Lehigh Valley Fleming Neuroscience Institute Becomes MDA Care Affiliate

Lehigh Valley Fleming Neuroscience Institute is proud to have been chosen as a Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Care Affiliate, recognizing our neuromuscular disease team's commitment to patient care.

Organizations identified as care affiliates are those that offer expert clinical care, with access to advanced clinical trials, in the diagnosis and treatment of neuromuscular diseases like muscular dystrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Part of MDA’s National Care Center Network, MDA Care Affiliates offer individuals and their families access to leading-edge multidisciplinary care and deepened connections with the neuromuscular community. There are 150 centers and affiliates located across the United States.

“Lehigh Valley Fleming Neuroscience Institute is honored to be recognized as a site for excellence by the MDA, a national organization,” says Steven Lewis, MD, Physician in Chief, Lehigh Valley Fleming Neuroscience Institute, and Regional Chief, Lehigh Valley, Thomas Jefferson University Farber Institute of Neuroscience. “Being part of this network will enhance our knowledge base through sharing of education, programs and advancements in diagnostics and treatments, growing our commitment to the neuroscience community and continuing to improve care for our patients.”

The neuromuscular team at LVHN, led by Neuromuscular Section Co-Directors Alissa Romano, DO, and Alison Walsh, MD, is proud of this designation that acknowledges the expertise, skills, and patient centeredness that the team brings in caring for people every day.

“A multidisciplinary approach is necessary to provide people living with neuromuscular diseases the comprehensive and holistic care required to optimize and enhance their functioning and quality of life,” Dr. Walsh says. “Our team delivers such an approach and is committed to advancing care and research in neuromuscular diseases with their partnership with the MDA.”

With this new affiliation, neurologist Connie Tang, MD, will assume the role of Care Affiliate Director.

The mission of the MDA is to empower the people they serve to live longer, more independent lives. LVHN shares this mission. Lehigh Valley Fleming Neuroscience is a dedicated hub of collaboration, innovation, education and research, and a premier destination for care for brain, spine and other neurological and neurosurgical disorders in the region.

For 75 years, the MDA has helped individuals dealing with neuromuscular diseases with early diagnosis and specialized care to give them the best possible outcomes. MDA Care Affiliates play a key role in this by offering expert comprehensive care, education, guidance and support all along the way. Next to the federal government, MDA serves as the largest source of research funding for neuromuscular disease.