Shepherd Center Welcomes Abana Azariah, M.D., to Medical Staff
Dr. Azariah to serve as medical director of Shepherd’s Disorders of Consciousness Program.
Abana Azariah, M.D., recently joined Shepherd Center’s medical staff. Dr. Azariah will serve as the medical director of Shepherd Center’s Disorders of Consciousness (DoC) Program, which provides care for people in low-level states of consciousness caused by brain injury. She will also care for patients with brain injuries who are in Shepherd Center’s inpatient Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program.
Before joining Shepherd Center, Dr. Azariah was an inpatient attending physician at TIRR Memorial Herman in Houston, Texas, where she also served as the clinical chief of their Disorders of Consciousness Program. She has an undergraduate degree in physiology and neuroscience. She completed her Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) training at Baylor College and a brain injury fellowship at MossRehab in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Azariah as Shepherd Center’s newest medical staff member. Her experience working with patients with disorders of consciousness combined with her passion for the field of brain injury makes her a wonderful addition to our team,” says Michael Yochelson, M.D., MBA, chief medical officer at Shepherd Center.
Dr. Azariah is involved with several organizations supporting the brain injury and DoC community nationally and internationally. In addition to many publications and presentations in the field of brain injury with a strong emphasis on DoC, she authored a chapter in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics, Disorders of Consciousness, published in February 2024.
She explains that Shepherd’s culture was part of what drew her to her new role.
“The power of work culture is one of the most underrated elements of our society. Shepherd’s dedication to providing an engaging, enriching, and welcoming environment and culture is a large part of why I decided to work here,” Azariah says. “The dedication and love that staff have for each other and their patients is beautiful to witness, and I am beyond excited to be a part of the team.”
Originally from California, Dr. Azariah lives in Atlanta with her husband, Tony, two daughters, Mia and Gianna, and their dog, Layla. When she’s not seeing patients at Shepherd, she enjoys trying new foods, traveling, and watching sports.
With five decades of experience, Shepherd Center provides world-class clinical care, research, and family support for people experiencing the most complex conditions, including spinal cord and brain injuries, multi-trauma, traumatic amputations, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and pain. An elite center ranked by U.S. News as one of the nation’s top hospitals for rehabilitation, Shepherd Center is also recognized as both Spinal Cord Injury and Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems. Shepherd Center treats thousands of patients annually with unmatched expertise and unwavering compassion to help them begin again.