SCHOLAR DIRECTORY

Ms. Lisa Perla received her Diploma in nursing from Jackson Memorial Hospital School of Nursing; her Bachelor’s degree from Florida International University; and her Masters in Nursing from Barry University in Miami, Florida. She is a licensed and certified Family Nurse Practitioner, a Certified Neuroscience Registered Nurse and a Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurse. Ms. Perla has worked in numerous clinical and administrative roles in the areas of emergency medicine, medical/surgical and transplantation intensive care, and rehabilitation medicine. She is a national speaker on stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and other neurologic emergencies. Ms. Perla’s most recent career focus has been in her role as a national leader in the Veterans Health Administration, Central Office in Washington, DC as the National Polytrauma Coordinator. As a compliment to this career pursuit, Ms. Perla is a PhD Nursing research student at Uniformed Services University School of Health Sciences. Her research pursuits have expanded beyond the clinical sequelae of service members and veterans to include investigating the role of leadership in health care outcomes. Ms. Perla is specifically investigating the role of leadership in rehabilitation case managers who support veterans as they seek community reintegration health care services in VA.