MRC News

Stronger every day: Greenwood teen Connor Bready makes swift recovery and goes back to school with help of MRC’s brain injury program

Most teens’ “what I did on my summer vacation” essays are probably about lazing by the pool, hanging out with friends or family trips to Disney World.

Connor Bready’s could be titled “I Recovered from a Traumatic Brain Injury.”

The 16-year-old from Greenwood came to Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s brain injury program on June 12 in a wheelchair. He had just had surgery that removed a piece of his skull after sustaining a head injury in a freak accident. Just 10 days later, he walked out MRC’s doors on his own, and he’s already back at school at Pillow Academy.

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Gertrude C. Ford Foundation Pledges $1 Million to Wilson Research Foundation

The Gertrude C. Ford Foundation has pledged a $1 million gift to the Wilson Research Foundation at Methodist Rehabilitation Center (MRC). The gift establishes the Gertrude C. Ford Director of Motion Analysis.   

Methodist’s motion analysis laboratory is used to assess patients’ function and outcomes of various treatments. The director’s position requires a rare set of skills that ranges from operating highly sophisticated equipment to having extensive knowledge of human movements.  

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A match made at Methodist Rehab: Helping family members recover from brain injuries forges deep bond between Northsiders Ben Lane and Walton Fenelon

Bride or groom’s side?

At the Oct. 26 wedding of Ben Lane and Walton Fenelon, that question may pose a predicament for guests who work at Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson.

Ben’s father, Sam Lane, Sr., and Walton’s mother, Kelley Fenelon, are both board members of the hospital’s Wilson Research Foundation.

And what fostered their involvement was the same thing that forged a bond between Ben and Walton—the brain injury of a loved one and their subsequent recovery at MRC.

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‘I did what I was supposed to do’: Meridian athlete Alixus Hearn sets goals, gives it her all to overcome paralyzing spinal injury

On a misty fall afternoon, Alixus Hearn crashed her car just down the road from Northeast Lauderdale High School in Meridian.

“I was heading to the field when I heard sirens going off everywhere,” said Tyler Vick, head coach for the school’s slow pitch softball team. “The principal called and said there had been an accident. And your heart just drops.”

A right center fielder for the Trojans, Alixus is someone “everyone loved to be around,” Vick said. And it hurt to tell her teammates that she was fighting for her life.

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MRC names latest Employees of the Quarter

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 2019, the honorees include Kaitlin Snyder of Pearl, physical therapist for MRC’s brain injury program; Terri McKie of Ridgeland, manager of MRC’s gift shop; Elizabeth Rich of Jackson, therapy manager at Methodist Outpatient Therapy in Ridgeland; and Frank Carucci of Meridian, an orthotics & prosthetics technician at Methodist Orthotics & Prosthetics in Meridian.

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‘That’s what she does, she pushes through things’: Meridian resident rebounds from paralyzing neurological disorder to reclaim job in record time

Diagnosed with a paralyzing disease she’d never heard of, Dana Kidd’s first instinct was to google the name—Guillain-Barre’ Syndrome.

Only she couldn’t grasp her phone or even tap the touchscreen.

“I had no strength,” said the 48-year-old Meridian resident. “I could only listen to what everybody told me.”

And the news wasn’t good. Doctors said the neurological disorder might leave Kidd unable to walk for nine months or more.

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MRC names Employees of the Year for 2018

Methodist Rehabilitation Center has announced 2018 Clinical and Support Service Employees of the Year for its Jackson hospital and external campuses.

The honorees include Leslie Taylor of Brandon, Supervisor of Therapy Services at MRC; Kathy Kendrick of Madison, Senior Programmer Analyst for Information Services at MRC; Heather Taylor of Brandon, a registered nurse at Methodist Physical Medicine; and Maxine Jackson of Pearl, a Dietary Services cook at Methodist Specialty Care Center.

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MRC names latest Employees of the Quarter

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

For the second quarter of 2019, the honorees include Angelia Warner of Brandon, respiratory therapist at MRC; Terry Shingleton of Pearl, secretary for MRC’s neuropsychology department; Sheila Hinkle of Jackson, a licensed practical nurse at Methodist Specialty Care Center; and Abdul Muhammad of Jackson, security officer for MRC’s east campus in Flowood.

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‘Such a blessing’: For spinal cord injury survivor Brad Stubblefield and wife Kristan, having children has brought joy along with a unique set of challenges

After over 25 years working with spinal cord injury patients at Methodist Rehabilitation Center, occupational therapist Bridgett Pelts knows there is little they can’t do when they set their minds to it.

That includes experiencing the joys of parenthood.

“It is no different for them as with anyone else who wants to have a child, they just have to know there will be challenges,” Pelts said. “They have to be willing to think a little bit differently and adapt the way they do things.”

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MRC names latest Employees of the Quarter

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

For the fourth quarter of 2018, the honorees include Bridgett Pelts of Jackson, prospective payment system coordinator; Kathy Kendrick of Madison, senior program analyst; Felishia Davis of Brandon, respiratory therapist for Methodist Specialty Care Center; and Eloise Jones of Flora, inpatient billing representative.

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