INSTRUCTIONAL COURSE DETAIL
SUN, 25 OCT: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
SPEAKERS
Theresa M. Vaughan
National Center for Adaptive Neurotechnologies, NYSDOH, Albany NY=
Susan M. Heckman
Wadsworth Center New York State Department of Health, Albany NY
Debra J. Zeitlin
Helen Hayes Hospital, West Haverstraw NY
Peggy Dellea
Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Charlestown MA
Melanie Fried-Oken
Oregon Health & Science University
DIAGNOSIS
Neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and spinal muscular atrophy) stroke, cerebral palsy, brain injury
FOCUS
Neuroscience (e.g. neural regeneration/repair, motor control/learning, biomechanics); Technology (e.g. prosthetics/orthotics, robotics, assistive technology)
Training/instruction in new knowledge/skills (attendees will develop new competencies that can be applied in practice or research)
DESCRIPTION
Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) translate brain signals into new outputs that replace, restore, enhance, supplement, or improve central nervous system (CNS) function. Thus, they might be used to restore simple communication to people severely disabled by ALS and other severe movement disorders. In this workshop we will provide clinicians and researchers with an overview of available BCI technology,and its practical uses as a tool for rehabilitation and research. Further, participants will have an opportunity to operate the BCI-24/7, and to lean how it can be used to evaluate potential users.
ABSTRACT BODY
Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) translate brain signals into new outputs that replace, restore, enhance, supplement, or improve central nervous system (CNS) function. Thus, they might be used to restore simple communication to people severely disabled by ALS and other severe movement disorders. At present, BCI research and development is a very active field. A recent Google search of “brain-computer interface” and “BCI,” yielded over 188,000 results. Still, only one or two studies describe independent use by people who need a BCI. Over the past 25 years, the researchers at the Wadsworth Center have shown that people with and without disabilities can learn to control distinct features of scalp-recorded brain activity (electroencephalogram or EEG) to control a cursor or make selections on a computer screen. Together with Helen Hayes Hospital, we developed BCI-24/7, the first BCI system suitable for independent home use by people with severe motor disabilities and carried out the first BCI multisite trial with the Veterans Administration. In this workshop we propose to provide clinicians and researchers with an overview of available BCI technology and its practical uses as a tool for rehabilitation and for rehabilitation research. Further, participants will have an opportunity to operate the BCI-24/7, and to lean how it can be used to evaluate potential users. We will also briefly review procedures for training qualified users and their caregivers to use a BCI independently in their home.
This workshop involves both therapists and researchers as faculty. It will increase knowledge concerning brain-computer interface technology among clinicians; provide them hands-on experience and an opportunity to provide feedback to BCI researchers. Specifically, we will provide: information on current efforts at BCI translation; an introduction to BCI use by individuals with severe movement disorders; and hands-on experience with the BCI-24/7 hardware and software (BCI2000).
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- To introduce clinicians and researchers to the current state of BCI clinical translation.
- To introduce clinicians and researchers to operating hardware and software that make up an EEG-based BCI P300 visual speller
- To introduce clinicians to evaluation procedures for the BCI-based P300 visual speller.
- To provide feedback a forum for clinicians to give feedback to the BCI community.
BIO SKETCHES
Theresa Vaughan
Theresa Vaughan is a research scientist at the National Center for Adaptive Neurotechnologies with twenty-five years of experience in clinical research studies, 20 years focused specifically on brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) as new communication channels for people with severe motor disabilities Most recently, her laboratory has undertaken the first-ever large scale trial of independent home use of a BCI by people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Susan Heckman
Susan Heckman organizes and coordinates the daily operation of BCI Home use including that described by the multicenter, Veterans Administration, clinical study of BCI use by people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). She ensures adherence to study protocol and contract; interact with site investigators, site coordinators and research subjects; perform daily trouble-shooting; visit subjects’ homes to collect and analyze data of home user progress; use proprietary software for EEG data analysis.
Debra Zeitlin
Debra Zeitlin has worked for 27 years at the Helen Hayes Hospital Center for Rehabilitation Technology (CRT) where she pioneered the field of Augmentative and Assistive Communication (AAC. She has been the Director since 2007. The CRT focuses on the importance of seating and mobility and assistive technology in the lives of people of all ages with physical and developmental disabilities. This includes many people with spinal cord injury (SCI). She has worked on the issues of AAC on the state and local level, including co-directing a project with the NY State Office of Health Systems Management for revision of Medicaid funding for augmentative communication devices, In 2007, She was instrumental in the creation of the Program for Translational Neurological Research (PTNR) at the Helen Hayes Hospital, and since 2013, She has been the Co-Investigator on the NIH-sponsored project, “General Purpose Brain-Computer Interface.” The substance of that work is to develop capacity and to field test the Wadsworth BCI home system with actual target populations. To that end, I have supervised graduate, undergraduate, and high school students, technicians and many volunteers on various BCI projects.
Peggy Dellea
Peggy Dellea has worked at the Assistive Technology Center at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston MA for20 years, with a focus on computer adaptations and augmentative communication devices. She is the principal investigator at Spaulding researching home use of a brain-computer interface system, in conjunction with the Wadsworth Center in Albany, attempting to improve functionality of the BCI interface for people with severe disabilities. She earned both a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy and a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering from Boston University. She has presented numerous times to various organizations, colleges, and hospitals regarding the use of assistive technology in rehabilitation.
Melanie Fried-Oken
Melanie Fried-Oken is a certified speech-language pathologist, and Professor of Neurology, Pediatrics, Biomedical Engineering, and Otolaryngology at the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, OR. She is director of the REKNEW Projects (Reclaiming Expressive Knowledge in Elders with communication impairments www.reknewprojects.org) at OHSU’s Institute on Development & Disability. As a leading international clinician and researcher in the field of Augmentative and Alternative Communication, she provides expertise about assistive technology for persons with acquired and developmental disabilities. She is the principal investigator on an NIH-funded translational grant for the past 7 years to develop and optimize a BCI system as communication technology for persons with severe speech and physical impairments. She is a partner in the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Augmentative and Alternative Communication (www.rerc-aac.com) and a practicing clinician in the Augmentative Communication Clinic at Oregon Health & Science University.
One full day of Instructional Courses $195 Three full days $395
WORLD PASS (from $595) is the best value if you attend just one instructional course and the CORE Conference. Pricing detail CLICK HERE
*Although significant changes are not anticipated, all schedules, sessions, and presenters posted on this website are subject to change.
