March 15-21, 2010, is Brain Awareness Week (BAW). Founded by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, the week-long campaign aims to increase awareness of the benefits of brain research while also involving the public in a week-long celebration of the brain. Nobel laureate James Watson, co-discoverer of the structure of DNA once called the brain “the most complex thing we have yet discovered in our universe.” Complex, fragile and worth doing everything we can to protect it.
Did you know?
- A newborn baby's brain grows almost 3 times in the course of its first year.
- Your brain uses 20% of your body's energy, but it makes up only 2% of your body's weight.
- Of all types of injury, those to the brain are among the most likely to result in death or permanent disability.
Protecting your brain is important. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over one million people are treated and released from an emergency department each year in the United States due to traumatic brain injury (TBI), injury that is caused by a blow or jolt to the head that disrupts the normal function of the brain. Nearly 50,000 die each year from TBI.
Jefferson County Public Health’s Health Care Program for Children with Special Needs (HCP) provides care coordination by public health nurses for children with special needs, including those with TBI. According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), in Colorado alone, about 162,000 children between the ages of 1-14 have special health care needs. This is approximately 17.6% of Colorado children within that age group. The HCP program is available to families throughout the state of Colorado.
Join JCPH during the week of March 15-21 in celebrating the wonders of the brain and learn more about ways to protect it.
Resources:
For more information on Jefferson County HCP Program, please call Public Health Nurse, Carolyn Kwerneland, RN, 303-239-7014.
