Every year, millions of Americans, including Veterans, active military, first responders and public safety personnel, experience traumatic brain injuries and their devastating chronic effects, including suicide. Yet, in 2022, we still have no FDA-approved TBI diagnostics or treatments.
Through prior BTB State-of-the-Science Summits we worked with the research community to identify and publish consensus challenges and a path ahead. The resulting TBI Precision Research Roadmap maps out priorities for accelerating a first generation of precision diagnostics and targeted treatments for brain trauma.
During the inaugural Action Summit, the TBI leadership community discussed priorities and a path to foster collaboration across the broader stakeholder community to achieve solutions sooner for those suffering from trauma-related brain disorders.
Together, we will empower all stakeholders to be informed and strategic architects through the Brain Trauma Blueprint.
Speakers
LISA BRENNER, PHD, ABPP
Director
VA Rocky Mountain Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC)
SHANNON FINN CONNELL, PHD
CEO
David R. Metcalf Invisible Wounds Foundation
KRISTEN DAMS-O’CONNOR, PHD
Jack Nash Professor, Vice Chair of Research
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
DAVE DEMARCO, PHD
Board Member
Cohen Veterans Bioscience
JAM GHAJAR, MD, PHD, FACS
President
Brain Trauma Foundation
JULIET HAARBAUER-KRUPA, PHD, FACRM
Senior Health Scientist
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
MAGALI HAAS, MD, PHD
CEO and President
Cohen Veterans Bioscience
DALLAS HACK, MD, COLONEL, U.S. ARMY (RETIRED)
Veterans Science Strategy Advisor (Consulting)
Cohen Veterans Bioscience
FRANK LARKIN
Chair, Veterans Advisory Council
Cohen Veterans Bioscience
KATHY LEE, MS, CRNP, ANP-BC
Director, Casualty Management Policy and Programs
U.S. Department of Defense Warfighter Brain Health Program
JAMIE M. METCALF
Honorary Board Member
David R. Metcalf Invisible Wounds Foundation
DANISH MUNIR
Founding Partner
GrayMatter Capital
GRACE PENG, PHD
Program Director, Mathematical Modeling, Simulation and Analysis
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, NIH
PETER PEUMANS, PHD
CTO Health
Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre (IMEC)
MARY JO PUGH, PHD, RN
Professor/Career Scientist
University of Utah / VA Salt Lake City
RACHEL RAMONI, DMD, SCD
Chief Research and Development Officer
US Department of Veterans Affairs
DOUGLAS SMITH, MD
Robert A. Groff Professor Of Teaching And Research In Neurosurgery
Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
ELISABETH WILDE, PHD
Associate Professor, Director of Research for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Baylor College of Medicine
TRISTAN WIMMER
Founder
22 Jumps
Highlights from the 2022 Brain Trauma Blueprint Action Summit
Announcing the TBI Action Alliance
CVB’s CEO & President Magali Haas, MD, PhD announced the development of the TBI Action Alliance, a public-private partnership alliance optimizing the capabilities of industry, academia, government, and other stakeholders to take action on the TBI Roadmap recommendations.
The coalition will support and advance a coordinated approach to accelerate the development and adoption of new solutions for TBI.
Beyond Hope to Action
Moderator:
Shannon Finn Connell, PhD, CEO, David R. Metcalf Invisible Wounds Foundation
Panel:
- Frank Larkin, Chair, Veterans Advisory Council, Cohen Veterans Bioscience
- Jamie Metcalf, Honorary Board Member, David R. Metcalf Invisible Wounds Foundation
- Tristan Wimmer, Founder, 22 Jumps
The Summit kicked off with an emotional start as Veterans and individuals touched by suicide highlighted how the negative impact of suicide ripples through families and communities. They emphasized why we need to move quickly to identify objective diagnostics and tailored treatments for TBI to help prevent suicide. Only by working together can we address this urgent need.
Keynote: The Warfighter Brain Health (WBH) Initiative
Kathy Lee, MS, CRNP, ANP-BC, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Readiness Policy and Oversight
Ms. Lee presented an exciting new Department of Defense strategy aimed at unifying efforts to optimize brain health for military personnel. This included a call for collaboration across multiple government departments and other stakeholders across the public and private sectors to develop and implement a comprehensive brain health research strategy focusing on finding solutions for the debilitating effects of brain trauma.
Keynote – Building upon NRAP: Working together to solve well-defined problems efficiently
Rachel Ramoni, D.M.D., Sc.D., Chief Research & Development Officer (CRADO), Department of Veterans Affairs
Ms. Ramoni made the case that we must recognize TBI as a public health emergency. She also highlighted how data sharing and collaboration are key to advancing solutions.
Brain Trauma Blueprint Roadmap Recommendations
Brain Trauma Blueprint Scientific Steering Committee experts provided a report on the state of the science in TBI research, an output of a collaborative effort focused on identifying paths forward in disease burden, preclinical research, biomarker development, phenotypes, clinical trials and implementation science. View Publications
Capital to Opportunity
Danish Munir, Founding Partner, GrayMatter Capital
“The time for change is now.” Mr. Munir discussed potential investment areas in mental health care and technology, highlighting the link between mental and physical health and opportunities to drive telehealth, AI and machine learning advancements. His presentation emphasized the important role that venture capital can play in turning new discoveries into solutions and the need to explore innovative funding models.
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