Lab Updates

News and highlights from the Hopkins Pain & Rehabilitation Lab.

Lab team enjoying pizza together at Johnny Rad's restaurant

February 17, 2026

Lab Pizza Party at Johnny Rad's

We kicked off the spring semester with a lab pizza party! It was a great evening to step away from our busy schedules, enjoy good food, and spend time together outside the office. We're grateful for such a dedicated and collaborative team, and for opportunities to celebrate the hard work happening across the lab. Here's to a productive and exciting semester ahead!

Dr. Fenan Rassu at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare during the multidisciplinary pain care assessment visit

January 16, 2026

Advancing Multidisciplinary Pain Care at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare

Dr. Fenan Rassu participated in a multidisciplinary assessment visit to Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare (JHAH) in Saudi Arabia, focused on evaluating and strengthening existing pain management services for patients living with acute and chronic pain. The week-long site visit involved clinic observations and stakeholder meetings to understand current workflows and identify opportunities to enhance coordinated, patient-centered pain care. Findings from this assessment will inform recommendations to support multidisciplinary collaboration, implementation of evidence-based practices, and ongoing service development.

Dr. Fenan Rassu and Gloria Kammer presenting at the AcademyHealth Dissemination and Implementation conference

December 14, 2025

Presenting at the AcademyHealth D&I Conference 2025

Dr. Fenan Rassu and lab member Gloria Kammer presented at the 18th Annual Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation in Health in Washington, DC. The conference highlights how implementation science can be used to help make sure that evidence-based care can be delivered in ways that improve access, engagement, and equity for the patients we serve.

Lab trainees presenting research posters at the 15th PM&R Research and Clinical Expo

December 2, 2025

Proud of Our Team at the 15th PM&R Research & Clinical Expo!

Trainees presented their posters at the 15th PM&R Research and Clinical Expo this week! It was a fantastic showcase of the hard work happening across the lab. A special shoutout to Sylvia Johnson, whose poster "Bridging the Gap: Aligning Patient and Provider Priorities in PROMs Implementation for Spine and Pain Care" took home a top clinical poster award. So proud of everyone who presented, keep up the great work!

Dr. Fenan Rassu and Dr. Mary Slavin at the ACRM 2025 Annual Meeting in Chicago

October 31, 2025

Presenting at ACRM 2025

Dr. Fenan Rassu and Dr. Mary Slavin presented their collaborative project, "Bridging the Gap: Aligning Patient and Provider Priorities in PROMs Implementation for Spine and Pain Care," at the 2025 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Annual Meeting in Chicago!

Lab team celebrating Dr. Rachel Aaron's promotion to Associate Professor

July 24, 2025

Congratulations, Dr. Rachel Aaron!

We celebrated Dr. Rachel Aaron as she went up for promotion to Associate Professor! We are so proud of her leadership and the impact of her work — congratulations, Rachel!

Lab team collaborating during a full-day manuscript writing Paper Chase session

June 27, 2025

Lab Paper Chase!

Our team came together for a full-day Paper Chase to jumpstart a manuscript. It was an energizing day of collaboration, writing, and teamwork that brought us one big step closer to submission!

Dr. Fenan Rassu and Dr. Rachel Aaron presenting at the Canadian Pain Society Annual Scientific Meeting in Toronto

May 3, 2025

Presenting at the Canadian Pain Society 2025

Dr. Fenan Rassu and Dr. Rachel Aaron each presented symposiums at the Canadian Pain Society Annual Scientific Meeting in Toronto, ON. A great opportunity to share our work and connect with colleagues advancing the science of pain.

Lab team members presenting research at the USASP 2025 conference in Chicago

May 1, 2025

Sharing Our Research in Chicago – USASP 2025

Our team was proud to present at the 2025 US Association for the Study of Pain Conference in Chicago! Congratulations to everyone who represented the lab and shared our work on advancing evidence-based care for pain and disability.

Philip Huang presenting at the Johns Hopkins Medical Student Research Symposium

February 7, 2025

Celebrating Philip Huang at the Medical Student Research Symposium!

Congratulations to our research assistant, Philip Huang, who was selected to give an oral presentation at the Johns Hopkins Medical Student Research Symposium! We are so proud of Phil's hard work and dedication.

November 14, 2024

First Place at the PM&R Research & Clinical Expo!

Big congratulations to our postbac RA, Sylvia Johnson, for winning first place at the PM&R Research and Clinical Expo! We're so proud of her presentation and the important work she's doing in our lab.

Lab team gathered for the start of the 2024–2025 academic year

September 4, 2024

Kicking Off the 2024–2025 Academic Year!

We're excited to kick off the 2024–2025 academic year! Looking forward to another year of collaboration, discovery, and growth together.

Lab team celebrating Dr. Scott Ravyts' graduation from the Pain Psychology Fellowship

June 20, 2024

Congratulations, Dr. Scott Ravyts!

We gathered to celebrate Dr. Scott Ravyts as he graduated from the Pain Psychology Fellowship. Congratulations, Scott, on this important milestone — we are excited to see all the ways you'll continue advancing pain research and clinical care in your new role as Assistant Professor at UNC-Charlotte!