FES Center Exec. Director Robert Kirsch PhD Receives the VA’s Prestigious Paul B. Magnuson Award for Outstanding Achievement in Rehabilitation R&D

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System and the Cleveland FES Center congratulate Executive Director Robert Kirsch PhD, who today received the Paul B. Magnuson Award for Outstanding Achievement in Rehabilitation Research and Development.

The award was presented to Dr. Kirsch at VA headquarters in Washington D.C., in a live-streamed ceremony hosted by Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Secretary Paul R. Lawrence PhD. 

Dr. Kirsch was one of six VA investigators honored at the 2025 National VA Research Week Kick-Off Awards Ceremony, showcasing VA’s efforts to provide Veterans with the best possible care and latest health science developments.

The 2025 theme of Research Week is “100 Years of Research” as the Department celebrates VA researchers and staff who have contributed to some of the most significant medical breakthroughs in history, as well as all those who continue to add to that incredible legacy. 

VA research has been, and will always be, at the forefront of innovation. VA researchers make up innovative teams that have historically developed effective treatments for tuberculosis, invented the CAT scan and the pacemaker, and performed the first-ever liver transplant. VA’s research arm is instrumental in translating science into actionable solutions that improve health outcomes for Veterans and the American people.

Addressing awardees and attendees at the ceremony, Dr. Lawrence, acknowledged the awardees for their leadership in VA research that is improving veterans’ lives and outcomes.

“Their bold ideas are already reshaping what’s possible for veterans and for medicine,” Dr. Lawrence said. “They share a common purpose: pushing boundaries so that every veteran can live a longer, healthier, and more meaningful life.”

A Visionary for Restoring Upper Extremity Function After SCI 

Dr. Kirsch is the Allen H. and Constance T. Ford Professor and Chair of Biomedical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University, and the Executive Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Research and Development, Rehabilitation Research, Development & Translation (RRD&T) Service “Center for Functional Electrical Stimulation.”

His research focuses on the restoration of arm movements to Veterans and individuals with complete paralysis of arm muscles due to spinal cord injury or other neurological disorders using functional electrical stimulation (FES), as well as high performance user command interfaces such as brain computer interfaces and advanced prosthetic user interfaces.

During his remarks, Dr. Lawrence highlighted Dr. Kirsch’s work as “a place where courage, innovation, sacrifice and science meet, and the veteran who helped bring it to life.” He briefly shared the story of Navy veteran Bill Kochevar, who was paralyzed after a spinal cord injury and courageously volunteered to become the first participant in Dr. Kirsch’s groundbreaking study.

“That’s what veterans and VA research looks like, reflecting the courage of veterans who volunteer for clinical trials not for themselves but for others,” Dr. Lawrence observed.

Accepting the award, Dr. Kirsch shared, “I’m very humbled and honored to receive the Paul B. Magnuson Award today.” He thanked his family for their unwavering support, his mentors for their guidance, and the collaboration of many exceptional partners from Cleveland and around the country. “Most of all I’d like to thank the participants – Veterans especially. Our Veterans and all research participants are the true pioneers – their selflessness makes all of this work possible.” 

The Premier Award for VA Rehabilitation Researchers

The Paul B. Magnuson award is presented annually to a VA RRD&T investigator who exemplifies the entrepreneurship, humanitarianism, and dedication to veterans displayed by Dr. Magnuson during his career.

The award was established in 1998 in recognition of the importance of rehabilitation research within the VA Health Care System.

The highest honor for VA rehabilitation investigators, the award honors the life and legacy of Paul B. Magnuson MD, who as a bone and join surgeon continuously sought new treatments and devices for assisting his patients as they faced unique situations presented by their disability. 

As a physician, Dr. Magnuson saw his duty not only as curing, but also as restoring a patient “to his family, his job, and his life.” He was a champion of the underdog and as an advocate for veterans was the architect of the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care System as it is known today.

Investigators at VANEOS have previously been honored with this award, including Drs. Bob Ruff (two times), P. Hunter Peckham and Ron Triolo.

About VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System

Focusing on treating the whole Veteran through health promotion and disease prevention, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System provides comprehensive, seamless health care and social services for more than 141,000 Veterans across Northeast Ohio. With 17 locations of care, including 12 outpatient clinics, two community resource and referral centers, a psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery center, a chronic dialysis center, and an outpatient surgery center, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System’s quality services are easily accessible to Veterans in 21 counties. VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System also contributes to the future of medicine through education, training, and research programs. For more information about programs and services offered by VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System, visit www.cleveland.va.gov or follow VANEOHS on Facebook, Instagram or X @ClevelandVAMC.

About Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) Center

The Cleveland FES Center is a neuromodulation and neurostimulation research consortium of six nationally recognized institutions: VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System, VA Syracuse Health Care System, MetroHealth Systems, Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals of Cleveland, and the Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute. The Cleveland FES Center is at the forefront of academic and clinical research to further the advancement of neural technology; thereby accelerating the translation of innovation into clinical practice and improving the quality of life for people with neural disorders and their families. Visit FEScenter.org to learn more.

Damien Horvath, Public Affairs Officer

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