We are pleased to announce Jong M. Rho, MD as the new section chief of Child Neurology at Yale School of Medicine (YSM), effective December 1, 2024.
Dr. Rho comes to YSM from the Division of Pediatric Neurology at Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego and the Departments of Neurosciences, Pediatrics and Pharmacology at the University of California San Diego.
Dr. Rho completed his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry at Yale University before receiving his MD at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. He then completed residencies in Adult Neurology and Pediatric Neurology at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine in Los Angeles, CA.
He’s received numerous awards and recognition, including the Teacher of the Year Award, from the Departments of Neurology at the University of Washington (Seattle) and the Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital & Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ, the John Freeman Award from the Scientific and Organizing Committees at the 6th Global Symposium on Ketogenic Therapies for Neurological Disorders in Jeju, South Korea, and was named a Physician of Exceptional Excellence by the 2022 Top Doctors Awards from San Diego Magazine. He’s also been elected and inducted into the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, elected as an inaugural fellow of the American Epilepsy Society, and nominated to the Sigma Xi Scientific Honor Society.
For over two decades, Dr. Rho has worked and conducted basic-translational research in the field of developmental neurosciences, initially with a focus on the basic mechanisms of anti-seizure medication action, and later followed by investigations into metabolism-based treatments for neurological disorders (i.e., ketogenic diet or KD) with a focus on brain mitochondria, human surgically-resected hypothalamic hamartomas, and more recently, autism spectrum disorder (ASD). His contributions to this burgeoning area of investigation can be divided into two broad domains: (1) collaborative basic-translational research; and (2) leadership in the field of neurometabolism and neurological disorders, through a combination of administrative and organizational roles in international societies, foundations and funding agencies. Dr. Rho’s research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health [NINDS] and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. He frequently serves on scientific advisory boards, organizes international workshops/symposia, and sits on National Institutes of Health [NINDS] and Canadian Institutes of Health Research grant review panels. At Yale, he will be continuing his research in these areas and recruiting additional investigators to establish a program in translational neurometabolism.
As Section Chief of Child Neurology, Dr. Rho will lead a group of faculty members in our mission of delivering the highest quality care to patients and their families at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital and will be responsible for sustaining and expanding robust programs in clinical care, research, education and quality improvement. This includes growing programs in epilepsy/epilepsy surgery, neurocritical care, movement disorders, neurogenetics, neuromuscular disorders, neuro-oncology and neuroimmunology. “I am thrilled to be returning to Yale to lead the section of child neurology” said Dr. Rho. “My goal is to make Yale Child Neurology the leading pediatric neuroscience program in the region and one of the top programs in the nation.”
We thank Laura Ment, MD, for her time as interim section chief prior to Dr. Rho’s appointment. Please join us in welcoming and congratulating Dr. Rho on his new role!