HIGH POINT, N.C., July 7, 2011 – Neal Darmody, a rising senior majoring in exercise science at High Point University, is gaining eye-opening experiences in a unique internship with the National Institutes of Health in the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) and the NIH Clinical Center’s Department of Rehabilitative Medicine.
During the internship, Darmody, a native of Gaithersburg, Md., is working to rehabilitate soldiers returning from Afghanistan who have traumatic brain injuries and are receiving physical therapy.
He is also working on a study of patients with Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome and Fibromyalgia, as well as working in the lab doing DNA and RNA extractions. He has had the opportunity to work in the rehab department with physical therapists on several different research protocols.
Darmody says the skills he’s gaining at his internship will help him fulfill his goal of becoming a physical therapist.
“This internship will help me pursue my career in physical therapy because I have the opportunity to work with and observe some of the most respected physical therapists and scientists in the country at the NIH,” Darmody says. “I’m also gaining the invaluable experience of working with men and women who have served our country. I’m honored to have this opportunity.”
Darmody says his experiences at HPU have also played a key role in his internship work.
“Studying exercise science at HPU has greatly assisted me in my internship,” says Darmody. “I apply the knowledge that I’ve learned every day so that I can help these soldiers as much as possible.”
At High Point University, every student receives an extraordinary education in an inspiring environment with caring people.℠ HPU, located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, is a liberal arts institution with over 4,200 undergraduate and graduate students from 51 countries and 46 states at campuses in High Point and Winston-Salem. It is ranked by US News and World Report at No. 3 among Regional Colleges in the South. Forbes.com ranks HPU in the top 7 percent among “America’s Best Colleges.” Parade Magazine lists HPU in the top 25 private schools in the nation. The university offers 50 undergraduate majors, 43 undergraduate minors and 14 graduate degree programs. It is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and is a member of the NCAA, Division I and the Big South Conference. Visit High Point University on the Web at highpoint.edu.
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Pam Haynes
Communication Specialist
336-841-9055
[email protected]