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University of Maine at Fort Kent

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Enrollment & Advancement Center • University of Maine at Fort Kent • 23 University Drive, Fort Kent, ME 04743

Professionals Speak on Traumatic Brain Injury at UMFK

March 30, 2016

Note: this is an archived news release. As such, the information provided may no longer apply.

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logo of the University of Maine at Fort Kent

The University of Maine at Fort Kent will host a panel discussion on traumatic brain injury on Wednesday, April 6, 2016 from 6 to 9 p.m. at UMFK's Fox Auditorium. The presentation is free and the public is encouraged to attend.

The evening event will begin with a presentation by keynote speaker, Dr. Peter Keebler, from Eastern Maine Medical Center.

Following medical school in his home state of Ohio, Dr. Keebler residency training was in Rehabilitation Medicine at the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine at New York University. He stayed on there for further fellowship training in Neuromuscular Disease and Electro-diagnostics after which he took his first position as Assistant Professor in Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. He became the first Chair of Pediatric Rehabilitation at the Children's Hospital of Cincinnati. After a tenure in Cincinnati of nine years, he followed his lifelong desire to live in Maine and became the Chief of Rehabilitation at EMMC in Bangor, where he has remained for the last 17 years.

Throughout his career, Dr. Keebler has had extensive experience in treating adult and pediatric patients with Traumatic Brain Injuries. He has given numerous talks on brain injury rehabilitation and continues to foster ongoing development of the TBI rehab program at EMMC.

The following individuals will take part in the panel discussions: Sarah Gaffney, Brain Injury Association of America - Maine Chapter's resources and supports that is offered for Maine brain injury survivors, caregivers/family members, and providers; Hannah Willihan, ATC, from Colby College and Maine Concussion Management Initiative as the Head Injury Tracker (HIT) Project Administrator to help serve Maine schools and student athletes as an advocate and resource; Brad Ala is a physical therapist with a doctorate in physical therapy at The Aroostook Medical Center; Kirsten Capeless, Brain Injury Program Manager, Office of Aging and Disability Service in the Maine Department of Human Services; and Phil Bosse, community member and state office representative for U.S. Senator Susan Collins.

The guest panel will speak to the following:

  • Define the pathophysiology of traumatic brain injury.
  • Refer to the most common signs and symptoms of traumatic brain injury.
  • Discuss the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) definition of traumatic brain injury.
  • Describe the role of the IDEA in schools, describing three primary roles.
  • How schools are helping the pediatric population, who suffer from traumatic brain injury, to identify the resources, and personnel who are of assistance.
  • Identify available resources for people of all ages who are suffering from a traumatic brain injury, both locally and statewide.
  • Talk about the rehabilitation process.

Organizers of the event are UMFK Instructor of Nursing Sandy Pelletier RN.BSN and Lewis Lamont, Acquired Brain Injury Advisory Council (Maine) member. The event is sponsored by UMFK's Nursing Honor Society and Student Nurses Organization.

For more information on the event, please contact UMFK Sandy Pelletier at 207-834-8635 or sandy.pelletier@maine.edu