USA HEALTH SPINE INSTITUTE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chairman of Neurosurgery
- Member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons
- Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of South Alabama
Dr. Martino is a Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of South Alabama where he has been the Chair of the Department since 2012. Born in Zagarise, Italy, Dr. Martino speaks fluent Italian. He earned his medical degree from Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Rome, Italy. Dr. Martino completed his internship at Columbus Hospital in Chicago and his residency at the State University of New York in Syracuse, New York. In addition, he completed a pediatric neurosurgery fellowship at the University of California in San Francisco.
Dr. Martino is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the International Society of Pediatric Neurosurgery and the Neurosurgical Society of America.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Nurse
- Inpatient Nursing Coordinator
Carmen Morehead, RN, is the Clinical Nurse Facilitator for the Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit at University Hospital and the inpatient coordinator for the Spine Team. She graduated from the University of South Alabama College of Nursing in 2013 and worked in the Surgical Trauma Intensive Care Unit at University Hospital for five years before transitioning to a leadership role. She is currently earning a master's degree as a Clinical Nurse Leader while continuing to work closely with patients both in the Intensive Care Unit and Progressive Care Unit to coordinate care transition and readmission prevention.
Emanuel is originally from Pascagoula, MS. He graduated Pascagoula High School in the top ten percent of his class. From there he attended the University of South Alabama on the Presidential Scholarship.
Erin Roberts, RN, attended the University of Alabama in Birmingham where she received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. She and her husband moved to the Mobile in 2017. She has been working with USA Health for about two years. She started in the operating room at USA Health University Hospital and then transitioned to the Strada Center to work with Dr. Menger and the USA neurosurgery department. Erin is very excited to be part of the USA Spine Team and hopes to provide the best possible service to patients and their families.
Haley Kirby, M.S.Ed, ATC/L, is the patient navigator and coordinator for the USA Health Spine Institute. She graduated from Troy University with a Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training before going on to complete her master's in exercise physiology at The University of Texas at Austin. She comes to the Spine Institute from USA Health's Pandemic Testing Center, where she helped run the COVID-19 testing initiative for patients, first responders and city officials. Haley will be working closely with surgical and non-surgical patients to track their care in order to assure patient satisfaction while working as a steward of their resources.
Marcelo Gerjoi, PA-C, attended the Interservice Physician Assistant Program at Joint Base Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. He is nationally certified by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants, and he is a member of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) and the Florida Association of Physician Assistants (FAPA). In addition to English, he speaks Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese. He currently serves as an officer in the United States Army Reserves.
Nathanael Stuck, PA-C, is originally from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, and graduated from the University of South Alabama Physician Assistant Program. He enjoys his role in neurosurgery because of the opportunities to significantly improve his patients' quality of life. He has three children and enjoys Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and outdoor activities in his spare time.
Richard Menger, M.D., M.P.A., is a fellowship-trained neurosurgeon serving as Director of the USA Health Spine Institute and Chief of Complex Spine Surgery at USA Health. He has a specific focus on complex spinal reconstructions for scoliosis/spinal deformity in children and adults. He performs state-of-the-art minimally invasive spinal procedures (MIS) and has a special expertise in the entire spectrum of conservative and surgical management of pediatric scoliosis.
Trained in neurological and orthopedic spine surgery, he can assess patients from an interdisciplinary perspective and offer the most appropriate specialized treatment plan for each individual patient. His goal is to find the least-invasive and safest possible option to increase each patient's quality of life.
Dr. Menger formed the USA Health Spine Institute to change the culture around the delivery of spine care. His philosophy focuses on a patient-centered approach that allows him to care for the entire patient and their family, not just their spinal disorder. The surgeon is the "Captain of the Ship" and responsible for providing the best possible patient experience and the best possible surgical outcome in safest possible way.
Dr. Menger completed a formal post-graduate spine fellowship in orthopedic pediatric spinal deformity and scoliosis surgery with world-renowned orthopedic surgeons Dr. Michael Vitale and Dr. Lawrence Lenke at Columbia University in New York City. He completed an enfolded adult and pediatric neurosurgery spine fellowship at Louisiana State University/Shriners Children's Hospital under the tutelage of Dr. Anthony Sin.
He is an honors graduate of Cornell University where he played four years of Division I rugby. He completed medical school with honors at Georgetown University School of Medicine where he was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society and received the Barbara Bregman, Ph.D, award as the top graduate in neuroscience. To further his research mission, he received a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government where he was awarded the Hale Champion Public Service Fellowship.
Dr. Menger has published over 50 peer-reviewed scientific papers and has presented over 80 abstracts at national/international meetings. He is the editor of an academic neurosurgery textbook. His research has been cited over 500 times in the medical community. He has received grants and numerous awards for his research. He was recognized by the North American Spine Society as a "20 under 40" Spine Surgeon in the United States.
Dr. Menger was selected for the NASS Spinal Deformity Committee as well as the AANS/CNS Joint Guidelines Committee responsible for reviewing/creating the guidelines used by other neurosurgeons. He is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Congress of Neurological Surgeons, Council of State Neurological Societies, North American Spine Society, and a candidate member of the Scoliosis Research Society.