Presented by Stephanie Fantauzzo Johnson, OTR/L

6:00 – 7:30pm | 1.5 Contact Hours

Description:

This continuing education course provides therapists with a comprehensive overview of concussion rehabilitation, from the moment of injury through community reintegration. Participants will begin by differentiating between common concussion facts and myths while reviewing the pathophysiology, signs, and symptoms. The session will highlight the distinct role of occupational therapy in addressing the functional cognitive, visual, and vestibular deficits caused by mild traumatic brain injury. Through a unique personal journey narrative and real-world case examples, attendees will explore treating patients in the acute care setting effectively. The course will conclude with a practical guide to national and Ohio-specific brain injury resources to support both clinical decision-making and patient advocacy.

Objectives:

• Participants will discuss concussion facts, myths, signs & symptoms, history.
• Participants will review the role of occupational therapy in concussion rehabilitation.
• Participants will share a personal journey through concussion.
• Participants will explore acute care concussion patients.
• Participants will be provided with national and Ohio based brain injury resources to aide patients/clients & to act as support for clinicians

Presenter bio:

Stephanie Fantauzzo Johnson graduated in 2000 from Chatham College in Pittsburgh PA with a BA Psychology and Minor in Human Services Administration. She received her Master of Occupational Therapy from Chatham in 2002, where she was an Albert Schweitzer Fellow, spearheaded a pediatric life skills group at a Pittsburgh women’s domestic violence shelter, coached Special Olympics basketball, and upon graduation was awarded the 2002 Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Student of the Year award. Soon after, Stephanie returned to her hometown of Dayton, OH, where she began working in both home health and on the Inpatient Rehab unit at Miami Valley Hospital, a Level I Trauma Center in Dayton. With an interest in the role faith plays in both healthcare, general health and full body & mind healing, she later graduated from North Park Theological Seminary (Chicago IL) in 2008, with her Post Masters Certificate of Faith and Health.

Stephanie spent 18 years as an OT on IPR at Miami Valley, specializing in stroke and brain injury, and has been an Acute Care OT at MVH for the past 5 years. She has worn many hats, including Stroke Team OT, Department Team Lead, and staff therapist. Her main areas of interests revolve around TBI, spinal cord injury and stroke; with her most recent interest revolving around initiating a discussion with emergency room physicians to address the importance of education depth & consistency prior to concussion patient discharge from the ED.

Stephanie enjoys traveling, photography, being a ‘girl mom’ to 2 young athletes, cooking, exercising and going on long walks with her husband. She and her family refer to life before and after January 23, 2021, which was the date in which she sustained a vestibular concussion that involved the simultaneous diagnoses of multi canal BPPV. She continued to deal with highly recurrent BPPV on the side of impact, & was also later diagnosed with PPPD, PTSD, vestibular hypofunction & vestibular migraine, a highly misunderstood and underdiagnosed migraine, which she continues to manage (& conquer) today.

Stephanie feels it was due to her nonstop self-advocacy, the help of many friends & connections in the health care world, and her keen ability to NOT ‘take no for an answer’, that she was able to identify the multi-disciplinary team & approach that helped her recover. She feels strongly that education and advocacy are key in concussion rehab, and treats her concussion patients in a manner conducive to providing them with as much information as possible, albeit in the short amount of time she has with them in acute care. Stephanie feels her own experience with concussion, and her ability to live life to the fullest alongside a vestibular disorder, has allowed her to educate her own patients, and other people in her life, in ways she would have never been able to before her own experience.

Hosted by OOTA