Online TBI Resources

TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
HSM 5th Floor
Cordell Hull Building
425 5th Ave. N.
Nashville, TN 37247
800/882-0611
email: Jean.Doster@state.tn.us

TENNESSEE DISABILITY COALITION
480 Craighead St., Suite 200
Nashville, TN 37206
615/383-9442
email: coalition@tndisability.org

BRAIN INJURY ASSOCIATION OF TENNESSEE (BIAT)
44 Vantage Way, Suite 550
Nashville, TN 37228
615/248-5878
email: biaoftn@yahoo.com

CHILDREN'S SPECIAL SERVICES (CSS)
Central Office
5th Floor, Cordell Hull Building
425 5th Ave. N.
Nashville, TN 37247
615/741-0310
email: jcundall@mail.state.tn.us

FAMILY VOICES OF TENNESSEE
480 Craighead St., Suite 200
Nashville, TN 37206
615/383-9442
email: familyvoices@tndisability.org

SUPPORT & TRAINING FOR EXCEPTIONAL PARENTS (STEP)
423 E. Bernard Ave., Suite 3
Greeneville, TN 37745
800/280-STEP
email: tnstep@aol.com

TENNESSEE EARLY INTERVENTION SYSTEM (TEIS)
615/741-3537
800/852-7157
email: bbledsoe@mail.state.tn.us

TENNESSEE PROTECTION & ADVOCACY
2416 21st Ave. South
Nashville, TN 37212
800/342-1660
email: dianel@tpainc.org

TENNESSEE DISABILITY INFORMATION & REFERRAL OFFICE
John F. Kennedy Center
Box 40, Peabody
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN 37203
800/640-INFO
email: carole.moore-slater@vanderbilt.edu

TN RESPITE NETWORK
1315 8th Ave., South
Nashville, TN 37212
800/670-9882
email: gbuchanan@tnvoices.org

TENNESSEE VOICES FOR CHILDREN
1315 8th Ave., South
Nashville, TN 37212
800/670-9882
email: tvc@tnvoices.org

PARENTS ENCOURAGING PARENTS (P.E.P.)
Central Office, 5th Floor
Cordell Hull Building
425 Fifth Ave. N.
Nashville, TN 37247
615/741-0353
email: srothacker@mail.state.tn.us

TBI INFORMATION ON THE WEB

The Brain Injury Association of America (BIA)
http://www.biausa.org
Family Helpline: 1-800-444-6443

This site includes information about traumatic brain injury as it relates to the following: prevention, advocacy, education, rehabilitation, and research. It is a helpful site for survivors, family members, and professionals who support the TBI population.

From the TN Dept. of Health site, click on Fact Sheets, Traumatic Brain Injury. A summary of the incidence and prevalence for TBI is given, along with a synopsis of program services.

This technical assistance center was established as a resource for states that are trying to establish or build upon services available for individuals with TBI. The site features a list of TBI state grant participants along with their grant objectives, a "toolbox" of materials on developing and implementing TBI services, and much more related information.

National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY)
http://www.nichcy.org
Voice/TTY: 1-800-695-0285

A very informative website including information on many disabilities and links to other disability resources on the web. For information on TBI, go to publications/ fact sheets/ traumatic brain injury for a concise summary of TBI as it affects children and youth.

The National Pediatric Trauma Registry was established in 1985 to study the etiology of pediatric trauma and its consequences.

This website contains more information on TBI research, prevention, and resources.

The CDC’s site provides statistical information about TBI, as well as a link to view or order their free publication "Facts about Concussion and Brain Injury," a summary of mild brain injury with sections specifically about kids.

This fun, educational site is maintained by Eric H. Chudler, Ph.D. and has been created for all students and teachers who would like to learn more about the nervous system. Enjoy the activities and experiments on your way to learning more about the brain and spinal cord.

This site provides extensive information about the brain and its disorders, and provides access to a variety of free publications (see the “Select Publication” drop-down menu). Click on “Brainy Kids Online” to access activities for younger children, puzzles, and lesson plan suggestions.

Another fun site with lots of information on brain function as it relates to how we learn. Sign up for the weekly newsletter.

This site includes a TBI chat room, links to personal TBI survivor web pages, and links to other good information.

Click on the "Special Education" link to find information specifically about brain injury.

The Disability Resources Monthly (a newsletter reviewing resources for independent living) has compiled this list of websites about brain injury and related subjects.

The “News and Education” section offers current TBI news, the “Research” menu provides links to information about brain injury and MTBI (mild traumatic brain injury/concussion), and the “Tools” section includes a glossary and pharmacology guide for help in understanding medical or rehabilitation records.

From the “Disorder Quick Links” drop-down menu, click on Traumatic Brain Injury.

This site provides information and materials written by teachers, therapists, and parents. There is a monthly special, offering discount pricing on a select publication. Click on “Resource Links” for an extensive listing of informative websites.

Provides information about assistive technology devices and services, funding for devices and services, advocacy services, statewide initiatives and activities, and assistive technology centers.

This site provides information about the Assistive Technology Center at Signal Centers in Chattanooga.

STAR Center – West Tennessee Assistive Technology Center
http://www.starcenter.tn.org
Voice: (901) 668-3888

Technology Access Center of Middle Tennessee
http://tac.ataccess.org
Voice: (615) 248 6733

Our goal is to see that victims of brain injuries are given every chance possible to recover. We provide practical, actionable advice from people who have suffered through the same experience.

Suggested Reading

The following publications are recommended for families and professionals interested in learning more about supporting students with traumatic brain injury.

An educator’s manual: What educators need to know about students with brain injury (2000) Ron Savage, & Gary Wolcott (Editors).

From HDI Publishers catalog: The third edition of this acclaimed book is an essential tool and practical resource for educators, classroom teachers and parents working with students with a brain injury. Experts in special education lend insight and information useful in meeting the needs of students with brain injury. This book offers an overview of the effects of brain injury from education perspective with guidelines and standards for students with brain injury.

Changes in self awareness among students with brain injury (1999)
McKay Sohlberg, Bonnie Todis, & Ann Glang

From Lash & Associates catalog: When the student is unaware of changes in abilities, it is difficult for educators to design accommodations and compensatory systems. This manual explains the causes of awareness and gives practical suggestions and worksheets for working with students in middle, junior high and high school.

Children with Traumatic Brain Injury: A Parent’s Guide (2001)
Lisa Schoenbrodt (Ed.)

From the back cover: Written by an expert team of medical and rehabilitation specialists, a speech-language pathologist, social workers, psychologists, special educators, and an attorney, (this book) is essential reading for parents, but is also recommended for professionals. A case study, parent statements, patient assessment scales, resource guide, reading list, and glossary round out this invaluable guide.

Collaborative brain injury intervention: Positive everyday routines (1998)
Mark Ylvisaker & Timothy Feeney

From the publisher: Provides thorough coverage of cognitive, behavioral, and communication issues applied through positive everyday routines. Practical text that covers topics concerning both children and adults. Includes issues associated with prefrontal injury, which is most common in traumatic brain injury. Applicable to acute rehabilitation, school, and vocational contexts.

San Diego: Singular Publishing Group, Inc.
(800) 521-8545
Website: http://www.singpub.com

Educational Dimensions of Acquired Brain Injury (1994)
Edited by Ronald C. Savage & Gary R. Wolcott

This book is a good resource for the special educator, speech and language pathologist or school psychologist on specific models and strategies to help respond to students’ educational and lifelong needs.

Over My Head: A Doctor’s Account of Head Injury from the Inside Looking Out (2000) Claudia Osborn

From the Journal of the American Medical Association’s review, December 8, 1999, Vol 282, No 22: Over My Head is an inspirational account of one person’s unrelenting and courageous pursuit to cope with life following severe traumatic injury…. Moments of humor, sorrow, pain and frustration flood the pages and help the reader to develop an appreciation for the challenges confronting patients with brain injuries. Over My Head is a valuable book for those facing a severe brain injury, for rehabilitation specialists, or simply for those interested in a powerful story of strength and courage.

Signs and strategies for educating students with brain injuries: A practical guide for teachers and parents (2000)
Marilyn Lash, Gary Wolcott, & Sue Pearson

From Lash & Associates catalog: This book gives a basic overview of the consequences that brain injuries can have on a child’s learning, behavior and adjustment in school. It explains common changes and gives strategies for the classroom and at home. A special section on transition strategies helps prepare the student for moving from teacher to teacher, grade to grade and school to school with lots of worksheets for families and educators.

Students with acquired brain injury: The school’s response (1997)
Ann Glang, George Singer, & Bonnie Todis

Card Catalog description: When a student with a brain injury joins a classroom, there are new challenges for everyone involved. This book serves as both an introduction and a practical handbook for working with children who have acquired brain injury (ABI). Designed for school professionals, it describes the full range of issues facing this growing student population and presents innovative, proven strategies for improving the quality of the school experience for all children regardless of the school setting from special education classrooms to fully inclusive programs. School professionals and parents can rely on this functional book for dependable, accessible information to guide them in their efforts to support children with ABI in the school setting.

Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co. *Out of print – used copies available online
Or HDI Publishers at 800-321-7037
Website: http://www.braininjurybooks.com

Tip cards from Lash and Associates are 6 to 8 easy-to-read pages with information for families, clinicians, and educators. They are hands-on tools, full of current information, checklists and suggestions. Topics include: Behavior after Brain Injury; Special Education IEP Checklist; Teaching Strategies for Students with Brain Injuries; Therapies in School; Neuropsychology and School; and Going to College, and many more. Discounts are offered for bulk orders.

Traumatic head injury: Cause, consequence, and challenge (1993)
Dennis P. Swiercinsky, Terrie L. Price, & Leif E. Leaf

From the BIA of Kansas: A guide for understanding the causes and consequences of brain injury, and the challenge of rehabilitation. “Families call this book one of the best resources they have after being confronted with the tragedy of a head injury. It puts in simple, easy to understand language technical medical information that is so new and often frightening.” Jean Bailey, Rebound, Inc., Kansas City, MO.

Kansas City: Brain Injury Association of Kansas
(816) 842-8607 or
HDI Publishers (800) 321-7037
Website: http://www.braininjurybooks.com

When Your Teenager is Injured: Preparing for Work and Adulthood (1997)
Marilyn Lash, Paul Kahn & Gary Wolcott

This text explains how to include transition planning under special education. It describes how to gain work experience, apply for a job, negotiate accommodations, and locate adult services.

A book written by a professional writer about her family’s experience after her husband’s brain injury. Crimmins captures the roller coaster of changes that her family endures and moves on to pick up the pieces for a new life after a devastating event, while keeping love and humor an essential part of healing. A must read.

A book written by a professional writer/professor about her daughter’s brain injury. This book tells the story of Brennan’s twenty-five-year-old daughter’s traumatic brain injury and her own feelings and reflections. Beautifully written and painfully honest, Being with Rachel is the story of a labor of love between mother and daughter throughout a gripping recovery with a true-to-life picture of one family’s reality after brain injury.

I’ll Carry the Fork! Recovering a life after brain injury
By Kara L. Swanson

A book written by a survivor who accounts her recovery and offers useful tools to help others coping with brain injury. Swanson’s style is easy to read and humorous. She includes chapters from professionals who have known her since before her injury, and provides numerous helpful analogies to attempt to explain what brain injury is really like. Between the large print and colorful content, Swanson’s book is a page-turner that she describes as “the book I wish I could have read when I was first diagnosed with a brain injury.”

Over My Head, A Doctor’s Own Story of Head Injury from the Inside Looking Out
By Claudia L. Osborn

A book written by a medical doctor who sustained a traumatic brain injury. Osborn tells from a unique point of view her account of her daily struggle for independence. Previously a doctor who treated patients, Osborn’s adjustments to life after brain injury explain her challenges and triumphs as a patient while striving to regain her memory and cognitive abilities to find and accept her “new identity.” Osborn has remained in the medical field.

Additional Websites

Listed below are numerous websites grouped by category. This is not an exhaustive list of all the information available on the web that is relevant to TBI issues, but rather a snapshot of those that Project BRAIN has found to be informative. These sites are listed as suggestions only, and do not imply Project BRAIN’s endorsement of the opinions or information included on the sites. List compiled by Project BRAIN in PDF format

Many of these sites have “links” pages of their own - be sure to check them out!

Links to General Brain/Neurological Info Sites

Another fun site with lots of information on brain function as it relates to how we learn. Sign up for the weekly newsletter.

This site provides virtual brain dissection with photographs of the nervous system.

Medical Terminology Websites
Check out these sites for more dictionaries of medical terms.

Brain Injury Specific Sites

Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA)
http://www.biausa.org
Family Helpline: 1-800-444-6443

This site includes information about TBI as it relates to the following: prevention, advocacy, education, rehabilitation, and research. It is a helpful site for survivors, family members, and professionals who support the TBI population. Links to state BIA Chapters are also listed.

The “News and Education” section offers current TBI news, the “Research” menu provides links to information about brain injury and MTBI (mild traumatic brain injury/concussion), and a glossary and pharmacology guide are included in “Tools” to help in understanding medical or rehabilitation records.

This site provides extensive information about the brain and its disorders, and provides access to a variety of free publications (see the “Select Publication” drop-down menu). Click on “Brain Kids Online” to access activities for younger children, puzzles, and lesson plan suggestions.

This site provides information and materials written by and for teachers, therapists, and parents. Monthly specials are featured, offering discounts on selected publications. Click on “Resource Links” for an extensive list of informative websites.

This site provides a variety of TBI education modules, primarily involving Mild TBI (MTBI) and concussion, including MTBI terminology, neuropsychological testing considerations in MTBI, diagnostic challenges in MTBI, and sports and MTBI.

Find bibliographic and order information for videotapes, audiotapes, and unpublished printed materials on TBI. Some printed materials are available as downloadable files. This database is a collaborative effort between the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, United States Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau.

From the “Disorder Quick Links” drop-down menu, click on Traumatic Brain Injury.

Visit this site for information on current TBI research, prevention, and related information.

Another source for information on TBI; includes a searchable database, available publications, frequently asked questions about TBI, and more links. Under the "RTC Resources" menu, check out the article on TBI in Schoolchildren.

Websites for TBI Survivors, Families, & Caregivers

This guide is featured on the Iowa Virtual Hospital site under the link for Common Problems in Adults/Head Trauma. The medical aspects of brain injury and the resulting effects are explained in easy-to-understand language.

The site above has been translated into Spanish and can be viewed and printed from Adobe Acrobat Reader.

A massive site for disability-related information. Any family of a child with special needs should know about this web site. It includes a searchable library of resources related to specific disabilities, bulletin boards, chat rooms, parent support links, and information about adaptive resources.

Family Voices is a national grassroots network of families and others who advocate on behalf of children with special health care needs. Objectives include bringing the family perspective to policy discussions and decisions, and providing a clearinghouse for information and education about ways to assure and improve health care for children. Find links to state Family Voices chapters on this site.

Click on the "Special Education" link to find information specifically about brain injury.

This site includes a TBI chat room, links to personal TBI survivor web pages, and links to other good information.

This website was designed for TBI survivors, their families, friends, and caregivers, including information about "waiting" for someone to awake from a coma. There are also personal stories and links to related information about brain injury.

General Disability Information Sites

This document outlines considerations in the selection and implementation of assistive technology (AT) within the Individual Education Plan (IEP), the roles of IEP team members, sample IEP goals, and the use of AT in instruction of students with mild disabilities.

Produced by the State University of New York at Buffalo, this site provides assistive technology basics, tutorials, and resources.

The CDC’s site provides information on the epidemiology of TBI, as well as a link to view or order their publication "Facts about Concussion and Brain Injury," a summary of mild brain injury with sections relevant to concussion in children.

CEC advocates for appropriate governmental policies, sets professional standards, provides continual professional development, advocates for newly and historically underserved individuals with exceptionalities, and helps professionals obtain conditions and resources necessary for effective professional practice. Find out about local CEC chapters.

The Disability Resources Monthly (a newsletter reviewing resources for independent living) has compiled this list of websites about brain injury and related subjects.

ERIC Clearing House on Disabilities and Gifted Education
http:// www.ericec.org
1-800-328-0272 (V/TTY)

ERIC is an acronym for the Educational Resources Information Center. The ERIC Clearinghouse on Disabilities and Gifted Education (ERIC EC) is one of 16 federally funded clearinghouses in the ERIC system, a nationwide information network sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), and administered by the National Library of Education (NLE). ERIC EC gathers and disseminates the professional literature, information, and resources on the education and development of individuals of all ages who have disabilities and/or who are gifted.

National Center for Education in Maternal and Child Health Clearinghouse (NCEMCH)
http:// www.ncemch.org

This site is a federally-supported comprehensive resource center for maternal and child health information including information on children and youth with special health care needs, youth and mental health, and emergency medical services for children. NCEMCH provides access to data, research findings, consensus reports, and other products. The Web site enables key word searching and contains published bibliographies.

National Information Center for Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY)
http://www.nichcy.org
Voice/TTY: 1-800-695-0285

The National Pediatric Trauma Registry was established in 1985 to study the etiology of pediatric trauma and its consequences.

This site provides principles and products for supporting people with primarily cognitive difficulties.

This website provides descriptions of government programs and legislation, and includes contact information for most departments and agencies. Topic include the Americans with Disabilities Act, Social Security, Medicare, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Housing Assistance Options, Special Education, Employment, Voting Rights, and Transportation and Travel. The information may also be read and printed with Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Parents, advocates, educators, and attorneys visit this site for accurate, up-to-date information about advocacy for children with disabilities.

Vanderbilt Children's Hospital: Junior League Family Resource Center
Junior League Family Resource Center ... Home > Family Resources > Junior League Family Resource Center ...
http://www.vanderbiltchildrens.com/interior.php?mid=560

Disclaimer: Project Brain and the Tennessee Disability Coalition are not responsible for content of outside web sites. Inclusion on this page does not necessarily indicate an endorsement of an outside web site or organization.