a patient With unusual spells However, can speak a volume More than the most detailed MRI We are Neurodiagnostic Professionals We solve problems you don’t know you have With waves you can’t understand The brain function Is our business Alas, it’s electrifying. Still I Rise In the journey of life Epilepsy is not a full stop But a comma, Why label a future superstar? I slipped and somebody sees a terrible fall That is a fact, no doubt A fall is a fall But what is bad when my kissing the dust allows me an opportunity to feel the soil And understand the terrain I will definitely run faster any other time I shall fear no fall anymore A fall is no fall I am grateful for my little falls For I can now climb the tallest of mountains with ease My seizure, a thing of the past Arrested to halt Antiepileptic drugs to the rescue I was not tutored in the art of self-doubt What a lesson it would have been I was not made to self-reject; What a tormenting experience it would have been I was not impelled to self-hate; What a vehement rejection I would have shown I was not nature to vulnerable failure; What an evil way that would have been I was not nurtured to hold down to the earth; No chain will ever bind me I fail and learn again I fall and rise again I retreat and charge again No matter the nature of the trip I shall not slip No matter the trouble I shall not be troubled Even when I fall and fail My mind is on success I reject the thought of failure and defeat Once the game is still on Epilepsy is the future loser When I leave for eternity Epilepsy is still the loser For dead bodies do not convulse

with Zachary Mandler, CEO| EEGXperts & Neuro Pathway Zachary Mandler is CEO of Neuro Pathway, a company whose website states their mission is to “Empower Neurodiagnostic Professionals and help them achieve their career aspirations through our resources, education and support”. Why is the rise of companies such as Neuro Pathway a strong indicator of strong future for Neurodiagnostics? Think of bioindicators such as a Mayfly (weird and slightly nerdy analogy for those who didn’t have an ecology course in college, I know, but bear with me on this).   Mayflies, which have a very limited lifespan as adults (something like 24 hours, feel free to fact check me on that) are very sensitive to oxygen levels in moving water, such as rivers.  So, experts know, once you see a rise in the mayfly population, this is a good indicator that the water ecosystem is becoming healthier and more productive.  The rise of Neuro Pathway and similar groups can be a sign of healthy growth and demand in the neurodiagnostic ecosystem. …And I daresay they will last a lot longer than 24 hours. mayfly image from Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayfly#/media/File:Rhithrogena_germanica_subimago_on_Equisetum_hyemale.jpg