Rate My Professor Susan McDowell

Susan McDowell, MD, serves as the Janet Galloway Carter Endowed Chairperson and Chair of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, where she holds the rank of Associate Professor. She joined the UK faculty in July 1994 and directed the residency program from January 1996 to June 2001. In addition to her academic roles, Dr. McDowell is Chief Medical Officer at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital, Medical Director for Outpatient Therapy Services at UK HealthCare, and Medical Director of the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation outpatient clinic at Kentucky Clinic. She is board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation and holds a subspecialty certificate in spinal cord injury medicine. Dr. McDowell operates an outpatient spinal cord injury clinic and a seating and mobility clinic at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital and serves as a consultant on the multidisciplinary movement disorders team at the Lexington unit of Shriners Hospital for Children.

Dr. McDowell's research focuses on rehabilitation medicine, including the effects of Tizanidine as an antispasticity drug for spinal cord injury patients, functional neuromuscular stimulation, restraint use during inpatient rehabilitation, and the use of university-based student health clinics to educate PM&R students. Her additional research topics encompass neuropathic pain modulation, stroke rehabilitation outcomes, the impact of COVID-19 on rehabilitation, research training in medical education, neuroleptic malignant syndrome, and blood pressure regulation in spinal cord injury. Key publications include "Impact of COVID-19 positive status on outcome for individuals with stroke treated in acute inpatient rehabilitation" (2026, co-authored with Ziems et al.), "Baseline Characteristics and Outcomes for People With and Without COVID-19 Diagnoses Receiving Inpatient Rehabilitation Care Across the US in 2020-2021" (2023, co-authored with Charbonneau et al.), "Perceptions of Skills, Experience, and Attitudes on the Conduct of Research: a View Across the Continuum of Medical Learners in Kentucky’s Three Medical Schools" (2014), "Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome Associated With the Use of Carbidopa/Levodopa for Dystonia in Persons With Cerebral Palsy" (2012), and "Blood pressure regulation in neurally intact human vs. acutely injured paraplegic and tetraplegic patients during passive tilt" (2007). She has earned recognition as Outstanding Resident of the Year, Outstanding Research Project by a Resident (awarded two consecutive years), and Teacher of the Year by residents in 2004. Dr. McDowell earned a B.S. in chemistry from Augusta College in 1986, an M.D. from the Medical College of Georgia in 1990, and completed her residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Kentucky in 1994.