Syed Kazmi
Medical Director of the Stroke, Neuroscience Rehab and Oncology Programs
New England Rehab Hospital

Working in a rehabilitation hospital, we see patients every day faced with the challenges of overcoming barriers and learning ways of adapting to their disabilities so they can leave NERHP with the skills to achieve their best. We also see someone else at NERHP every day who has had to overcome barriers in much the same way most of his life.

At a very young age, Dr. Syed Kazmi contacted Polio. He was a four-year-old who lived with his parents, two brothers and three sisters in Pakistan. The people in his neighborhood were soon to receive the Polio vaccine but Syed never had the chance to. Rather, he was the only person in the area to be stricken by Polio.

“My family never considered me disabled or not being able to do something that involved risk,” states Dr. Kazmi. He explains that his dad, who was in the Pakistan air force, always told him, “Whatever you do, even if it is the job of a sweeper, do it your very best.” He has always lived by that advice and credits it for enabling him to maintain independence in pursuing his endeavors. Dr. Kazmi also credits his mom, “for instilling real interest in helping the sick. It was her desire that one of her sons be a doctor.”

So having been exposed to medical care throughout his early years and having a love for science, it is no wonder that his educational interests gravitated toward medicine. He received ongoing encouragement and guidance from his teachers to pursue his interest in medicine and went on to D.J. Science College and Dow Medical College in Karachi, Pakistan.

Not realizing medical school would be a challenge due to physical barriers, he found the environment not “user friendly” for people with disabilities. “The college had concerns that I wouldn’t be able to care for patients physically,” Dr. Kazmi explains. However, he appreciated the fact that his teachers were being realistic. For the next six years, Dr. Kazmi, remembering his father’s advice, put forth his best effort and with the help of family, friends, colleagues and his teachers, he succeeded in his pursuit and graduated with flying colors.

It was common in Pakistan at the time to consider either England or the United States to pursue an education beyond what the country had to offer. Most of his family had moved to the United States, so after passing his medical exams, he came to live with his brother in Sacramento, CA. “I had never traveled that much while growing up. So, coming to California was quite an experience,” Dr. Kazmi chuckles.

The next several months exposed Dr. Kazmi to more challenges. Not knowing too much about the geography, he applied to several internships all over the country. He came to realize that the long distances and transportation issues to reach all the interviews he had scheduled became quite overwhelming. He jokes about taking a train from Philly to Penn Station in NY and trying to navigate his way around the city to get to his interviews. He had no idea it would be so taxing and challenging.

Dr. Kazmi opted to enroll in the National Residency Matching Program. This program enables the physician to form a personalized list of criteria he or she is looking for in an internship, the hospitals set their own criteria and then the criteria is matched. Dr. Kazmi matched at Bridgeport Hospital, Yale School of Medicine. He was very pleased with the interview process and felt the school was perfect for him.

Bridgeport Hospital is an extremely large and busy hospital and Dr. Kazmi became immersed in its’ internal medicine program. On his second rotation he was in ICU and part of a response team that had to attend all codes throughout the whole hospital. “I had blisters on my arm pits!” Dr. Kazmi laughs. “I found I had to figure out a way to walk differently to get to the patient faster.” He invented the “swing thru gait” method for ambulating himself and he made it to the scene as quickly as the rest of the team. “If you want to do it, you do it! That is the key element of my life – not how you do it, you just do it to get it done.”

During the second year of his 3 year program at Bridgeport, Dr. Kazmi learned of an opportunity in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) residency program at Tufts University, New England Medical Center. Sparked by interest, he called to get more information and was surprised when he was invited to come to Boston to discuss the program in more detail. Friends remarked that the PM&R program and facility were very prestigious. Dr. Kazmi did go to NEMC and talked with 3 well known physicans in the PM&R field who headed up the program at Tufts. While they talked at length about the program, he left with the idea of it being an enjoyable informational meeting. Afterward he drove around Boston and was amazed at the size of the city and the barriers to getting around it and was not sure he even wanted to reside in Boston. Shortly thereafter, Dr. Kazmi received a phone call offering him a position at NEMC and hoped he could start right away!

Faced with a dilemma of changing his career path in the middle of his internal medicine training at Bridgeport, Dr. Kazmi was encouraged to take advantage of his new opportunity.

The PM&R residency proved to be the right decision. Part of his rotation was at New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Woburn working with brain injury, stroke and oncology patients. Upon finishing his residency, he learned of a position at New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Portland. “Dr. Haile interviewed me and wanted me to give the medical staff a lecture on the subject of my choice,” said Dr. Kazmi. Having already completed a research project at NERH/Woburn, he presented on the same subject at NERHP. Dr. Haile, who was Medical Director at the time, called him shortly afterward and offered him a position.

In July of 1996, Dr. Kazmi began treating patients at NERHP. His case load pretty much focused on brain injury patients plus he also did consults at MMC. After practicing for about 6 months, NERHP went through a change of ownership and he learned that physicians were not “employed” by the new company. About this same time, he had another offer at Youville Hospital in Cambridge as well as a position on the faculty of Tufts. He spoke with Dr. Haile about the offer. “Dr. Haile is the reason I stayed. He encouraged me to explore the adventure of forming a partnership with him. I figured I was single, could take the risk, I had good people around me and I felt blessed to have such support.”

Dr. Kazmi and Dr. Haile formed Casco Bay Rehabilitation. They treated patients in the outpatient setting at their Casco Bay Rehabilitation office and continued seeing patients at NERHP on an inpatient basis.

Ownership in a private practice was Dr. Kazmi’s first experience with the business aspect of medicine. Economics being what they were, the practice eventually dropped the outpatient side and focused on the inpatient setting. With his background and continuing expertise in the stroke and cardiopulmonary programs, Amy Morse, CEO, offered him the challenge of heading up the stroke program at NERHP.

Today, as Medical Director of the NERHP’s stroke program, Dr. Kazmi is very proud of the accomplishments and growth of the stroke program and credits all the help he has received from his colleagues and staff at NERHP for its success. Their most recent triumph includes the Joint Commission Disease Specific Certification in Stroke Rehabilitation and the HealthSouth Stroke Center of Excellence certification. Dr. Kazmi states, “I also deeply appreciate the love, care, support and trust from everyone at NRTHP and I am very proud to be President of the Medical Staff for the past three years. It really is an honor for me.”

On a personal side, Dr. Kazmi has settled into “life the way it should be” in Maine. He and his wife, Fatima, live in Cape Elizabeth with their 4 children, 2 boys and 2 girls. Dr. Kazmi smiles as he states that Fatima is a very dedicated wife and mom and their home life is a special time. He enjoys gardening and just being together with his family. A favorite event is picnicking at Fort Williams.

We appreciate Dr. Kazmi sharing the story of his pathway to NERHP. It exemplifies why Dr. Kazmi’s presence and fortitude are inspirational to everyone who comes in contact with him. We are very fortunate to have Dr. Kazmi on our medical team!