About Me:
1962- CURRENT
Ihsan Shanti was born in 1962 in Casablanca, Morocco from middle class family who migrated from Palestine. The family background was in Journalism.
“Addefaa” Newspaper was family owned and operated by the Shanti family. It had the second largest circulation in Palestine and Jordan in the 1950s’.
Ihsans’ father Dr. Fahmi Shanti was educated in Cairo’s’ Alazhar University in early 1950. This University has gained a great reputation in the Islamic world for the Excellency of its graduates. Dr. Fahmi Shanti later completed his PH.D in Arabic literature. A degree that landed him a teaching position in Moroccan Universities. Dr. Fahmi Shanti has authored at least dozen of textbooks, some of which were taught in various schools in Morocco.
Ihsans’ mother Darifa Shanti was also highly educated. She continued her school in Morocco after she gave birth to her five children. Darifa completed her Masters in Arabic literature and later taught in the University. Both parents later retired and founded two private schools in Casablanca, Morocco.
Ihsan completed high school in Casablanca, Morocco with distinction; He was offered a government scholarship to study in France, however he chose to complete his education in English language.
He arrived in California in 1981 for his undergraduate degree and to have a taste of American education. After that he gained a scholarship to join the prestigious King Edward medical college in Lahore, Pakistan under a specially created seat by the late president of Pakistan.
Ihsan excelled in medical school and became very popular among his classmates with whom he still keeps in touch. After his graduation, he returned to the United States of America and specifically to Boston. He joined Harvard Medical School, department of Neurosurgery, and started research projects mainly Brain tumors research. He then joined Department of Surgery at St Elizabeth Medical centerin Ohio and Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York to complete a residency program in Anesthesiology. Dr. Shanti was attracted by the specialty of Pain upon a rotation when he finally decided to join Pain management fellowship program. Dr. Shanti was offered Fellowship training in multiple programs such as Baylor, Houston and Columbia, New York. Houston was hospitable and finally became home. Dr. Shanti has also earned his PH.D degree from Southwestern University in Health management. Management and Administration have always been appealing to him.
Dr. Shanti was appointed and served as a representative of Moroccan Scientists in the U.S and was listed as a scientist of excellence by the Moroccan government. The purpose was then to export the technology to Morocco thru the expatriates who would act as experts in their fields.
After completing his fellowship in Pain Management, Dr. Shanti joined a private practice that highly specialized in the treatment of complex and chronic Pain. The practice was one of the most reputable in the industry. Only after few months, Dr. Shanti became the medical director of more than twenty-five health workers.
In 1999, Dr. Shanti was Board certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology and in 2000 He was certified in Pain management by the same board.
In 2001, Dr. Shanti founded his own private practice that specialized in Chronic Pain. His practice grew from one employee in 2001 to more than 25 in five years. The clinic in 2002 was the only private clinic in Houston to register with the World Institute of Pain.
Dr. Shanti served as clinical assistant professor at Baylor College of medicine, department of Anesthesia and staff at Texas Institute for Rehabilitation and research, one of the top institutions in the world in Rehabilitation Medicine.
Dr. Shanti authored numerous research papers and articles that were published in reputable Pain magazines. He is currently solely authoring a “Textbook of Pain Syndromes”. The textbook is approximately two thousand pages and still in the phase of writing.
Dr. Shanti was elected “best doctor” in his specialty in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.
He was also “commanded” by the American Medical Association in 2007 for excellence in Education.
Dr. Shanti was interviewed and featured many times in local and foreign radio talk shows in the US and television networks such as Al Jazeerah news and Al Arabiya news channel and radio news network.
Dr. Shanti takes great interest in Islamic art and architecture. His passion in this field has prompted him to study and design projects that became masterpieces in the Islamic architecture in the US. His work of art was brought to light multiple times in Magazines and television networks such as Houston Magazine and Al Jazeera news network. His projects were inaugurated and attended by high-ranking local and foreign officials such as the mayor of Houston and number of ambassadors and foreign dignitaries.
In 2008, Dr. Shanti was asked to be a member of the host committee of “the art of the Islamic World Initiative” at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Proceeds from the first ever Treasures of the Islamic World Gala amounted to nearly $3.4 million all of which was matched by the museum’s trustees making possible the acquisition of seven valuable objects for the museum permanent collection. In addition, the museum has been able to create a formal Department of The Arts of the Islamic world and establish a gallery within the museum where the new collection can be displayed.
Dr. Shanti was also invited in 2005 to join the American Moroccan Professionals Association, AMPA. This Association was founded based on the vision that successful Moroccan professionals in the US and beyond can unite to create unprecedented synergy and value.
Dr. Shanti was also one of the founders of the Moroccan Society of Houston in 2005 and acted as one of its advisors, its’ main objectives was to strengthen, understand, coordinate, communicate, enhance, share and succeed in building a stronger Moroccan community.
In 2008, Dr. Shanti founded the Jordanian American Medical Society. The purpose of which is to unite Jordanian doctors and health professionals in the US and to have an impact on the decision making in the health care industry in Jordan.
In 2009 Dr. Shanti founded The American Clinic for Interventional Pain and Spine, the first ever comprehensive clinic in Amman – Jordan. This outstanding practice sees patients with all sorts of pains.
Dr. Shanti has pioneered and developed a few procedures in interventional pain, such as the use of radiofrequency thermo coagulation in the treatment of cervicogenic, tension and stress headaches. He has also advanced the treatment of post herpetic neuralgia by blocking the nerves involved as well as using radiofrequency thermo coagulation technique in the treatment of post herpetic neuralgia (Shingles).
In 2018 he was appointed as a professor of Anesthesiology and Pain Management at Xavier University medical school – New York.
He is currently a reviewer of many medical journals such as; Journal of Royal Medical Services, International Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Journal of Neurorestarology.
In 2018 he was elected as an honorary member of the Jordanian Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Society.
Dr. Shanti learned to fly airplanes and accumulated hundreds of flying hours. This was his passion of childhood. Being a pilot gives Dr. Shanti a different perspective of life and additional horizon of challenge and discipline. Dr. Shanti learned and enjoyed yachting as well.
The love of traditional and authentic music and art give Dr. Shanti a refuge from the daily routine and responsibilities.
Traveling and spending a great deal of time with his wife Alia and kids has become a priority for Dr. Shanti who want to capture the moment and spend maximum time with his family. His wife Alia, an attorney from Jordan has joined Master program in Law at the University of Houston in 2008. She also holds Masters of Liberal Arts from University of Saint Thomas. Dr. Shanti latest dream is to travel and visit along with his family the seven new wonders of the world, some of which he has already visited and others on the waiting list to see.
He finds an extreme enjoyment in attending to his children and watching them grow. Trying to learn about them, their strength and weaknesses and to navigate thru the above to be able to fill the gap and prescribe them the regimen to their success. Dr. Shanti wants to see his children achieve what he could