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BrainSTEPS Program 2013
The Brainsteps program in Pennsylvania assists students, schools, and families affected by acquired brain injuries, including traumatic brain injuries and concussions, providing support and training to facilitate educational success. Each year, around 26,000 children sustain TBIs, requiring collaboration between healthcare facilities and schools for effective reintegration. Brainsteps teams consist of various professionals who offer targeted educational recommendations and ongoing support to ensure students receive appropriate resources during their recovery.
BrainSTEPS Program 2013
- 1. BrainSTEPS: Assists students, schools& families in Pennsylvania following acquired brain injury
- 2. Brenda Eagan Brown,M.S.Ed., CBIS BrainSTEPS Program Coordinator Email: eaganbrown@biapa.org Phone: 724-944-6542 Website: www.brainsteps.net
- 3. How Common isTBI in Children in Pennsylvania? Each year, approximately 26,000 children in Pennsylvania sustain a traumatic brain injury (mild, moderate, or severe) Source: The Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania, 2008
- 4. In 2006 4,000 children & adolescents in Pennsylvania were HOSPITALIZED with TBI Source: The Pennsylvania Department of Health, 2006 DOES NOT INCLUDE EMERGENCY ROOM VISITS.
- 5. Pennsylvania Students Receiving SpecialEducation Services as TBI: 705 2010-11 school year
- 6. The return toschool can be devastating if the health care facility (hospital or rehabilitation center) and the child's home school do not interact as soon as possible and as frequently as possible Carter and Savage, 1988; Ylvisaker et al., 1991; Begali, 1992; Mira et al.,1992; Lash, 1992 Retrieved Jan. 21, 2013 from http://www.tbi.org/library/html/children_and_adolescents.html
- 7. The BrainSTEPS Program Fundedby: PA Department of Health PA Department of Education Implemented by: Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania since 2007
- 8. The BrainSTEPS Program Braininjury consulting teams available to families and schools throughout Pennsylvania. Teams consult with & train local school staff to develop educational programs specific to individual student needs.
- 9. BrainSTEPS Assists Studentswith All Acquired Brain Injuries Traumatic Brain Injury (includes Concussions) Non-Traumatic Brain Injury * Any child who has a brain injury that occurs AFTER the birth process can be referred to BrainSTEPS
- 10. BrainSTEPS Teams 30BrainSTEPS teams cover PA 27 are based out of the educational Intermediate Units & 3 larger districts 320 active, trained BrainSTEPS team members Educational professionals Medical professionals Rehabilitation professionals Staff from community facilities Staff from government agencies University faculty Family members
- 11. Special Ed. Supervisor TAC 504 Consultant Coordinator Social OT Worker Therapist BrainSTEPS Guidance Teams PT Counselor Therapist School Family Psych/ Neuro- Member psych. Speech School Therapist Nurse
- 12. BrainSTEPS PA Hospital &Rehab Team Members Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia The Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh Lehigh Valley Hospital Acadia Rehabilitation, Inc. St. Christopher’s Hospital for Nemours/A.I. duPont Hospital Children for Children Hershey Medical Center Mainline Rehabilitation ReMED Magee Rehab Hospital Geisinger Medical Center Schuylkill Rehabilitation Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Reading Hospital St. Vincent’s Medical Center The Barber Institute Beechwood Rehabilitation Services
- 13. BrainSTEPS Team Leaders  1-2 Team Leaders per team  Organize monthly team meetings  Ensure student referrals are assigned & follow up is provided  Conference call together once a month for 1 hour with the Program Coordinator for program updates  Meet with the Program Coordinator for Team Leader Regional day long workshops 2x/year  They are the “glue”
- 14. What BrainSTEPS TeamsDo: 1. Prepare the student for return to school 2. Communicate with the district & medical, & rehab professionals 3. Gather medical, rehab, & educational reports/evaluations to assist in making educational recommendations 4. Conduct student observations
- 15. What BrainSTEPS TeamsDo: 5. Provide peer, parent and school training Individual to student needs for school teams General for district wide in-service trainings 6. Consult on all aspects of the student’s educational plan & make recommendations to the district team 7. Assist in transitioning a student from grade to grade or school to school by training new teachers
- 16. What BrainSTEPS TeamsDo: 8. Serve as a consistent point of contact for students 9. Offer families support, education and connections to community resources BrainSTEPS Student Care Binders 10. Continually update their brain injury expertise by attending mandatory BrainSTEPS trainings, obtaining CBIS certification, and participate in other brain injury training opportunities
- 17. 11. It isa goal of the BrainSTEPS Teams to monitor all referred students annually until graduation.
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- 19. BrainSTEPS Frontloads Supports ShortTerm Impact = Long Term Impact BrainSTEPS works to ensure that students who would have otherwise immediately been placed in special education upon returning to school after a brain injury are receiving appropriate supports while the brain is healing, before school teams make long term placement decisions
- 20. Brain Injury Screening BrainSTEPSteaches educators and related professionals to ask PROBING questions about prior brain injuries so the appropriate supports can be put in place.
- 21. Post Secondary Team BrainSTEPSworked with the University of Pittsburgh to establish the 1st Brain Injury Committee in May 2012 – housed in the Disability Support Services office
- 22. December 2008, BrainSTEPS receivedan Award of Excellence for Programs & Services from the national Brain Injury Association of America
- 23. BrainSTEPS Concussion Support Statewide Return to School & Academics Concussion Management Team (CMT) Project
- 24. Concussions in Pennsylvania: Annually,approx. 22,000 children ages 0-21 years sustain concussions.
- 25. For students wholinger, striking a balance between the need for rest and keeping up with academic content is the biggest struggle.
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- 28. Return to SchoolConcussion Management Team Project (CMT) 2013 360 CMTs formed & trained by BrainSTEPS across the state of PA - Jan. 15, 2013 (40+ on wait list currently) CMTs consist of 2 monitors Academic Monitor (School Psych, Guidance Counselor) Symptom Monitor (School Nurse) CMTs follow BrainSTEPS Return to School Concussion Protocol
- 29. Layered Statewide Infrastructurefor Concussion Return to School Concussion CMT Monitoring BrainSTEPS Intervention– 4 wks occurs 1-4 wks @ School level @ IU level 1st 2nd layer layer
- 30. CMT Project BrainSTEPS providedPA schools with: 1. A structure Concussion School Re-Entry Protocol 2. Information & guidelines CMT Training 3. Methods for gathering data CMT Monitoring Tools
- 31. Who can bereferred to BrainSTEPS?
- 32. Who can bereferred to BrainSTEPS? A student who: 1. Has an acquired brain injury • At any point in the student’s life 2. Is having difficulty at school as a result of the acquired brain injury • Concussions – referrals taken at 4wks. Post, unless there are “concussion modifiers” present • All other brain injury severities – referrals taken at any point in time. The sooner the better
- 33. BrainSTEPS Website www.brainsteps.net
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- 36. Contact: Brenda Eagan Brown,M.S.Ed., CBIS BrainSTEPS Program Coordinator Phone: 724-944-6542 Email: eaganbrown@biapa.org www.brainsteps.net
Editor's Notes
- #10Â Injury to the brain AFTER the birth process.
- #11Â Range in size from 8-20
- #20 Although it may appear at first like special ed. is the initial placement, over time as the brain begins to heal and reorganize – the student may begin to not look as “severe” as s/he once appeared.
- #29 While still recovering, to pay attention in class, the student’s brain may need to recruit non-injured areas of the brain. Areas that previously focused on filtering side conversations may not be available for that specific job, because they are needed for another task.