Research Staff

Christian Klemt, MSc PhD - Research Program Manager

Christian Klemt completed his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering at Berlin Institute of Technology. He joined Queen Mary, University of London to pursue a masters degree in Biomedical Engineering with a focus on musculoskeletal mechanics. To broaden his interest in musculoskeletal biomechanics, Christian joined Imperial College London in 2015 for a PhD aiming to customize musculoskeletal shoulder modelling utilizing Magnetic Resonance Imaging in order to more precisely assess joint functionality and joint stability for both native joints as well as joint replacements. Following the completion of his PhD, he joined the Bioengineering Laboratory at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School to study in-vivo hip and knee biomechanics of patients with total joint replacement. Additionally, Christian’s Post-Doctoral research involved the retrospective analysis of patient data to identify risk factors for poor patient outcomes and implant failure. Recently, Christian developed and validated artificial intelligence technology to predict post-operative outcomes and complications for patients following hip and knee arthroplasty surgery in order to assist clinical decision-making. 

If you have any questions about the research program, please contact Christian at cklemt@stanford.edu.

Amishi Jobanputra, MS - Clinical Research Manager

Amishi joins the pediatric orthopedic surgery division as the Clinical Research Manager. She has her Master’s in Biochemistry and has gathered experience working in quality control, quality assurance, pre-clinical research, and phase 1B to 4 clinical trials. She has been directly involved in developing various research studies and projects including investigator initiated studies (IND). She manages clinical research operations for the pediatric orthopaedic surgery division and works with research coordinators and PIs in study set up, feasibility, budgeting, regulatory, data management, sponsored trials and student/residents/fellow projects.

Abby McIntyre, BS - Lead Clinical Research Coordinator

Abby graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in June 2021 with a B.S. in Kinesiology, concentrating in Exercise Science. She worked for two years as an undergraduate researcher with Kinesiology faculty members studying physical activity interventions and research translation. At Cal Poly, Abby also led a research study investigating the prevalence of eating disorders at her university and helped bring The Body Positive, a national eating disorder prevention program to the campus. As a lifelong athlete herself, Abby is excited for the opportunity to work with Dr. Kraus as a part of the Female Athlete Program at Stanford’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery

Hiba Naz, BS – Clinical Research Coordinator

Hiba is from Houston, Texas and graduated from University of California, Davis in September 2019 with a degree in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior. During her undergraduate she worked at the Center for Healthcare Policy and Research at UC Davis Health. She continued working at UC Davis Health after her graduation on several studies exploring barriers to cancer care for adolescent and young adults (AYAs) in low-and-middle-income countries in Latin America, barriers to AYAs’ participation in cancer clinical trials, symptom management for heart failure patients, and implementation of tobacco cessation services at UC Davis Health. Hiba is excited to support research and improve patient care and outcomes at Stanford’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

Arianne Salunga, DO - Clinical Research Coordinator

Arianne received her medical degree from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYC) in June 2024 and is enthusiastic to join our team as a research coordinator. Her journey began with the NYU Langone Orthopedic Surgery summer externship after her first year of medical school, where she engaged in both clinical and research endeavors. Notably, she co-developed the study, “Sports Participation Levels Among New York City’s Kids Remain Low Months After the Covid-19 Pandemic”, which utilized a retrospective survey that assessed sports participation in children ages 6-17 with musculoskeletal complaints. The study’s findings highlighted significant declines in gym class and free play, emphasizing the need to return to physical activity as it is crucial for their overall well-being. Arianne’s growing passion for improving children’s health through a research and orthopedic standpoint has led her to Stanford, where she is eager to expand her skills and contribute meaningfully to the field alongside Dr. Vorhies and the pediatric orthopedic spine team. 

Nneoma Duru, MD - Clinical Research Coordinator

Nneoma O. Duru is a recent (2023) graduate from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM). She is a native of Texas and holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a Chemistry minor from Dillard University in New Orleans, LA. Prior to starting at BUSM, Nneoma worked at Ochsner Medical Center in the Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Clinic as an Research Data Coordinator. Her research interests include, but not limited to, patient outcomes, psychosocial aspects of surgery and biomechanics. She is excited about leveraging her experience here at Stanford University with Dr. Kevin Shea to help contribute to the rapidly evolving field of Orthopaedics.

Julia Flora - Research Assistant

Julia is from Fort Lauderdale, Florida and is graduating from Stanford University in June 2024 with a degree in Human Biology. She is completing an honors thesis with the Snyder Laboratory that explores bone microarchitecture in female endurance athletes at risk for Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport. For the past 2 years, she worked at the Stanford School of Medicine to recruit patient participants for the Practice of Medicine course, emphasizing the inclusion of patients with limited English proficiency and medical interpreters in medical education. Now, Julia is excited to work with Dr. Kraus and the Female Athlete Science and Translational Research (FASTR) Program!

Nicole Segovia Pham, MPH - Biostatistician

Nicole is a biostatistician with Stanford University’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and a Bay Area local. She graduated from Cal Poly SLO with a BS in Statistics and from Imperial College London with a Master’s in Public Health. From designing a study to analyzing the data and writing the manuscript, please reach out to her for help!