Rehabilitation through Communication, Neuropsychology, Counseling, and Training (ReCoNeCT): Connecting students and student veterans impacted by mTBI with holistic interventions, skills, and support.

The Communicative Sciences and Disorders, Counselor Education, and Educational Leadership programs together with the Neural Injury Center at the University of Montana are collaborating to implement an intensive interdisciplinary program for Montana University System (MUS) students and student veterans who have had a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and/or concussion. Academia can be exceptionally challenging for these individuals as a result of unsolved cognitive issues associated with mTBI such as attention, recall, reasoning and executive functioning, which includes skills such as planning, organization, time management, and problem solving (Krug & Turkstra, 2015). The ReCoNeCT program will include two weeks of individualized treatment along with pre- and post- treatment assessment, debriefing, home programming, referrals, recommendations, and orientation to campus-based and community-based services and resources. Pre- and post-treatment assessment will include a semi-structured interview and standardized assessment spanning neuropsychology, speech-language pathology, and counseling domains. Collectively, the team will also assess academic areas of strength and concern. Following assessment, the interdisciplinary team will provide individualized treatment in-person on the University of Montana campus two days per week and via telehealth and online modules two days per week for two weeks. The purpose of the proposed study is to assess the feasibility of implementing a short, yet intensively-delivered, interdisciplinary intervention and education program designed to increase academic success, cognitive-communication skills, mental health and wellness, and quality of life for individuals with mTBI who are pursuing higher education in the Montana University System (MUS). Participants will be recruited and screened during the spring and summer months and treatment will begin during the fall 2016 semester. This poster presentation will review the literature and provide details about the proposed program.