EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 9 AM ET, January 21, 2013

New York Neurologist Named AAN Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Advocate of the Year

MINNEAPOLIS -

The has named neurologist Nicholas Elwood Johnson, MD, of Rochester, New York, as the AAN Donald M. Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum Advocate of the Year. Elwood received his award at the Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum on January 19, 2013, in San Diego, Calif., for his exceptional work in developing a national neurologist resident curriculum in advocacy and public policy. The award recognizes the exemplary efforts of graduates of the Donald M. Palatucci Advocacy Leadership Forum, a skills-development program designed by the ��ɫ���� to train selected members to be effective advocates for their patients and their profession. Johnson graduated in the advocacy class of 2011 and served as an advisor at the recent 2013 Forum. He is a Junior member who joined the AAN in 2008. “My goal for the project was to create a broad, interesting, educational program for neurology residents to learn health policy,” said Johnson, a Neuromuscular Experimental Therapeutics Fellow at the University of Rochester Medical Center. Johnson developed a pilot study of a Health Policy Curriculum in webinar format and presented it to neurology residents at the University of Rochester, Mayo Jacksonville, and the University of Florida. The webinar topics include advocacy, coding, insurer relations, state legislative and regulatory processes, health information technology, patient safety and quality improvement, and pharmaceutical development and pricing. Following this pilot, Johnson hopes to offer the series to all residency program directors for use. Johnson is a member of the AAN’s Government Relations Committee, the Graduate ��ɫ���� Subcommittee, and the Neuromuscular Section. He also is a member of the AAN delegation to the American Medical Association as a Resident and Fellow Section delegate and as an alternate delegate. The Forum was named in memory of former AAN Board of Directors member Donald M. Palatucci, MD, and honors his spirited efforts as an advocate for his patients and chosen profession.

The ��ɫ����, an association of more than 25,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy. For more information about the ��ɫ����, or find us on , , and .