LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Dr. Jonathan Hodes, who served as interim chair of the department of neurological surgery at the University of Louisville School of Medicine since May, has been named to the chairmanship of that department.
In making the announcement, Dr. Edward Halperin, dean of the School of Medicine, noted that neurosurgery is an essential component of the University of Louisville’s neurosciences program, which also includes neurology, psychiatry, neuropathology, neuroimaging and rehabilitation. Halperin further noted the leadership Hodes has provided to the department of neurological surgery during the past few months.
“In his time as interim chair, Dr. Hodes has developed new collaborative relationships between the Department of Neurological Surgery and other units both inside and out of the School of Medicine, including but not limited to the creation of a Neuro-Oncology Clinic within the James Graham Brown Cancer Center at the University of Louisville, and a relationship with the Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute (MPRI), an affiliated program within the Indiana University Melvin and Brenda Simon Cancer Center, to provide proton therapy for patients who will benefit from the technology,” Halperin said.
“Additionally, he has helped to recruit an outstanding group of residents for our program, as well as new members of the faculty including Dr. Haring Nauta. Dr. Nauta is nationally recognized for his accomplishments as a trauma neurosurgeon and previously served as professor and chair of neurosurgery at the University of Texas Medical Branch – Galveston. Dr. Nauta’s expertise is particularly valuable to University Hospital’s Level I Trauma Center and residency education.”
Hodes earned his medical and master’s degrees from the Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed his internal medicine residency at the Indiana University Medical Center and a fellowship with the National Institute on Aging. He then completed a neurosurgical residency at the University of California San Francisco and fellowships at the University of Western Ontario (neurovascular surgery) and Lariboisiere Hospital in Paris, France (neurointerventional radiology). His diverse medical background prepared him to be innovative in neurosurgical treatment, applying techniques from different specialties in new ways to enhance patient outcomes.
Hodes has been a member of the faculty at the University of California San Francisco, Wayne State University in Detroit, and the University of Kentucky. While at Kentucky, Hodes was the director of Gamma Knife Radiosurgery and Neurointerventional Radiology.
He is board certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery and the American Board of Internal Medicine with subspecialty training in gerontology, is a member of the American College of Physicians, and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He is the author or co-author of more than 40 scientific papers.
Clinically, Hodes has concentrated his practice in minimally invasive neurosurgical techniques, as well as vascular neurosurgery and radiosurgery.
“It is an honor to have the responsibility for expanding the department into areas never thought possible,” Hodes said. “The opportunities for marrying the clinical services provided by neurological services with the research taking place throughout the neurosciences at UofL make this a very exciting time for anyone whose goal is to help people who have conditions affecting any portion of the nervous system. The Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of Louisville is one of only a few departments that has an internationally reknown research division with the depth and breadth of research spanning basic science including stem cell research for repair of spinal cord injury all the way to innovative rehabilitation therapy. This department is dedicated to discovering and creating the leading edge technologies and applying them in a compassionate clinical practice to bring the very best neurosurgical care to our community.”