Designed to promote forward-thinking dialogue and innovative collaboration among private industry as well as national professional sports organizations around the issue of brain health, the VA is hosting its second annual Brain Trust: Pathways to InnoVAtion summit, which kicked off today at Harvard University.
With more than 350 invited attendees, the event gathered federal government, innovators, scientists, athletes, clinicians, caregivers and Veterans to advance discussions and improve the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and recovery for those who suffer from head trauma.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is often regarded as one of the signature injuries among Veterans of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the Chronic Effects of Neurotrauma Consortium, of the more than 2.5 million service members who deployed to Iraq since 2003, almost 20 percent have had at least one TBI. However, issues related to brain health and head trauma transcend the Veteran and military community, impacting all Americans, particularly athletes participating in youth and major league sports.
“Brain Trust has inspired a new approach to collaborative partnerships across VA,” said VA Secretary Dr. David J. Shulkin, who welcomed participants to the event. “While VA is uniquely positioned to contribute to the care of Veterans with traumatic brain injury, we’re able to accomplish so much more when we work strategically with our private and public sector partners. We look forward to working with our partners to improve care for Veterans — as well as all Americans — affected by brain-related injuries.”
VA officials announced the following key partnerships during Brain
Visits: 28
