Speakers: Jared Bruce, PhD
Jared Bruce, PhD
Professor, Biomedical and Health Informatics
University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine
Dr. Bruce received his PhD from the Pennsylvania State University and completed a neuropsychology post-doctoral fellowship at Brown Medical School. He is a practicing clinical psychologist and a professor of Biomedical and Health Informatics at the UMKC School of Medicine. He has more than 100 peer reviewed publications. He received the American Psychological Association Clinical Neuropsychology Early Career Award and was inducted into the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Hall of Fame. He serves as the neuropsychology consultant to Major League Soccer’s Sporting KC and works with the National Hockey League Concussion Program. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Neuropsychology and the Sports Neuropsychology Society.
Identification and Diagnosis of Concussion in Professional Ice Hockey
Up to 3 million sports-related concussions occur in the U.S. annually. While most people with concussion recover within 2-4 weeks, some athletes experience complicated recoveries that last months. Continuing to play following a concussive blow increases risk for additional injury and may prolong recovery. Rapid identification and diagnosis of concussion is important to increase player safety. Athletes who sustain a concussion may have limited awareness of their symptoms and/or may be reluctant to report their symptoms and self-remove from competition. Empirically supported concussion Spotter programs can be used to rapidly identify athletes at risk of concussion. While successful concussion identification is a team effort that involves educating players, coaches, officials and medical staff, concussion Spotters are specifically trained to identify common visible signs and mechanisms of concussion. They watch each game with the sole purpose of identifying possible concussive events. When potential concussive events occur, spotters notify medical staff to ensure appropriate assessment and removal from play. This presentation will discuss the empirical development of a concussion risk model informing the National Hockey League spotter program as well as use of empirically informed decision-making as part of a standardized concussion assessment.