‘Brain Injury’ Is Newest Disability Intensive Course Introduced to College of Direct Support Curriculum

Atlanta, GA - The College of Direct Support (CDS), an internet-based college for Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) and managed in partnership by Elsevier/MC Strategies and the University of Minnesota’s Research and Training Center, has introduced its fourth Disability Intensive Course (DIC) into the CDS Curriculum – “Brain Injury.”

This newest DIC course in the CDS curriculum joins the courses on “Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders,” “Cerebral Palsy,” and “Depression.”

Jennifer Hall-Lande and Michelle Trotter, Research Assistants at the Institute on Community Integration (ICI) at the University of Minnesota, co-authored this course. The ICI team creates and authors all CDS courses. A DIC is a specialized course within the CDS that focuses on one disability or condition. Unlike other CDS courses, they have only one lesson. Each course defines and describes the nature of a specific condition. It has information about the causes, characteristics, and symptoms and shares some stories of people who have this condition.

This course will give Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) and others an overview of brain injury and covers the challenges someone with a brain injury may face. It will help them understand the short and long-term effects of brain injury and cover some of the most common causes of brain injury.

Brain injury is a greater problem than most people think. Someone in the United States sustains a brain injury every 21 seconds, according to the Brain Injury Association of America. These injuries can result in short-term issues. But they can also result in lifelong challenges. Chances are a learner will be taking this course because they support someone who has a brain injury. They may be a DSP, a family member or a friend of someone with a brain injury.

The leading causes of Brain Injury are: Falls – 28%; Motor Vehicle Accidents – 20%; Collisions or being hit by an object – 19%; Unknown or other – 16%; Assault – 11%; Bicycle accidents– 3%; Other transport – 2%; and Suicide – 1%.

About the College of Direct Support

The College of Direct Support is a learning gateway for contemporary best practices for Direct Support Professionals. By incorporating web-based learning, backed by nationally recognized curricula, the CDS is designed to promote a profession of direct support. The CDS is being used in more than 30 states and also in Canada. It is a partnership between Elsevier/MC Strategies and the University of Minnesota’s Research and Training Center’s Institute on Community Integration, which authors the curriculum.

CDS offers a complete lineup of courses offered on the Elsevier/MC Strategies Learning Management System.

About Elsevier

Elsevier is a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. The company works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and close to 20,000 book titles, including major reference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier’s online solutions include ScienceDirect, Scopus, Reaxys, MD Consult and Nursing Consult, which enhance the productivity of science and health professionals, and the SciVal suite and MEDai’s Pinpoint Review, which help research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes more cost-effectively.

A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is part of Reed Elsevier Group PLC, a world-leading publisher and information provider, which is jointly owned by Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV. The ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).