GLENROSE HOSPITAL FOUNDATION  |
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What happens when we stop 
asking what can’t be done, 
and start asking what might be 
possible? We sat down with Dr. 
Jessica D’Amico to talk about the 
science and people driving the 
future of neurorehabilitation. 
Glenrose Hospital Foundation 
(GHF): What first drew you to 
neuroscience and rehabilitation 
research?
Dr. Jessica D’Amico (JD): I’ve 
always been someone who 
wanted to understand how things 
work, but more importantly, how 
they can work better. That curiosity 
naturally drew me to neuroscience.
As I learned more about the 
brain and spinal cord, I became 
fascinated by the fact that an injury 
can change someone’s life in an 
instant, and yet the nervous system 
still has an incredible capacity to 
adapt and recover. That possibility 
has motivated me ever since.
As my career progressed, I 
realized I wasn’t interested in doing 
research simply for the sake of 
publishing papers. I wanted to 
do research that could genuinely 
change the way people recover 
after neurological injury. That led 
me into rehabilitation research, 
where every scientific question 
has the potential to translate 
into something meaningful for 
a person trying to regain their 
independence.
GHF: Was there a moment that 
made this work personal for you?
JD: There wasn’t one defining 
moment; it was a series of 
experiences. But my perspective 
became much more personal 
when my grandmother had a 
stroke.
She came to live with our family, 
and we helped care for her as 
she navigated life after her stroke. 
Watching someone you love work 
so hard to regain everyday abilities 
gives you a completely different 
appreciation for rehabilitation. You 
see that recovery isn’t just about 
improving strength or movement. 
It’s about restoring independence, 
dignity, and the ability to 
participate in the moments that 
matter most.
Later, as I began working 
with people living with spinal 
cord injury and stroke, those 
experiences reinforced what 
I’d witnessed firsthand. I met 
individuals whose determination 
continually challenged our 
assumptions about recovery and 
reminded me that there is always 
more we can do.
GHF: You lead the Clinical Trials and 
Research Platform at the Glenrose. 
What does that work look like?
JD: My role is to help ensure that 
when people walk through the 
doors of the Glenrose, they know 
they are in a place that’s at the 
forefront of advancing rehabilitation. 
I work with clinicians, researchers, 
industry partners, and funding 
agencies to bring innovative 
rehabilitation technologies and 
therapies into the hospital so they 
can be evaluated safely and 
rigorously.
That can mean designing clinical 
trials, securing research funding, 
mentoring research staff and 
students, supporting clinicians, 
or helping patients participate in 
studies that may shape the future of 
rehabilitation. Ultimately, my goal is 
to bridge the gap between research 
discoveries and everyday patient 
care.
Today, we're 
seeing growing 
evidence that 
the nervous 
system is far more 
adaptable than 
we once believed.
GHF: For someone unfamiliar 
with your work, what are you 
researching?
JD: Our research focuses on helping 
people recover after neurological 
injuries such as spinal cord injury and 
stroke.
We study new rehabilitation 
approaches, from technologies 
such as non-invasive spinal cord 
stimulation to digital rehabilitation 
platforms. We carefully evaluate these 
approaches through clinical research 
to understand whether they’re safe, 
effective, and practical to implement 
in real-world healthcare.
GHF: What are you trying to achieve 
through this research?
JD: I’m trying to help redefine what’s 
possible after neurological injury.
For decades, many people living 
with spinal cord injury or stroke were 
told that recovery plateaued after a 
certain point. That if function hadn’t 
returned within months, it probably 
never would. Today, we’re seeing 
growing evidence that the nervous 
system is far more adaptable than 
we once believed. Even years after 
an injury, it can continue to change, 
relearn, and recover when given the 
right combination of therapy and 
technology.
That’s incredibly exciting because 
it shifts the conversation from 
managing disability to maximizing 
recovery.
Support from the Glenrose 
Hospital Foundation has 
also been instrumental in 
creating opportunities to 
bring new technologies, 
build research capacity, and 
accelerate innovation that 
directly benefits patients.

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