BART FOUNDATION INC

The mission of The BART Foundation is to promote better outcomes for brain injury survivors by answering three questions – which alternative therapies are likely to work, where can they be found, and how can they be afforded?
The BART Foundation provides answers to these urgent questions in understandable terms, making accurate practical information about alternative therapies accessible to survivors, caregivers and health professionals. We are dedicated to helping brain injury survivors live more fulfilling, productive and joyful lives. Efforts to further our mission thus far include:
1- Our medical board has identified five alternative therapies for investigation as relatively safe and effective:
Craniosacral therapy (CST); Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT); Neurofeedback (NF); Omega-3 Fish Oils; Photobiomodulation (light therapies).
We continue to search the medical literature for emerging alternative therapies with substantial scientific evidence supporting both safety and efficacy. We understand “alternative” to mean outside of mainstream medical practice and not covered by insurance.
2- There is crying need for a reliable way to locate qualified credentialed practitioners of these alternative therapies in local communities, and the BART foundation has consulted thought leaders in each field to compile our Resource Guide. It is the most comprehensive, robust and useful resource of its kind. https://www.thebartfoundation.org/resources/
3- The Barlean’s Oils BART Foundation scholarship program is first of its kind: - making omega-3 oils available to low-income brain injury survivors at a steep discount. BART is exploring creative ways of making other alternative therapies more accessible and affordable.

1. We continue to assess emerging safe alternatives. Several are currently under review, including transcranio-magnetic stimulation, the POns Devise, and hypnosis. Our medical experts scour PubMed and other resources, then track the ongoing pre-clinical and clinical evidence to identify which therapies are safe and likely to be effective.
2. We communicate with thought-leaders and practitioners to explore ways to make safe alternatives more affordable. Our Barlean's Oil Discount for brain injury survivors resulted from these effort.
3. We reach out to VA, DOD, Tricare and other health care providers to encourage clinical trials of safe emerging alternatives. A recent example regards hypnosis as a means of improving working memory in BI survivors. The link below is to a recent seemingly well-designed Swedish study indicating that hypnosis may permit such improvements in working memory of TBI/ABI survivors. The supplemental material even details the exact hypnotic suggestions used. Certainly seems safe - if effective would be wonderful. https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/140/4/1100/2970094 We are corresponding with providers to undertake clinical trials. BART Foundation is an educational foundation with limited resources, not a research foundation. But we probably could provide a small seed grant (for an IRB or some other start-up costs). Would love to see more studies like this, preferably double-blind placebo studies.
4. We continue to compile lists of credentialed, qualified practitioners of several alternatives, so that those in need can find vetted practitioners in their service area.
5. To spread awareness of safe alternatives, we have launched an intensive on-line outreach program, including several videos of thought-leaders in the field: https://www.thebartfoundation.org/media/ BART board member and videographer Bob Fagan filmed Duffy Violante, LMT (cranio-sacral therapy), Dr. Michel Lewis (Omega-3 fish oils), Dr. William Culley (neurofeedback) and Dr. ‘Joe’ Feingold (HBOT), as well as Bart and Joel. He obtained outstanding results, releasing a short “case statement” video featuring Joel and Bart, followed by a series of four videos focusing on each individual therapy. Those will be followed later by four longer videos exploring each therapy in depth, for a total of nine pieces. Quite an achievement
6. Several new development initiates, including this year a planned giving and stock options have been instituted.

1- We have several physicians on our board who continue to guide our research.

2- We have established a strategic relationship with The Tidal Health Group, to maage our digital marketing initiatives. Our objective was to exponentially increase awareness of our mission among brain injury survivors, caregivers and donors. Tidal Health Group, led by BART board member Bryan Cush, was able to deliver exactly what we needed swiftly and efficiently. Results speak for themselves:
Bryan’s team broke down our sometimes arcane, dense, confusing technical material, into easy to follow, video-enhanced, beautifully presented manageable segments.
Our Facebook page increased followers and likes at ten times the usual rate. We hear from survivors and caregivers worldwide. The most popular inquiry is "where can I find an alternative therapist near me?" Our website's easy to use Therapies Tab most often can help them locate qualified vetted practitioners.

We began hearing from providers of alternative therapies eager to link efforts with ours and to contribute further to our website.

We saw a marked uptick in new donors through our PayPal portal.



3- We have an in-house videography team, headed by board member Bob Fagan. they will continue to produce first-rate educational materials.

4- Our founder and executive director, Joel Goldstein continues to write and speak widely on the Foundation's mission. He recently spoke to brain injury groups in Colorado, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Delaware, Maryland, Florida and New York. He is a regular contributor to Brainline.org, the premier source of information about Brain Injury. Goldstein's landmark book, No Stone Unturned (U of Nebraska Press, 2012) is on the shelves of over 750 college and university libraries in every country in the world that participates in the Worldcat: https://www.worldcat.org/title/no-stone-unturned-a-fathers-memoir-of-his-sons-encounter-with-traumatic-brain-injury/oclc/787843456

5- In addition to Guidestar, we are approved for donations by Facebook, AmazonSmile, Google. Also have set up giving options for donations of appreciated stocks, estate planning., etc.

1- Book sales - over 250 new college and universities added our book, No Stone Unturned, to their collections in 2019.
2- Utilization of the BART Foundation Barlean Oil scholarhsip, which puts Omega-3 fish oils into the hands of survivors who could not otherwise afford them. No exact data available from Barleans, but hear from scores of users directly, with very complementary remarks and thanks.
3- Number of followers of Foundation Facebook page and website - have more than doubled last year - to over 1900.
4- Number of inquiries from survivors and caregivers. Many email and private message inquires are followed up by phone contacts.
5- Number of donors and total donations. (up by over 45 percent in 2019).
6- Several articles published in Brainline.org, and presentations to brain injury groups throughout the country.
7- Produced four educational videos in 2019, featuring thought-leaders in several alternative therapies for brain injuries. Videos very widely viewed (over 40,000 views). More in the works.
8- In addition to the five alternative therapies we currently endorse, we have identified three additional therapies that are likely to merit our endorsement. They are currently under study.