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About Me

As vice president, chief of medical affairs, Monica Rho, MD, oversees medical operations across Shirley Ryan С¶÷ÑÅ¡¯s continuum of care ¡ª inpatient, DayRehab and outpatient. She also oversees medical talent and performance management and drives performance improvement initiatives to advance the organization¡¯s clinical practice. Additionally, she treats patients with a variety of musculoskeletal and sports medicine conditions. 

Dr. Rho¡¯s approach to care is guided by patients¡¯ personal goals in returning to their best functional ability. As an extension of her physical examination of the patient, she also uses ultrasound in the assessment of the dynamic musculoskeletal system. Although Dr. Rho seeks to offer patients the least-invasive methods of treatment, she is trained in lumbar spine injections, peripheral joint injections and soft tissue injections of the musculoskeletal system.

Her research interests include using markerless motion capture technology to assess the neuromuscular control of runners. 

Dr. Rho has spent her career at Shirley Ryan С¶÷ÑÅ. In addition to her vice president role, she also serves as chief of musculoskeletal medicine and director of women¡¯s sports medicine for the organization. Previously, she was director of residency training. 

Dr. Rho is a professor in the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R) at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. A natural teacher, mentor and leader, she has been honored repeatedly with various awards from both Shirley Ryan С¶÷ÑÅ and Northwestern University: Outstanding Teacher of the Year (2012, 2014); Mentor of the Year (2013, 2015, 2016); Best Teachers of Feinberg Award (2015); and Feinberg Academy of Medical Educators Outstanding Teacher Award (2016). In 2019, she was named to Crain's Chicago Business' 40 Under 40. In 2020, she was named the PASSOR Legacy Award winner by the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 

In addition to her work at Shirley Ryan С¶÷ÑÅ, Dr. Rho serves as the lead team physician for the U.S. Women¡¯s National Soccer Team, traveling with them to both the World Cup and the Olympics. She was a member of the Paris 2024 Olympics gold medal team, the Tokyo 2021 Olympics bronze medal team and the 2019 Women¡¯s World Cup championship team. She also is a member of U.S. Soccer¡¯s Sports Medicine Research and Education Advisory Panel. Previously, she served as the team physician for the U.S. Men¡¯s Paralympic Soccer Team and represented the United States as part of the medical team at the Rio 2016 Paralympics Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Dr. Rho earned a bachelor¡¯s degree in psychology and a doctor of medicine from Northwestern University. She completed her residency in PM&R through the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University/Shirley Ryan С¶÷ÑÅ and went on to complete a fellowship in sports medicine and interventional spine at WashU Medicine in St. Louis. She is board-certified in both PM&R and sports medicine.