Brain Injury Conference for Massachusetts’ Families

Marlborough, March 24th & 25th, 2021. The Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts (BIA-MA) Conference is for brain injury survivors, caregivers, families and professionals to gather and discuss the challenges faced by the brain injury community. 
* Exhibitors and vendors offer healthcare options and solutions for those in the community.
* Presenters will offer the latest research in the field of brain injury, discuss new and exciting therapies, and provide support and guidance for those affected by brain injury.
For more information visit the BIA-MIA Brain Injury Conference page or contact contact Laura MacFeeley, BIA-MA Education & Program Coordinator at education@biama.org.

2020 Speaker topics included:

• Motivational Interviewing and Brain Injury Rehabilitation: An Overview and Implications for Practice
  – James L. Soldner, PhD, CRC, BCBA-D and Dimity Peter, PhD, CRC; both Associate Professors from the
  University of Massachusetts Boston
• Pioneering Integrated Wellness for Acquired Brain Injury – Kara Lavertu, MS, CGFI, Supportive Living Inc.;
  Stacey Aaron, PhD, Spaulding Rehabilitation; Allison May, MS, OTR/L, CBIS, Community Rehab Care; Urvashi Chogle, DPT
• Behavioral Strategies for the Non-Behaviorists: Caregivers, Families and Other Specialties
  Joseph N Ricciardi, PsyD, ABPP, BCBA-D, CBIST, Director of Clinical Services, Seven Hills NeuroCare, Seven
  Hills Foundation
• Applied Behavior Analysis in Application: A Hands on Approach to Assessing Preferences for Individuals
  with Brain Injury – Jennifer Derderian MS, MEd, BCBA, LABA, Clinical Director and Amanda Brousseau
  MA, BCBA, LABA, Assistant Clinical Director; both from The May Center School for Brain Injury and
  Neurobehavioral Disorders
• ‘Sonata for Piano’ is an original composition created by stroke survivor Tina Callahan and music therapist Patricia Mulholland.
• Trauma-Informed Yoga – Sarah Hoffman, E-RYT
• Artistic Expression: Expressive Healing – Philip Hasouris, Poet.
• Bottom Up Approach to Cognitive Recovery: The Body-Brain Connection – Karla McAuliffe MA, CCC-SLP,
  CBIS and Julia Krasheninin MS, CCC-SLP; both Speech-Language Pathologists, Fairlawn Rehabilitation
  Hospital
• Successful Caregiver Involvement in Supporting Rehab Outcomes and Functional Gains –
  Allison May, MS, OTR/L CBIS, Gwendolyn Larsen, PT, MSPT, NCS, and Ann Gillespie, MBA, Recreation
  Therapist; all from Community Rehab Care
• Power of Patients – Lynne Becker, MSPH
•  Limited Guardianship, Supported Decision Making, and ABLE Accounts Offer New Possibilities and
  Greater Independence for Survivors – Stephen J. Spano, MBA, JD, CELA, Board Certified Elder Law Attorney
  and Adjunct Professor of Special Needs Law, Andrea A.J. Witt, Esq., both from Spano & Dawicki, LLC.
• From Darkness to Light: One Man’s Journey – Glenn Hartmann, Assistant Controller, UMass Amherst
• Providing Functional Treatment and Effective Documentation to Memory Impairments After ABI –
  Amy Karas, MS, CCC-SLP, CBIS, Educational Supervisor, Speech-Language Pathologist, Community Rehab
  Care
• Relationships That Work: From Common Factors to Positive Behavior Support – Anthony J Giuliano, PhD,
  Clinical Neuropsychologist, CBIST, QBISPT, Psychologist IV, MA Department of Mental Health
• Diagnosis, Prognosis and Rehabilitation of Persons With Severe TBI: What Should We Do? –
  Douglas Katz, MD, Professor of Neurology, Boston University, Medical Director ABI, Braintree Rehabilitation
• Putting the Marriage Back Together After an ABI – Christopher Carter, PsyD, CBIST, Director of
  Continuity for Brain Injury and Spinal Cord Services, Spaulding Rehabilitation Network
  After an ABI the marriage often needs repair work. The workshop, geared for survivors and their partners, will
  present an overview of the ways in which marriages can be impacted by brain injury followed by a discussion
  of strategies for navigating a return to a more balanced and sustainable relationship with case examples.
• Love Yourself Now – Maria Milagros Vazquez, Speaker, Coach, Author, Personal Growth & Development
  Expert
• QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) Suicide Prevention – Arianna Setzco, Program Director, Vinfen
• Opioid Use Disorders and Brain Injury: New Opportunities for Referral Pathways – Lisa Blanchard, MA,
  LMHC, VP of Clinical Services and Romas D. Buivydas, PhD, LMHC, VP of Clinical Development; both from
  Spectrum Health Systems
•  QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer) Suicide Prevention – Arianna Setzco, Program Director, Vinfen
• Understanding Survival and Meaning after Brain Injury: The Value of Narrative and Public Sharing
  for Brain Injury Survivors – Andrea Snow, MS, CCC-SLP, CBIS, Seven Hills NeuroCare; Mark Borselli, Dana
  Pearson, and Ronald Montgomery; both Survivors
• Enabling Functional Outcomes Through Educational Rehabilitation – Christianna Gilbert, MA, CCC-SLP
  and Co-Author Natalie Gilmore, MS, CCC-SLP; both from Boston University
• Barriers to Accessing the Community-Based Yoga Programs for People with Traumatic Brain Injury
  and Caregivers – Kyla Pearce, PhD, MPH, CBIS, RYT-200 and Kaitlyn Cashman, PT, DPT, RYT; both from
  LoveYourBrain Foundation
• Think Outside the Facility: Home and Community-Based Long-Term Services and Supports Available
  Through MassHealth – Amy Bernstein, LSW, MMHS, Erica Menz, MPA, Susan Ciccariello, MSPA and Dorothee
  Alsentzer, JD; all from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services
•  Integrating Behavioral Health into Physical Health Care Delivery – Emily Navetta, Director, Managed
  Care Partnerships
• Healthy Eating: One of the Most Powerful Tools for Preventing Chronic Disease – Scherrie Keating, RN,
  CDCES, CDP, CDC, NDPP, Lifestyle Coach, Ageless Grace Educator, Diabetes Kare Consulting, LLC
• Cognitive Exercise and Neuroplasticity – Therese M. O’Neil-Pirozzi, ScD, CCC-SLP, Associate Professor,
  Northeastern University and Clinician/Researcher, Spaulding/Harvard TBI Model System; Co-Presenters
  Lauryn Armstrong, Olivia Cantin, Zehra Husnain
•  Estate Planning is a Reality for Survivors of Brain Injury and a Necessity for Loving Caretakers – Stephen
  J. Spano, MBA, JD, CELA, Board Certified Elder Law Attorney and Adjunct Professor of Special Needs Law
  and Andrea A.J. Witt, Esq.; both from Spano & Dawicki, LLC