Meet Our Team

Rachel Thompson is a Chicago native, who attended medical school at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and completed her residency in orthopaedic surgery at Northwestern University in Chicago, IL.  She completed her first fellowship in pediatric orthopaedics and scoliosis at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children in Dallas, TX and her second in neuromuscular orthopaedics at Nemours A.I. DuPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, DE. 

Dr. Oppenheim is a board-certified pediatric orthopaedist and past president of the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine. He manages the orthopaedic problems related to spasticity and abnormal movement in children and adults with cerebral palsy. When indicated, he performs treatments including botulinum toxin injections, as well as soft tissue or bony surgery to correct deformities and maximize mobility.

Dr. Joseph Solberg is an interventional spine care specialist and is double board certified in the fields of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Pain Medicine. He completed his undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Iowa and received his medical degree at the Western University of Health Sciences. He completed his residency training at the University of California Davis in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

Dr. Fowler directs the research and education programs at the Center. The Center’s research examines the underlying causes of movement and function disorders and cerebral palsy and assesses the effectiveness of various treatment interventions on these disorders. Dr. Fowler served as president of the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine for the 2015 – 2016 term.

Dr. Stearns-Reider’s research is focused on the development of therapeutic strategies to address muscle contractures and improve patient function in cerebral palsy and other musculoskeletal disorders. She received her MS in Physical Therapy from the University of California, San Francisco, and her PhD in Biokinesiology from the University of Southern California.

Michael O’Hara is a licensed clinical social worker from Southern California. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California Santa Barbara and a Master of Social Welfare degree from the University of California Los Angeles Luskin School of Public Affairs. Michael is currently a field instructor for the Center for Cerebral Palsy and for Special Patient Care in the School of Dentistry at UCLA. 

Dana Connolly is a board-certified nurse practitioner specializing in pediatric orthopaedics. She assists with evaluation and treatment for children with cerebral palsy in clinic and with patient coordination. Her role in clinic also includes spasticity management with baclofen pumps and botulinum toxin injections. Dana graduated from the UCLA School of Nursing and started her career as a nurse at UCLA in the Surgical/Transplant Intensive Care Unit and Emergency Department. 

Ms. Greenberg evaluates patients in the Center’s inter-disciplinary lifespan clinic and, with her team members, establishes a plan of care focused on the patient and family goals. She communicates with community therapists and physicians in the design and implementation of treatment programs and equipment. 

Ms. Staudt has been working for many years with infants and young children in the UCLA Intervention program. As a research physical therapist, she participates in all phases of the Center’s projects. She also evaluates patients in the Center’s inter-disciplinary lifespan clinic.

Kim is the administrative assistant for Drs. Oppenheim and Thompson. She is responsible for scheduling and coordinating patient care in the clinic and in the operating room.

Andy is the Kameron Gait and Motion Analysis engineer. He is a graduate of Wake Forest University and is currently a doctoral student in Bioengineering at UCLA.