Mental Health, Addictions and Brain Injury

Mental Health, Addictions & Brain Injury Online Professional Training Program (Level 2)

The Ontario Brain Injury Association in collaboration with Brock University has developed this Certificate Training Program to provide professionals with the tools and knowledge to assist clients with recovery and function in everyday life following acquired brain injury.

Date: TBA

Prerequisite Required: Neurorehabilitation – Assisting Recovery & Function in Everyday Life Following Brain Injury (No Exceptions)

Registration Fee: $600

Program Description:

This Level 2 course is designed to increase your understanding of the relationship between traumatic brain injury, substance misuse and mental health challenges, and to assist you in developing a greater appreciation of the factors which make brain injury rehabilitation more challenging when a co-morbid disorder is present.

In particular, this course will present an in-depth discussion on the incidence of substance misuse (e.g., increased alcohol consumption, cannabis use, etc.) among individuals with a history of TBI, emphasizing both pre-injury influences (e.g., personality characteristics, maladaptive coping, etc.) and post-injury influences (e.g., neurochemical imbalances, physiological contributions, etc.) on addictive behavior.

In addition, the course will examine cases of tri-diagnosis (e.g., TBI, addiction, and depression), focusing on the interplay among biochemical, structural, and environmental disruptors. Further, the instructors will highlight factors that complicate these relationships (e.g., age-at-injury, multiple head injuries, etc.), especially among individuals with a history of mild traumatic brain injury, and will review practical considerations for individuals working with this complex population.

This will be achieved through both lecture and case study formats. Individuals with a history of TBI often experience additional risk factors for the development of addictive behaviors and their variable neurocognitive challenges are often exacerbated by alcohol and drug use; our goal is to help you develop a more sophisticated understanding of the needs of this vulnerable population to ultimately improve their functional recovery and social reintegration.

Objectives of the Course:

1.  To extend your knowledge of brain function with respect to addictive behaviours and the brain’s response to trauma. Topics to be covered include:
   1. The neural basis of addiction and reward.
   2. Effects of brain injury on reward pathways (e.g., neuroinflammation, dopamine signaling).
   3. The physiological effects of concussive injury and its impact on risk-taking and substance misuse among individuals with mild traumatic brain injuries.
   4. The interplay among biochemical, structural, and environmentally-induced neural disruptions.
2. To expand your appreciation of the pre-injury and post-injury influences on addictive behaviour and mental health. Topics to be covered include:
   1. The significance of brain injury during childhood in the development of addictive behaviours and mental health challenges.
   2. The factors that impact clinical presentations and the assessment of addictions and behavioural presentations after injury.
3. To expand your range of knowledge on how traumatic brain injury impacts substance abuse and mental health treatment and how substance misuse impacts recovery from injury. Topics to be covered include:
   1. How to prioritize treatment issues in situations where there are dual or tri-diagnoses
   2. Interactions with prescription medications
   3. What kinds of addictions are typically present after traumatic brain injury
4. To expand your range of knowledge of evidence-based interventions and models of care that may be applied to individuals living with acquired brain injury and co-occurring addictions and mental health issues. Topics to be covered include:
   1. How to screen for substance use disorders
   2. Evidence based interventions for substance use
   3. Case management and Integrated care

Professors:

Professors, Dr. Dawn Good and Dr. Carolyn Lemsky, will be teaching the program by live video conference.

Dawn Good, PhD, CPsych is an Associate Professor, and past Chair and Director, at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, in the Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience. Her research is in the field of acquired brain injury in both paediatric and adult populations. She is a Research Associate of the Lifespan Development Research Institute at Brock University and a Registered Psychologist (Ontario) specializing in the fields of neuropsychology and cognitive rehabilitation, licensed to practice in the province of Ontario. She is a Director with the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards, and a writer for the licensing EPPP (Examination for the Professional Practice in Psychology) exam for North American licensure and deemed an expert witness in neuropsychology for both civilian and criminal courts in Ontario. Her research grants have spanned the areas of paediatric acquired brain injury (ABI) and cognitive functions/strategies for persons with ABI and was acknowledged by the Canadian Institute of Health Research as a Canada 150 Health Researchers: Discoveries for Life. She also serves as a Consultant Neuropsychologist to brain injury rehabilitation and mental health programs across Ontario.

Carolyn Lemsky, PhD, C.Psych. ABPP-CN is a board certified neuropsychologist with 25 years of experience working in rehabilitation settings in the U.S. and Canada. For the past 20 years she has been the Clinical Director at Community Head Injury Resource Services of Toronto. Dr. Lemsky has been a strong proponent of integrated care. For the past 10 years  she has been the director of the Substance Use and Brain Injury Bridging Project, a research and knowledge transfer initiative funded by the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation (ONF). In addition to frequent conference presentations, Dr. Lemsky has contributed book chapters and articles to the neuropsychology and brain injury literature.

Contact Leah Hughes for a Member or Group Discount!

Please use the event/course registration portal to sign up for any current courses by clicking on the button below. For registration and payment by cheque, or if your organization requires an invoice, please contact training@obia.on.ca or phone 905-641-8877 ext. 102.

Registration is closed.

Please note: Payment in full must be received in advance of the program. A cancellation fee of $75 will be applied if notice is not received by 48 hours prior to the start of the course. Cancellations made less than 48 hours are non-refundable, and no credits will be issued.

Please direct all inquiries to:

Leah Hughes, Training Coordinator & Strategic Initiatives
Ontario Brain Injury Association,
PO Box 2338,
St. Catharines, ON L2R 7R9
Ph: (905) 641-8877 ext. 102 or 1-855-642-8877
Email: training@obia.on.ca