Brain Injury Awareness Project

1.5 million Americans experience a brain injury each year, but among those, only 230,000 admit themselves to a hospital for treatment. Knowing the warning signs and when to seek help is the first step in brain injury recovery. Physiatrist Dr. Gregory O’Shanick, Medical Director Emeritus of the Brain Injury Association of America and President and Medical Director of the Center for Neurorehabilitation Services in Richmond, VA, joins for a discussion about brain injury diagnosis, treatment, and recovery.

Clinical trials are essential to advancing the field of brain injury treatment. Join Dr. Ross D. Zafonte, President of Spaulding Rehabilitation Network, Chairman of the Harvard Medical School Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation (PM&R), and Chief of the Massachusetts General Hospital Department of PM&R, for a discussion about clinical trials and how people recovering from brain injury should approach clinical trial participation if they want to incorporate one into their recovery journey.

There are nearly half a million American service members and veterans who have sustained a brain injury over the last 20 years. And countless more veterans struggle for years and even decades in the aftermath of traumatic brain injury. Join neurologist Dr. James Kelly, founding director of the Department of Defense’s National Intrepid Center of Excellence (2009-2015) and current executive director of the Marcus Institute for Brain Health at the University of Colorado’s Anschutz Health and Wellness Center, in a discussion about the invisible wounds associated with our nation's service members and veterans.

More than 5 million people suffer concussions every year in America in sports and everyday life. Join the director of the NFL’s concussion study, Dr. David Okonkwo, and nine-year NFL veteran Chris Carr discussing what to do if you suspect a concussion on or off the field of play. Concussion -- not just a headache for pro football players, in this episode of the Brain Injury Awareness Project podcast, hosted by Erin Mattingly, chair of Northern Virginia’s Brain Injury Services.  

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor joins host Erin Mattingly for a conversation about untangling the right-brain/left-brain myth, reframing how we think about brain hemisphere function, and how her neuroscience expertise shaped her own brain injury recovery experience.