Sandra Hearn is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) at Michigan Medicine. After completing her undergraduate and medical degrees at Harvard University in Boston, she pursued residency training in PM&R through Case Western Reserve University at the MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute in Cleveland. She relocated to Ann Arbor in 2015 and joined Michigan Medicine. She is board certified in PM&R and in Electrodiagnostic Medicine.
Dr. Hearn enjoys helping patients and clinicians gain a clearer understanding of nerve and muscle conditions through electrodiagnostic medicine. Her research focuses on electrodiagnostic strategies to evaluate peripheral neurologic conditions. She enjoys teaching nationally with colleagues, interviewing and learning from experts on podcasts, and building content for continuous certification examinations in electrodiagnostic medicine. In 2021, she received the Surinderjit Singh Young Lectureship Award and a Scientific Impact Award from the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine.
Dr. Hearn also has a passion for and commitment to medical education, serving as the PM&R residency program director and the PM&R educational faculty lead in electrodiagnostic and neuromuscular medicine. At University of Michigan Medical School, she co-leads the preclinical musculoskeletal curriculum for first year medical students. She is enthusiastic about seeking innovative ways to kindle and guide discovery, enhance mentorship and feedback exchange between faculty and learners, and harness technology to improve clinical and educational efforts. She was recognized with Department of PM&R’s Silver Crutch Teaching Award in 2016 and Michigan Medicine’s Program Director Excellence Award in 2020.
