“The search committee carried out a thorough international search and interviewed six highly qualified candidates from the United States and Canada,” says Howard Chansky, MD, who led the search committee for this position. “It is fair to say that Dr. Friedly was uniformly considered to be a spectacular candidate for the chair position and the committee quickly coalesced around a desire for her to become the next leader of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine.”
Deep roots in the department
Dr. Friedly has been a valued member of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine since joining the UW Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency program, which she completed in 2005. Prior to coming to the University of Washington, she received her undergraduate degree in 1994 from Stanford University and her medical degree from Oregon Health Sciences University in 2001. She completed the Association of Academic Physiatrists Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program fellowship in 2008 with a focus on health services research related to treatments for low back pain. She also completed a master’s degree in public health in 2020 from George Washington University.
Dr. Friedly currently serves as the executive director of UW Medicine’s Post COVID Rehabilitation and Recovery Clinic and the vice chair for clinical affairs in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington. She also serves as the editor-in-chief of PM&R: The Journal of Injury, Function and Rehabilitation, the official scientific journal of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (AAPM&R).
Building on success
“The Department of Rehabilitation Medicine has consistently ranked in the top five departments nationally and our faculty is internationally known for research, clinical care and education/training in a range of rehabilitation disciplines,” says Dr. Friedly. “Not only are we a national leader among Rehabilitation Medicine departments, we are also consistently the highest ranked department within the UW School of Medicine. With a strong strategic plan and key investments, we have unparalleled potential to be the single leading rehabilitation medicine program in the world.”
The department’s reputation is due in large part to the leadership of Dr. Esselman. Dr. Friedly says, “Dr. Esselman has provided strong and steady leadership over the last 17 years that has helped us double in size and weather extremely challenging changes in healthcare. We are in a strong position going in to the next 10 years. My vision for the department builds on this work to leverage the strengths of the clinical, research and training programs to exponentially advance the work we do to service our patients. I am grateful for the Dr. Eshelman’s leadership in the department and UW Medicine and for his diligence in setting us up for future success. I am also personally grateful for his ongoing support and mentorship.”
The department’s outgoing chair, Dr. Esselman, first came to the University of Washington as an undergraduate student—and he’s dedicated his career to service at UW ever since. His UW roles include physical therapy student; research assistant to department's founder Justus Lehmann, MD; medical student; PM&R resident; and Rehabilitation Medicine faculty member. Since 2007, he has served as chair of the department. He is also an influential leader within the wider world of physiatry, with roles including past president of AAPM&R. Dr. Esselman plans to continue with the department following his departure as chair on August 1.