Assistant Professor in Neurology
Assistant Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience
Office: Duke South Yellow Zone 4000, Durham, NC 27710
Campus Mail: DUMC Box 3805, Durham, NC 27710
Phone: 919-681-2279
Email: jamila.minga@duke.edu
Overview
Scientific Focus
Under the leadership of Dr. Jamila Minga, the Minga Right Hemisphere Communication Lab is dedicated to understanding the communication impairments, particularly those concerning language production, that can occur following acquired damage to the right hemisphere after stroke. Dr. Minga co-developed the RHDBank database and protocol as a foundation for increasing scientific inquiry and understanding of language production after a right hemisphere stroke. We are dedicated to improving knowledge about specific hemispheric contributions to language as a basis for engineering population specific diagnostic and treatment approaches that will improve the quality of life of survivors, their loved ones, and caregivers. We are committed to accomplishing these goals with the support of survivors, community and educational partners.
Our goal is to engage in research that will:
- Identify reliable patterns of communication during structured and unstructured language production tasks for improved diagnostic outcomes.
- Contribute to the discovery and understanding of brain-behavior relationships for language production using neuroimaging.
- Facilitate client-centered and driven discussions with survivors of right hemisphere stroke community (survivors, family, friends, and support entities).
Selected Contributions
- RHDBank development (rhd.talkbank.org); the largest repository of language samples for the study of discourse after right hemisphere stroke
- Identified question-asking as an area of deficit after right hemisphere stroke
- Piloted treatment focused on enhancing awareness of communication challenges after a right hemisphere stroke
Lab Members
2019-2021 Clinical Research Coordinator
- Marcia Rodriguez M.SP., CCC-SLP
Former Speech-Language Pathology Student Research Assistants
- Maria Herrle, MS
- Stephany Perez-Sanchez, Duke Undergraduate
- Nelya Kirby, Duke Undergraduate
- Giselle "Gigi" Dunn, BS
- Derrick Davis, NCCU Graduate Student
- Kyrsten Legrant, NCCU Graduate Student
- Alexandra "Lexie" Ortiz, Undergraduate
- Jada Elleby, MS
- Mallory Parke, MS
- Megan Hollembaek, MS
- Emily McGinn MS
- Joyah Morris MS
- Kayla Valentine, MS
- Taravia McLawhorn, MS
- Jennifer Nelthropp, CCC-SLP
- Julia Black, CCC-SLP
- Kaitlynne Julie Bryan, CCC-SLP
- Whitney Hewitt, CCC-SLP
- Juliet Bourgeois-Berwyn, CCC-SLP
- Olivia DeStefano, MS
- Stephanie Furimsky, CCC-SLP
- Samantha Tyson, CCC-SLP
- Leilani Burgess, CCC-SLP
- Sarah Stidham, CCC-SLP
- Ashton Wainright, CCC-SLP
- Frank Brown, CCC-SLP
- Traci Bright, CCC-SLP
- Sarah Baker, MS
- Sarah Allen, MS
- Zhaojing Liu, MS
News
Right-Hemisphere Strokes: Researching Linguistic Apragmatism
Defending The Brain
Jamila Minga, Ph.D., CCC-SLP elected Member-at-large for Academy of Neurologic Communication Disorders and Sciences (ANCDS)
Duke Clinician’s Research and Passion Lead to Fund Development
Duke Today: Stroke Survivors’ Resilience Captured by Duke Clinician’s Documentary
DURHAM, NC -- There was a reason guests were handed a packet of tissue before entering the theatre.
Duke clinician and researcher Jamila Minga, Ph.D, CCC-SLP, knew that her debut documentary about the understudied communication disorder that can follow after right hemisphere brain damage, or RHD, was bound to stimulate everyone’s tear ducts.
Jamila Minga, Ph.D., CCC-SLP awarded funding by Fund to Retain Clinical Scientists supported by American Heart Association (AHA)
Communication Sciences & Disorders Alumna Debuts Movie on Understudied Brain Disorder
Dr. Jamila Minga's Interview in Women’s Health In Focus at NIH
“My future is certainly much brighter with an NIH LRP award,” Dr. Jamila Minga says, “Persistence and tenacity certainly pay off.”. Dr. Minga has been applying for the NIH LRP award continually between 2015 and 2021 and is now able to focus on growing her career at Duke Department of Head and Neck Surgery & Communication Sciences as well as advancing her research to explore the neuroanatomic correlates of discourse production characteristics after a right hemisphere stroke which is funded by National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) 1K23-DC020236-01A1.
SCIENMAG: A person’s race influences question asking as much as their stroke history
DURHAM, NC — Strokes that occur on the right side of the brain can sometimes subtly impair social communication, which can be difficult for clinicians to assess.
But these impairments are a lot less subtle for the patients and their families, who often have their lives and livelihood upended, leading to significant life changes such as job loss and divorce.
Clinical researchers have developed a few diagnostic tools for right side, (right hemisphere) stroke survivors, but the tools have been largely based on data from White patients.
Resources
Help Right Brain Stroke Survivors with Apragmatism (PDF)
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Right Hemisphere Strokes | Why Do You Study That? Jamila Minga, Ph.D. studies right hemisphere strokes and their resulting brain disorders. Right hemisphere strokes differ from the more widely known left hemisphere strokes in that the survivors are still capable of speech but have trouble with pragmatic language (the ability to know what to say, when to say it, and how to say it). |
Minga’s Minions
Join Our Lab and Become One of Minga’s Minions!
Are you ready to embark on a journey of scientific mischief and discovery of right hemisphere communication? Talented individuals with a passion for innovation are welcome to complete our form to join our extraordinary lab team! When we have an opening, we will contact you.
Complete this form and unlock the door to Minionhood
Don't miss your chance to be a part of groundbreaking, cutting-edge research and maybe a few banana-related shenanigans along the way. We're not just looking for team members but assembling a league of extraordinary minions! Join us, and let the adventure begin!
Hidden Diagnosis Documentary
“RHD: Hidden Diagnosis” is a compelling documentary produced by Dr. Jamila Minga Ph.D, CCC-SLP. The film delves into the profound impact of right hemisphere brain damage (RHD) on stroke survivors and their families. It provides an intimate look at the challenges and triumphs of these survivors.
The narrative also follows a dedicated group of graduate students from North Carolina Central University’s (NCCU) Speech-Language Pathology program. Amidst the Covid Pandemic, these students adapt and learn to facilitate an online communication treatment group for RHD stroke survivors.
In 2023, this documentary was selected for screening at four prestigious film festivals: the North Carolina Film Festival, the Longleaf Film Festival, the Raleigh Film & Art Festival, and the Foothills Film Festival. In 2024, the documentary was made available to the public through The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).
The documentary is directed by Michael Pearce, a professor of mass communication at NCCU. His direction brings a unique perspective to the film, making it a must-watch for anyone interested in understanding the human side of medical conditions like RHD.
Presentation Highlights
Research Presentations
Minga and Minions moments
Contact
The Minga Right Hemisphere Communication (MRHC) Lab can be contacted via email at mingarhclab@duke.edu.