Catherine Brannon Ham, MD

Catherine Ham, MD, is the program director of the Headache Medicine Fellowship at Vandalia Health Charleston Area Medical Center and the director of the CAMC Headache Center. She is board-certified in neurology and headache medicine and is a fellow of the American Headache Society and the West Virginia representative to the Southern Headache Society.

At the CAMC Headache Center, Dr. Ham uses a multi-disciplinary approach to treat headache and related pain conditions, including migraines, cluster headaches, trigeminal neuralgia, tension headaches, occipital neuralgia and post-traumatic headaches. She uses different treatment options, including medications, Botox for chronic migraine and different types of nerve blocks.

Comprehensive evaluation will help determine what treatment strategies are best for each individual patient. When appropriate, Dr. Ham will collaborate with physical therapists, interventional pain specialists, pain psychologists and other specialized providers focused on treating headache symptoms. An important focus for Dr. Ham is educating others on headache disorders. She is an experienced speaker who is well-known for teaching headache pathophysiology, treatment strategies and advocating for issues affecting headache patients. Training new CAMC physicians throughout their residency is also an important focus, as headache is the most common complaint that brings patients to a neurologist. Her passion for education is reflected in her work disseminating the message that migraine is not "just a bad headache," but rather a complex neurologic disease.

Before joining CAMC in 2024, Dr. Ham was Director of the VCU Headache Clinic in Richmond, VA. She was an assistant professor of neurology at VCU for 12 years, where she was very involved in academic training and patient advocacy.