Memorial Hermann Northeast Hospital Senior Vice President and CEO Heath Rushing and Manish Shah, M.D., UTHealth pediatric neurosurgeon affiliated with Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital and the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, have both been named to the Houston Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2015.
The prestigious award annually recognizes 40 of the greater Houston area’s best up-and-coming professionals under the age of 40. Honorees have to be nominated and are chosen by judges based on leadership, overcoming challenges and community involvement. There were nearly 400 nominees for the award this year, according to the HBJ.
“This is a tremendous honor and it is very humbling to be listed among many talented people doing great things for the greater Houston area,” Rushing said. “My family, friends, co-workers past and present and the community I live in have all shaped who I am and inspire me to do more every day.”
Rushing, 38, has focused on creating a family-work-community balance that has allowed him to greatly impact all three areas.
“This is a well-deserved honor for Heath,” said Keith Alexander, senior vice president and president of the Memorial Hermann North Region. “Heath plays an important role in advancing the health status of the growing communities in the Lake Houston region and has immersed himself in community and civic endeavors in the area as well. We are very proud that his dedication to his family, community and hospital is being recognized.”
On a daily basis, Rushing is responsible for the operation of the 255-licensed bed acute care hospital that has 1,100 employees and sees more than 75,000 patients in its emergency departments each year. Among his numerous achievements at Memorial Hermann Northeast, Rushing led the construction of the Convenient Care Center at Summer Creek, which has served as a prototype for the Memorial Hermann Health System. There are now seven planned or constructed Memorial Hermann CCCs in the greater Houston area, including the most recent planned addition in Kingwood.
Rushing has been equally impactful in his community and civic endeavors through fund-raising and as an appointed or elected representative. He currently is serving in his second term as an elected member of the Humble Independent School District Board and is an active board member of the Lake Houston Area Chamber of Commerce, the Lake Houston Economic Development Partnership and the Lake Houston Family YMCA. Rushing has been actively involved in joint community activities with the American Heart Association and the United Way.
Dr. Manish Shah is the Director of Pediatric Spasticity and Movement Disorder Surgery at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital and MNI. He has a laboratory to investigate basic brain function in children with advanced neuroimaging techniques.
“I am proud to be recognized with so many respected individuals in the Houston area,” said Dr. Shah. “On a daily basis, I have the privilege of helping children achieve a better quality of life despite having a scary and often debilitating neurological disease and that is reward enough. To be recognized for that work is an exceptional honor.”
Dr. Shah went to Princeton University for undergrad and studied medicine at Vanderbilt University. As a resident in neurological surgery at Washington University in St. Louis, he was awarded the Department of Neurosurgery’s Medical Student Teaching Award and the Department’s Annual Resident Research Symposium Research Award.
One of his major clinical interests is in selective dorsal rhizotomy, and he is one of only a handful of surgeons within a 1,000 mile radius who can perform the operation. This procedure involves destroying nerve roots in the spinal cord that are causing problematic neuromuscular conditions. These conditions can often include muscle tightness and possible paralysis.
“Dr. Shah is an extraordinary and gifted physician who is bringing innovative treatments to our community and who will be a national leader in the field of pediatric neurosurgery,” said David Sandberg, M.D., director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital, MNI and UTHealth Medical School. “I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to work alongside Dr. Shah each day. It is a credit to our city and our medical institutions to attract individuals of Dr. Shah’s caliber.”
All 40 Under 40 honorees will be profiled in a special edition of Houston Business Journal that will be released on October 30.