Editorial panel

Daniel Thomas

Managing Director, Chroma / Music Therapist, APCI & NMT Certified

Daniel qualified as a music therapist in 2002. His work focuses on children and families, especially supporting attachment, bonding and resilience.

Daniel has worked in prisons, mental health settings and in special and mainstream schools with children with a range of brain injuries and other conditions.

He certified in the APCI assessment in 2014, and as a Neurologic Music Therapist in 2017. He is also Managing Director of Chroma, one of the UK’s leading arts therapies groups.

Professor Nick Alderman
Clinical Director - Elysium Healthcare

Professor/Yr Athro Nick Alderman BA (Hons) MAppSci PhD CPsychol CSci FBPsS, Clinical Director, Neurobehavioural Rehabilitation (NbR) Services at Elysium Neurological, part of Elysium Healthcare.

Professor Alderman is acknowledged internationally as one of the foremost experts in NbR, having over three decades experience in this field. Nick has combined successful careers in clinical and academic psychology and has a proven track record in treatment innovation, service development, leadership, research, publications and teaching. He is Honorary Professor at Swansea University and Visiting Professor at the University of the West of England. He previously held senior posts at St Andrew’s Healthcare Kemsley Unit and a number of other well established brain injury service providers.

In 2002, Nick was awarded a Fellowship of the British Psychological Society in recognition of his contribution to NbR. In 2014 he was a finalist in the LaingBuisson Independent Healthcare Awards ‘Outstanding Contribution’ category; joint winner of The Association for Psychological Therapies ‘Awards for Excellence in Risk Assessment and Management’ and recipient of the prestigious United Kingdom Acquired Brain Injury Forum ‘Stephen McAleese Award for Inspiration by an individual in the field of acquired brain injury’ in recognition of his work in successfully reducing restrictive interventions in Neurobehavioural Rehabilitation. In 2016, Nick was joint recipient of the Association for Psychological Therapies ‘Annual Award for Excellence in Working with Challenging Behaviour’ and most recently has this year achieved the ‘Award for Distinguished Contribution to Practice’ from the British Psychological Society. Outside of work Nick is a keen dog owner and prides himself on being an amateur musician of ‘questionable talent’.

Professor Mike Barnes

Consultant neurologist and founder of the World Federation of Neurorehabilitation

Over his 30 year career in the neurorehabilitation and brain injury sector, Prof. Barnes was a pioneering force behind the growth of neurorehabilitation as a medical speciality, raising the discipline's profile, understanding and knowledge and ultimately improving medical outcomes for countless patients globally. Professor Barnes trained as a neurologist under Lord Walton of Detchant, widely recognised as one of the 20th century's leading neurologists. Although interested in neurological rehabilitation, in the mid-1980s, there was no training and very little interest in the subject. Prof. Barnes instead worked in the pharmaceutical industry on antidepressant and anti-epileptic research before being appointed to the first training post in neurological rehabilitation in the UK. In 1989, Prof. Barnes became accredited in neurology and rehabilitation medicine and worked as a senior lecturer/consultant neurologist and rehabilitation physician.

In 1994, Prof. Barnes was appointed as the first Chair of Neurological Rehabilitation in the UK and developed the Regional Neurological Rehabilitation Centre at Hunters Moor Hospital in Newcastle.  Soon becoming a nationally and internationally recognised centre of excellence for neurological rehabilitation, Prof. Barnes served as its Clinical Director for 18 years.  During his time in the NHS, Prof. Barnes also worked as Chief Executive and Medical Director of Rehabilitation North and later Medical Director and Programme Director for Neurorehabilitation for Newcastle City Health NHS Trust.  Throughout his career, Prof. Barnes worked as a specialist expert witness in neurorehabilitation and in 2016, founded NRC Medical Experts.

Over his career in neurorehabilitation, Prof. Barnes gave over 350 international plenary and guest lectures wrote over 50 book chapters and wrote or edited 13 books.​ Prof. Barnes was instrumental in the development and growth of brain injury charities and alliances throughout his career. He has held the following positions:

• President & Executive Member of the British Society of Rehabilitation Medicine (1994 - 2017)
• Chair of the Joint Speciality Committee on Rehabilitation Medicine and the Specialist Advisory Committee (part of the Royal College of Physicians) (1997 - 2000)
• Founder Trustee of the MS Trust 
• Chair of UKABIF, the United Kingdom Acquired Brain Injury Forum (2008 – 2017)
• Founder and Chair of ABI Alliance (2017 – 2019)
• Founder and Chair of INPA, the Independent Neurorehabilitation Providers Alliance (2012 – 2018)
• Founder President of the World Federation for NeuroRehabilitation (WFNR) (1996 - 2008)
• Elected to the membership of the European Academy of Rehabilitation Medicine 
• Founder of registered charity Action for Disability, a global charity supporting projects in India, Chernobyl, and Tanzania, which has raised over £1m.

Zen KOH

Co-Founder and Global CEO of Fourier Intelligence Group.

He is also the Founder and Executive Director of Swiss-based MotusAcademy and the
current incoming president of the International Industry Society of Advanced Rehabilitation Technology (IISART).

Zen has more than 20 years of experience in providing leadership and management for organisations that provide medical devices, healthcare solutions, and services for people with disabilities and neuro rehabilitation.