TBI
Traumatic Brain Injury
Traumatic Brain Injury means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that may adversely affect a pupil’s educational performance and may result in the need for special education and related services.” Mechanisms of injury can be but are not limited to motor vehicle accidents, falls, sport-related injuries, violence and abuse. The term traumatic brain injury does not apply to brain injuries that are congenital, degenerative or injuries induced by birth trauma.
Meeting Criteria
Based on information in the Evaluation Report and the student file, the student must meet the requirements in all five areas below. The determination must be made by a multidisciplinary team and supported by information collected from multiple settings and sources.
A. Medical Documentation
• There is documentation by a physician of a medically verified traumatic brain injury (TBI).
B. Functional Impairment
The student’s file must include documentation of a functional impairment attributed to the TBI that adversely affects education performance in at least one of the following:
• Intellectual-cognitive • Sensory • Academic • Social-emotional-behavioral • Motor • Functional skills-adaptive behavior • Communication
C. Previously Existing Conditions
Verification that the student’s impairments are not primarily the result of previously existing conditions:
• Visual, hearing, motor impairments • Developmental disabilities • Environmental or economic disadvantage • Emotional/behavioral disorders • Language or specific learning disabilities • Cultural differences
D. Documentation The student file must include documentation of functional impairment through at least one of the following:
• Checklists • Classroom or work samples • Documented, systematic behavioral observations • Educational/medical history • Interviews with parent, student, and other knowledgeable individuals
E. Documentation The student’s file must include documentation of functional impairment based in at least one of the following:
• Criterion-referenced measures • Personality or projective measures • Sociometric measures • Standardized assessment measures (academic, cognitive, communication, neuropsychological or motor)
Review of Eligibility Determination
To determine compliance with eligibility determination, one of the following must be checked.
• The documentation supports the team decision. • The documentation does not support the team decision.
For complete information regarding disability criteria requirements, refer to Minnesota Rules, part 3525.1348.
Side Effects of a TBI
Most people who sustain a concussion completely recover within a couple of weeks of their injury. A few, however, along with those who sustained a moderate or severe TBI, have to deal with a host of persistent symptoms indefinitely.
Whether you’ve suffered a mild, moderate, or severe TBI, many of these symptoms and long-term effects are the same. Of course, they vary in intensity from person to person. Some of them tend to appear immediately after an injury. Others sometimes develop later. Some symptoms might seem to come and go, triggered by certain environments or situations.
