Lois Statham Simons, P.T., Ph.D. (Hon)
A Celebration of Life
Lois Statham Simons, P.T., Ph.D. (Hon) died on July 3, 2004 at Newton General Hospital in her home town Covington, GA. Lois was an exemplary physical therapist, author, researcher, and scientist. She was born and raised in Porterdale, GA. As a high school student, she did not only excel academically, but was also a star basketball player. Nicknamed “spike”, she held the record of top scorer in the entire state of Georgia! Lois graduated Summa Cum Laude from LaGrange College and subsequently received a Masters Degree from Marquette University in Wisconsin, where she later taught anatomy. Lois became Assistant Director of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and served as the APTA’s manager of accreditation.
Lois devoted her life to the advancement of physical therapy. She paid much attention to teaching physical therapy students to respect patients and their family members, while emphasizing the delivery of quality physical therapy. Lois was a goal-oriented and driven woman. She established the first physical therapy department at Newton General Hospital in Covington, GA, and was instrumental in the development of the new physical therapy academic program at Georgia State University, where she was on the faculty. During her career, she worked as a physical therapist for the Easter Seal Foundation and spent several years at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC among others.
Following her marriage to Dr. David Simons, Lois edited the 1992 volume 2 of Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: the Trigger Point Manual and became co-author of the 1999 second edition of the Trigger Point Manual (Travell and Simons 1992; Simons, Travell et al. 1999). She was an active research partner and co-authored numerous scientific articles and book chapters (Simons, Travell et al. 1990; Simons and Simons 1994; Simons, Hong et al. 1995; Simons, Hong et al. 1995; Simons, Hong et al. 1995; Simons, Hong et al. 2002). In 2003, Lois received an Honorary Doctorate of Science from LaGrange College, where she continued to serve on the Board of Trustees.
During memorial services held to “celebrate her life”, family members and friends expressed how much Lois had been part of their lives. She loved being around people and children in particular. She had many interests, including astronomy, bird watching, and traveling. She had the remarkable gift of always looking for the “good” in people. As Dr. David Simons commented during the memorial services, Lois never judged people and employed a very positive outlook on life. She possessed a great sense of humility rooted in a profound spiritual belief. She serves as an example for all clinicians interested in providing the best possible care for their patients.
Lois Simons is survived by her husband, David G. Simons, M.D., and several step-children and grandchildren.
Jan Dommerholt
Simons, D. G., C.-Z. Hong, et al. (1995). "Prevalence of spontaneous electrical activity at trigger spots and control sites in rabbit muscle." J Musculoskeletal Pain 3: 35-48.
Simons, D. G., C.-Z. Hong, et al. (1995). "Nature of myofascial trigger points, active loci (abstract)." J Musculoskeletal Pain 3(Suppl 1): 62.
Simons, D. G., C.-Z. Hong, et al. (1995). "Spike activity in trigger points." J Musculoskeletal Pain 3(Suppl 1): 125.
Simons, D. G., C.-Z. Hong, et al. (2002). "Endplate potentials are common to midfiber myofascial trigger points." Am J Phys Med Rehabil 81(3): 212-222.
Simons, D. G. and L. S. Simons (1994). Chronic Myofascial Pain Syndrome. Handbook of Pain Management. C. D. Tollison, J. R. Satterthwaite and J. W. Tollison. Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins: 556-577.
Simons, D. G., J. G. Travell, et al. (1990). "Protecting the ozone layer." Arch Phys Med Rehabil 71(1): 64.
Simons, D. G., J. G. Travell, et al. (1999). Travell and Simons' myofascial pain and dysfunction; the trigger point manual. Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins.
Travell, J. G. and D. G. Simons (1992). Myofascial pain and dysfunction: the trigger point manual. Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins.