About

Karen McAvoy, PsyD is dually credentialed as a clinical and school psychologist. She practiced as a Pediatric Psychologist at Seattle and Denver Children’s Hospitals and as the Director of the Center for Concussion with Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children. She also practiced as a School Psychologist for 20 years serving as Coordinator of Mental Health, Coordinator of Manifestation Determinations and Coordinator of the Brain Injury Team at Cherry Creek School District. After 20 years on the frontlines in a school district, Dr McAvoy has served as a consultant to the Colorado Department of Education – providing trainings to multi-disciplinary school teams across the state of Colorado on the impact of brain injury and neuro-diversity on learning and behavior.

Dr. McAvoy is the author of REAP (Remove/Reduce* Educate*Adjust/Accommodate and Pace) – a community-based inter-disciplinary team approach to concussion management customized in 16+ states: www.REAPconcussion.com.

Dr. McAvoy continues to keep a foot each in the world of medicine and education: half-time she provides assessments, treatment and consultation to adults and children suffering from mild/moderate/severe brain injury at the Aasha Brain Clinic in Ft Collins, CO.  The other half of her time is spent routinely traveling the country providing training to schools on Return to Learn following brain injury.

Publications

• McAvoy, K. Haarbauer-Krupa, J. What schools need to know about the centers for disease control and prevention’s guideline on diagnosis/management of mild traumatic brain injury in children – a commentary. J School Health. 2019;89:941-944. DOI: 10.1111/josh.12834
• McAvoy, K, Eagan-Brown, B. & Halstead, M. Return to learn: Transitioning
to school and through ascending levels of academic support for students following a concussion. NeuroRehabilitation (2018). Volume 42, 325–330 325 DOI:10.3233/NRE-172381
• Contributor: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Report to Congress: The Management of Traumatic Brain Injury in Children, (2018). National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention. Atlanta, GA.
• Crawford, N., Hotchkiss, H. & McAvoy, K. Neuroeducational Evaluations – The School-Based Answer to Pediatric Neuropsychological Assessments. Brain Injury Professional (2017). Volume 14 (6), 10-14.
• Eagan-Brown, B., Oro, S. & McAvoy, K. School Nurses: Managing Student Concussions and Privacy Concerns. Brain Injury Professional (2017). Volume 14 (6), 28-30.
• Acute Concussion Management with Remove-Reduce/Educate/Adjust-Accommodate/Pace (REAP), Kirelik, S & McAvoy, K. (2016). Journal of Emergency Medicine, Vol. 50, (2), 320-324.
• Dettmer, J., Ettel, D., Glang, A., & McAvoy, K. Building statewide infrastructure for effective educational services for students with TBI: Promising practices and recommendations. The Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, (2014). Volume 29(3), 224-232.
• Hossler, P., McAvoy, K., Rossen, E.., Schoessler, S, Thompson, P. A Comprehensive Team Approach to Treating Concussions in Student Athletes, Principal’s Research Review (2014). Volume 9, Issue 3.
• Halstead, M.E., McAvoy, K., Devore, C. D., Carl, R., Lee, M., Logan, K., Council on Sports Medicine and Fitness and Council on School Health, American Academy of Pediatrics, Clinical Report, Returning to Learning Following a Concussion Journal of Pediatrics (2013). Volume 132 (5), 948-957.
• McAvoy, K., Return to Learning: Going Back to School Following a Concussion, National Association of School Psychologists Communique (2012). Volume 40, Number 6.
• McAvoy, K., Providing a Continuum of Care for Concussion using Existing Educational Frameworks. Brain Injury Professional (2011). Volume 9 (1), 26-27.
• Colorado Department of Education, Concussion Management Guidelines, January 2012 & revised April 2014 and Brain Injury Manual for Educators, January 2013 & revised May 2018.
• External Expert Reviewer/Contributor: CDC Heads Up to Schools: Know Your Concussion ABC’s, Returning to School After a Concussion: A Fact Sheet for School Professionals, Fall 2012.

Awards and Acknowledgements

• Invited Speaker on “Return to Learn” at the USA Swim Team, Sports Medicine Conference, Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, May 12, 2018
• National Collaborative on Children’s Brain Injury (NCCBI): Tasked by NCCBI to lead the 1st Consensus Paper on Return to Learn (using a Delphi Model). RTL Consensus was reached in 2 rounds of Delphi questionnaires and RTL statements are endorsed by 12 national organizations. Currently RTL Consensus Paper is in review for possible publication by Spring to Summer, 2018.
• Contributor: Guidelines on the Diagnosis and Management of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Among Children: Recommendations from the CDC. AMA Pediatr. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2018.2853 Published online September 4, 2018.
• Invited speaker on “Return to Learn” at the TBI Taskforce Congressional Briefing, Washington DC, March 16, 2016.
• Invited speaker on “Return to Learn” at the National Institute of Health Meeting, Washington, DC, October 14 & 15, 2016.
• Author/Contributor to the Colorado Department of Education – TBI Networking Team Steering Committee Member: www.COkidswithbraininjury.com