In a Concussion Awareness Now (CAN) blog earlier this year, we talked with Dr. Christopher Chao, an urgent care physician and President of the College of Urgent Care Medicine about how important it is for healthcare professionals to be informed on the latest concussion research.

“An important piece of my advocacy as someone who’s guiding other urgent care physicians…is clinicians having the time and space to level up their skills and knowledge about concussions and traumatic brain injuries,” he said. “I always tell clinicians, ‘Stay up to date on the latest research, the latest diagnoses, the latest rehab recommendations.’ Having that knowledge—and imparting your knowledge to your patients—is one of the best ways you can help your community.”

When we asked him what one aspect of concussion diagnosis and care he’d change if he had a magic wand, he said without hesitation: “Better resources and better continuity. I’d like us to be better able to connect the dots between rehabilitation and follow-up care.” 

Timely Resources for Healthcare Professionals: Check Out the CAN Resource Hub

The need for consistent and timely information around concussion diagnosis and care is something we’ve been hearing a lot from other healthcare professionals—which is why we’re been working hard over the last several months to launch a healthcare professional-specific education resource hub. The site is now live and can be accessed on CAN’s website! 

The resource hub, a collaboration among the nearly 20 members of the Concussion Awareness Now coalition, includes evidence-based scientific journal articles, video recordings, tools, and more. The collection spans every stage of a concussion patient’s journey, including assessment and diagnosis, initial management and follow-up, ongoing care and return to activity, best practices for collaboration with other providers, and additional resources for patience so they can continue to be their own best advocates.

We encourage you to bookmark the site and use this hub as a professional development tool as you continue your own journey of being able to effectively assess, treat, and support those with concussions—and we wanted to take a moment to showcase a few of the resources to get you started: 

Assessment & Diagnosis: Evaluation of Acute Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein and Ubiquitin C-Terminal Hydrolase-L1 Plasma Levels in Traumatic Brain Injury Patients With and Without Cranial Lesions

This pilot study from the National Neurotrauma Society evaluated plasma biomarkers in patients with acute traumatic brain injury (TBI). A cohort of 109 adult TBI patients was recruited within six hours of injury, and in a hyperacute subcohort of 20 patients, the study showed that GFAP(Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein) and UCH-L1 (Ubiquitin C-Terminal Hydrolase-L1 Plasma) levels were significantly higher in CT-positive patients, and that combining GFAP and UCH-L1 improved diagnostic accuracy for intracranial lesions, highlighting their clinical utility in TBI assessment. Explore this study and other assessment and diagnosis information here. 

 

Initial Management & Follow-Up: National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) Bridge Statement

This statement seeks to provide athletic trainers and team physicians with updated recommendations to the 2014 NATA concussion position statement regarding concussion management, specifically in the areas of education, assessment, prognostic factors, mental health, return to academics, physical activity, rest, and return to sport. 

Explore this resource and other initial management and follow-up information here. 

 

Ongoing Care & Return to Activity: Chronic Inflammation May Delay Concussion Recovery

From CAN Coalition partners Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association comes a piece from Douglas J. Villella, OD about the holistic treatment of persistent post-concussion symptoms, and how optometrists and neuro-optometric rehabilitation specialists should be aware of and screen for chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) as a possible post-concussion differential diagnosis. Explore this resource and other ongoing care and return to activity information here. 

 

Collaborating With Other Providers: The CARE Health Advocacy Intervention Improves Trauma-Informed Practices at Domestic Violence Service Organizations to Address Brain Injury, Mental Health, and Substance Use

This study evaluated the impact that domestic violence service organizations’ (DVSO) agency-wide adoption of CARE had on improving DVSO trauma-informed care (TIC) practices overall and in relation to addressing brain injury and mental health. Explore this study and other resources for collaborating with other providers here. 

 

Resources for Patients: CAN Concussion Resources

As always, Concussion Awareness Now offers a variety of posters, brochures, infographics, videos, and more to educate and raise awareness about concussions. You’re welcome to post these resources in your offices, or hand them out to your patients! Explore these and other patient resources here. 

 

Explore NEW Concussion Certificate Program for Healthcare Professionals

In addition to the resource hub, we’re excited to share a CEU course being offered by the Academy of Certified Brain Injury Specialists, through CAN co-chair, Brain Injury Association of America. The course is designed for healthcare professionals seeking to enhance their foundational understanding of concussion-related issues, including identification, treatment, and management.

The course fulfills up to 5.00 Enduring Materials, Self-Study American Academy for Family Physicians (AAFP) Elective credit(s). To learn more about the course, or to register, head here. 

Looking for Additional Resources? Let Us Know.

We’ll continue to add to the resource hub, and to make that possible, we’d like to ask for your help. 

If you’re looking for specific information, please let us know. If one healthcare professional is wondering about a specific aspect of concussion care and diagnosis, we’re sure there are others asking the same questions—and our goal is to ensure that this information is useful to you. Any questions or comments can be directed to our CAN Project Director Gina Peattie at gpeattie@biausa.org.