Virtual Concussion Symposium to be Held on September 15
Aug 30, 2023
The 4th annual Virtual Concussion Symposium is being held on September 15, from 9:00 am – 3:35 pm Central. The symposium is free to attend and registration is now open.
Presentations feature new concussion research, trends,
practice strategies, and collaborative models of care
from a diverse group of experts in the field of brain
injury. The symposium is facilitated by the North Dakota
Brain Injury Network (NDBIN) at the University of North
Dakota Center for Rural Health (CRH).
Featured Speaker: Dr. Chris Nowinski
This year's featured speaker is Dr. Chris Nowinski, CEO and co-founder of the Concussion Legacy Foundation. Dr. Nowinski is also a social entrepreneur leading a global conversation on concussions, chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), and the future of sports. An All-Ivy Harvard football player-turned WWE professional wrestler-turned neuroscientist, he discovered the concussion crisis the hard way.
A 2003 kick to the chin in a WWE match ended his career, causing Post-Concussion Syndrome and sending him to the office of his eventual Concussion Legacy Foundation co-founder Dr. Robert Cantu. This is when Dr. Nowinski was first exposed to medical research that revealed to him that concussions and brain trauma were misunderstood in the sports world. He earned his doctorate in behavioral neuroscience from Boston University School of Medicine and has authored more than 30 scientific publications. Today he serves as an outreach, recruitment, education, and public policy leader for Boston University's CTE Center.
Dr. Nowinski wrote and gave a TED Talk about his journey titled, Can I have your brain? The quest for truth on concussions and CTE, and in 2006 he wrote the investigative book Head Games: Football's Concussion Crisis. Sports Illustrated has said, "It is Nowinski's figure which looms behind the doctors and the headlines and the debate roiling over sports' newfound commitment to minimizing head trauma."
Importance of Understanding Concussions
Sessions include presentations on CTE, brain injury and homelessness, concussion clinical management, and a North Dakota screening update.
Rebecca Quinn is an associate director for CRH and the program director for NDBIN. She shares the value of the education provided during the annual event. "We are just starting to understand the lasting effects concussions can have on our brains, so working to share the research, treatments, and innovative efforts of people who specialize in the area of brain injury is important. Survivors of brain injury, caregivers, family, friends, educators, therapists, and medical professionals will all benefit from the educational sessions of the symposium."
Continuing Education
Continuing education hours are available in these fields:
- Licensed Addiction Counseling
- Nursing
- Occupational Therapy
- Physical Therapy
- Psychology
- Social Work
- Speech Language Pathology