After graduating high school in St. Albans, West Virginia, Jared Hollinger attended a small, private university outside of Lexington, Kentucky. However, after one year away from his hometown, he decided to transfer home to Marshall University.
Although he changed schools, he was always determined to study biomedical sciences and eventually attend medical school to become a neurologist.
“There wasn’t a specific defining moment. I always wanted to go into neurology, and I always gravitated towards the sciences. They were just interesting to me,” Hollinger said.
He found neurology fascinating, as it connects the subjective, human experience to the substance of the brain.
“Within medicine, a lot of what we’re dealing with is human suffering,” Hollinger said. “I think the element of compassion combined with the field of neurology as it pertains to the scientific interest of it was a really good fit. It gives me an outlet to exercise empathy and compassion.”
Hollinger and his wife, Morgan, moved to Winston-Salem in 2015 for his medical residency at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. After completing residency, they carefully considered their next move.
“It’s the community we felt very called to come back to after we finished our respective training and be able to contribute to the community from a professional standpoint,” he said. “It just felt like the perfect fit.”
In 2020, the Hollingers returned to Huntington, and Jared joined the neurology department at Marshall Health.
Once a month, Hollinger runs the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) clinic at Marshall Health. The Marshall University ALS clinic is the only ALS Association-recognized treatment center in the state and partners with the Marshall University Speech and Hearing Center to provide clinical assessments from a comprehensive care team to provide a personalized treatment plan for each patient.
“The condition of patients with ALS can deteriorate very rapidly,” Hollinger said. “During that time, we are trying to provide them the resources and support to try to allow them to live a life of quality, have a meaningful time with their families and to meet the physical deficits that arise.”
Patients are able to meet with Hollinger, as well as a physical therapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, dietitian, respiratory therapist, pharmacist and a social worker all at the clinic — making coordination of care easier for patients and their caregivers to receive all of their care during a single visit.
“It’s fulfilling for me to be able to provide care for patients that are from the same background and culture of Appalachia,” Hollinger said.
The patient population Hollinger works with in the ALS clinic are facing one of the most difficult diagnoses in medicine.
“The courage of the patients that I take care of — the strength that they have, is humbling to see. I want to make sure they know we’re here to help meet their needs in whatever way we can,” Hollinger said.
Apart from the ALS clinic, he practices general neurology, primarily focusing on neuromuscular diseases and performs electrodiagnostic testing.
In that role, he assists with medical students’ and residents’ education.
“There’s a sense of pride — I trained at Marshall, I’ve come back to help other people train at Marshall and I’m still with Marshall. It’s very rewarding,” Hollinger said.
His advice for current students? Be okay with being uncomfortable.
“Be OK with a little bit of failure. That’s how we make progress and move forward,” he said. “Continually try to look for opportunities to put yourself out of your comfort zone.”
When he’s not practicing medicine, you can find him trail running, playing piano or guitar or, lately, he’s been getting back into kicking around a hacky sack.
“The last two decades of my life have some component of Marshall as a core to it, and it’s a wonderful thing to be a part of a community over such a long period of time,” he said.
