BI-ISIG Moving Ahead Newsletter

A Publication of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group

Vol 22, No 2 - 2007

Message From The Chair
Philip Morse, PhD, FACRM

Greetings:

Our BI-ISIG Mid-Year Meeting at the Marriott Residence Inn Arlington/Pentagon City (April 13-14, 2007) was a smashing success! In this era of evidence-based analysis, the success of our Mid-Year Meeting is measured not only by the more than 40 people in attendance, but also by the productivity and vitality of our nine task forces. This year we have added (or brought out of retirement) the Mild TBI Task Force, chaired by Irene Parisi. This new addition joins our already active task forces and their very able chairs: Assistive Technology (Marcia Scherer), Cognitive Rehabilitation (Keith Cicerone), Community-Based Treatment (Nina Geier / Sally Kneipp), Disorders of Consciousness (Ron Seel), Long-Term Issues (Tina Trudel), Pediatric/Adolescent (Linda Laatsch), Prognosis (Rosette Biester), and Treatment Theory (Tessa Hart). If you are interested in joining a task force, please feel free to contact the chair or myself.

The upcoming ACRM-ASNR Annual Joint Conference (October 3-7, 2007) at the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel is fast approaching. Many BI-ISIG and ACRM members have worked hard to be able to showcase two nationally prominent TBI issues on the opening day (Thursday, October 4) of the conference: brain injury rehabilitation in war-related injuries and sports-concussion injuries. Not only will there be an opportunity for all of ACRM to learn about these "hot" topics in brain injury, but I believe that conference attendees will be particularly excited by presenters and formats.

• The BI-ISIG is excited to have Lee Woodruff deliver the conference keynote address (10:30-11:30 am) "A Family's Journey after Brain Injury." She will share her and her family's experiences during her husband's (Bob Woodruff) recovery from a traumatic brain injury while reporting in Iraq.

• The Sheldon Berrol Memorial Chautauqua (11:30 - 2:00 pm) will feature a very dynamic presentation: "Controversies in the World of Sports Concussions." Dr. Jeffrey Barth, a distinguished author and speaker in this area, has put together a panel of experts on this topic. The format will be a round-robin question-and-answer exchange between moderator and expert panel (modeled after the Arthur Miller TV series years ago on controversial topics). Dr. Barth is uniquely qualified, based on his knowledge in this area and his engaging and gregarious style, to be moderator for this provocative Chautauqua. The first hour and a half will consist of an exchange amongst moderator and experts on a number of controversial issues in this field, followed by a 1-hour opportunity for audience members to address questions to the panel. This format will allow us to wrestle with the thorny questions encountered around decisions about return to play for athletes, and presents most surely a format and topic that is in the very spirit of the Chautauqua.

• Thursday will conclude with the BI-ISIG General Business Session (4:30 - 6:30 pm), allowing us time to give updates on recent BI-ISIG and task force activities.

Please contact task force chairs regarding your interest in attending a working task force meeting during the conference.

Finally, I am greatly saddened to note that on May 31st the BI-ISIG and ACRM lost one of our dearest friends, Mitchell Rosenthal, due to complications after cardiac surgery. Mitch had a tremendous impact on the field of brain injury rehabilitation and personally touched many of us in our own ventures in this field. He will be deeply missed! The BI-ISIG has worked with the ACRM Board and other organizations to commemorate Mitch: First, the Keynote Address at the annual conference (given by Lee Woodruff) will be named in his honor. Second, the first half-hour of the time slot for the address (10:00-10:30 am) will be devoted to a multimedia presentation of Mitch's lifelong and many contributions to the field of rehabilitation. More long-term plans to commemorate Mitch are being developed, and I anticipate that more information about these efforts will be announced at the conference.

The upcoming conference promises to be one of the most exciting and poignant "brain-injury" related meetings that we have ever held. Please register to join me and your colleagues in Washington!

Sincerely,
Philip Morse, PhD, FACRM
BI-ISIG Chair

Also in this issue:

• Letter from the Editor
• Mid-Year Business Meeting Minutes
• BI-ISIG News Briefs
• Mitchell Rosenthal, PhD, ABPP, FACRM
• 2007 Chautauqua: Controversies in the World of Sports Consussion
• Randy Evans, PhD
• BI-ISIG Annual Meeting Agenda
  

If you are a member of the BI-ISIG, a pdf version of this newsletter can be found in the BI-ISIG - Members Only Area of this website.