As patients walk through the halls in the University of Alabama at Birmingham Spain Rehabilitation Center, they may encounter UAB’s newest canine colleague — a 2-year-old golden retriever named Topgun. Topgun is UAB’s first facility dog. He joined the SRC team in May and has already become a favorite among UAB Medicine patients and employees.

Spina bifida is the most common permanently disabling birth defect that is associated with life. Each year, approximately 1,400 babies born in the United States have spina bifida, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Spina bifida, usually apparent at birth, is a type of neural tube defect in which the neural tube does not completely close during development in the womb, resulting in damage to the spinal cord and nerves.

When you have an injury or procedure that affects how well you move, specialty care improves recovery and performance. UAB Medicine Physical Therapy at Dunnavant Valley is our newest clinic, providing Sports & Exercise Medicine services, physical therapy and rehabilitation for athletes and non-athletes alike. Whether you sprained your ankle playing basketball, had shoulder surgery, or just want to move better, we can help.

The Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP) honored the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of PM&R Associate Professor Berdale S. Colorado, D.O., MPH with the 2025 AAP Early Career Academician Award. This award honors an academic physiatrist who has demonstrated outstanding performance in the areas of teaching, research, and/or administration.

Berdale S. Colorado, D.O., MPH, associate professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R), was selected to receive the 2025 Innovators & Influencers Award by the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPM&R).

Each year, hundreds of patients visit the Amputee Clinic at UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center to be fit for prostheses after complications of diabetes, motor vehicle accidents and a wide range of other conditions. A new grant from UAB’s Health Services Foundation-General Endowment Fund awards program is funding the purchase of an advanced 3D printer that will allow those patients to receive their prostheses faster, at lower cost and with an even better fit, says the clinic’s director, Conley Carr, M.D. The printer will also produce custom orthoses for UAB patients needing braces after a stroke or other condition, he adds.

Each year, UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center (SRC) selects a patient, former patient, or their family member for its Ambassador of Hope Award. This special honor goes to an individual with a disability or their family member whose courage and determination inspire hope in others facing the challenges of disability. UAB Medicine employee Darryl Walker is the 2024 recipient of the award.

With sweeping views, cutting-edge therapy gyms and 134 patient beds, the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s new $156.7 million inpatient rehabilitation pavilion promises to transform recovery for Alabamians and patients across the region.

Mark McColl, chairman of Lakeshore Foundation and a longtime patient of UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center (SRC), is the 2020 recipient of SRC’s Ambassador of Hope Award. The annual award goes to a disabled individual whose courage and determination inspire hope in others who face the challenges of disability.

Tuskegee, Ala. resident Alice Cherry, 79, is an outpatient at UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center. As a person who uses a wheelchair, Cherry faces obstacles and challenges that many people with her condition face. What’s noteworthy is that her disability began at a time when many more obstacles existed in American society. She overcame those obstacles with sheer ambition and a positive outlook, and today she inspires others with her story.