Department of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Science Grand Rounds

The Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science hosts bimonthly Grand Rounds that is open to all clinicians and researchers interested in the topic of rehabilitation. Presentations are held every other month from 7am to 8am via zoom (registration is not required.)

Tuesday October 13, 2026 7:00 - 8:00am PST

"Postural Control and Freezing of Gait in Parkinson’s Disease: From Characterization to Treatment” - Dr. Jessica Bath, PT, DPT, PhD

For our next session, we have invited Dr. Jessica Bath who will discuss exploring postural control and freezing of gait in people with advanced Parkinson’s disease, drawing on both the speaker’s past and ongoing research. Dr. Bath will first discuss her dissertation work examining postural instability and the effects of dopaminergic medication and deep brain stimulation on postural control, as well as ongoing treatment challenges. She will then examine freezing of gait as a complex and heterogeneous impairment and discuss ongoing research aimed at developing more targeted approaches to its treatment. The presentation will highlight the potential role of rehabilitation and emerging technologies in improving the measurement and treatment of this disabling symptom

Dr. Jessica Bath, PT, DPT, PhD graduated from the UCSF/SFSU Doctor of Physical Therapy program in 2020 and completed her PhD in Rehabilitation Science (with a neuroscience emphasis) at UCSF in 2024. She conducted her dissertation research in Dr. Doris Wang’s laboratory in UCSF’s Department of Neurological Surgery which integrated ambulatory neural recordings and biomechanical data to characterize postural instability and the effects of medication and neurostimulation in people with Parkinson’s disease.

Dr. Bath is currently a full-time faculty member in UCSF’s Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science, where she teaches in the DPT program and neurologic physical therapy residency. She also practices one day per week at UCSF’s Bayfront outpatient neurologic physical therapy clinic. Her research focuses on improving the treatment of gait and balance impairments in people with advanced Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis, with particular interests in the use of comprehensive rehabilitation, invasive and non-invasive neuromodulation, and wearable exoskeletons.

This session will be recorded and uploaded here. Session Moderated by Rich Souza & Cathy Hoang (meeting ID: 950 4321 9270; passcode: 932440). join us via zoom here!

Upcoming 2026 Speakers

• Tuesday December 8, 2026: Dr. Riley Bove, MD, MSc

Eligibility to present at Grand Rounds:

• People with relevant expertise in Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science are eligible for this program.
• This includes but is not limited to colleagues, peers, speakers from all professional levels (Junior-Senior investigators, Assistant Professors, Professors), research, clinical, basic science, etc. within UCSF or outside of UCSF.
• If you have suggestions for topics to discuss or an interest in speaking at an upcoming Grand Rounds session, please contact Dr. Cathy Hoang at [email protected]. 

UCSF does not use race, gender, sex, or other protected categories or proxies for protected categories in the selection process.

Recent Grand Rounds Talks:

If you missed one of our recent Grand Rounds discussions, please check out the recordings linked below!