Back to top

MRC News

JACKSON, Miss.—Now in a new home, the staff at Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Quest program hopes to help even more brain-injured patients find their way back to their schools, jobs and lives.

The community-based treatment program, the only one of its kind in Mississippi, is now in a larger building designed for the specific needs of its patients.

“It’s a great facility,” said program coordinator Joyce Leverenz. “We’re not so spread out anymore and now we can communicate better since the entire staff is together in one place.”

JACKSON, Miss.—Singers and musicians from around the state will perform at Methodist Rehabilitation Center during the holiday season. The noon performances in the Jackson hospital’s two-story Atrium Mall are free and open to the public.

“The performances have become an annual tradition,” said Mark Adams, president and CEO of Methodist Rehab. “These groups donate their time and talent to perform for our patients, staff and visitors. The songs they sing and music they play mean so much to all of us.”

JACKSON, Miss.—Methodist Rehabilitation Center is placing safety information tags on bicycles, scooters, roller blades and skateboards in Mississippi stores—all in an effort to encourage parents to remember to buy safety helmets and knee and elbow pads when they purchase any toy with wheels that children can ride.

The safety tag campaign is part of Think First, Methodist Rehab’s statewide safety and injury prevention program that aims to prevent spinal cord, brain and other traumatic injuries by focusing on bicycle, automobile, firearm, boating, swimming and diving safety.

JACKSON, Miss.—The holiday season is an exciting time for children, but Methodist Rehabilitation Center urges parents to use a bit of caution this Christmas.

Dr. Rahul Vohra, Methodist Rehab’s medical director, encourages families to buy safe, age appropriate toys and to always remember to buy protective gear for all children who receive scooters, bicycles, skateboards and roller blades as gifts.

JACKSON, Miss.—The Mississippi Hospital Association Society for Hospital Auxiliaries and Volunteer Services has named Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Andrew Noland a volunteer of the year.

Noland, 84, of Jackson, began volunteering in 1996 at the Jackson hospital, making deliveries to patient rooms and cheering up patients and families. He has also given his time to the United Way, the Splendors of Spain exhibit and is a docent at the Governor’s Mansion.

JACKSON, Miss.—Dr. Mark Sherer, a neuropsychologist and director of the neuropsychology department at Methodist Rehabilitation Center, has been elected to fellow status by the American Psychological Association.

To be eligible, fellow candidates must have a doctoral degree in psychology, five years of experience and evidence of outstanding contributions in the field of psychology, according to the APA.

CLINTON, Miss.–Ever since a 1986 motorcycle accident left David Smith with a spinal cord injury, he’s had to rely on a wheelchair to get around. But these days he’s leaving the chair behind and setting his sights a lot higher.

When the 34 year-old Pearl resident isn’t driving his new Kenworth 18-wheeler cross-country, he’s scaling a three-story rock wall and thinking of the day he’ll be outdoors climbing up a real rock.

FLOWOOD, Miss.—Bruce Spann was helping friends cleanup after a February storm violently tore through Columbus, Miss., when a retainer wall came crashing down on him, severely injuring his right leg.

Emergency physicians told the Bastrop, La., resident that surgery to fuse his ankle would leave him with limited mobility and unable to do physically challenging things like running or climbing without assistance.

HATTIESBURG, Miss.—Members of Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Quad Rugby team, the Jackson Jags, will practice Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at the Hattiesburg Recreation Center.

The purpose of the special practice is to expose the wheelchair sport to people with disabilities who may be unfamiliar with it, said Ginny Boydston, Jags coach and director of therapeutic recreation at Methodist Rehab in Jackson.

“It’s a fun sport and it’s a great opportunity for quadriplegics who might be sitting home and thinking they can’t have an active lifestyle,” Boydston said.

LAKE TOHO, Fla.—Doug Price of Corinth and Cleveland Short of Flowood will represent Methodist Rehabilitation Center in the first ever Grand National Championship for disabled fishermen Oct. 26-28 at Lake Toho in Osceola County, Fla.

The event is held by the Paralyzed Veterans of America and is a part of its National Bass Trail, a series of tournaments throughout the year for the disabled. The PVA Grand National Championship will be televised at a later date.

Pages