A bit about our story
We understand concussion from every angle. Athlete, patient, researcher, educator, parent – we've lived it, so we get it.
When a teammate weighs 600kg
In the mid 2000’s, our Founder, Dr Stephanie Adams, a then competitive equestrian athlete and rugby player, sustained her second concussion whilst working on her family’s hobby farm. Kicked in the chest and face by her horse, she required various medical interventions. Her recovery was complex, encompassing physical, mental, and emotional challenges, including rebuilding trust with her horse and coping with missing key competitions and social events.
Lessons from motor sports
A decade ago, Stephanie tackled a significant challenge: creating the first concussion education program for Motorsport UK drivers as part of her doctoral research - a high-risk sport with arguably a high tolerance for risk. This spawned a passion for raising the bar when it came to concussion education - designing programmes that led to improved knowledge and practice, and weren’t just a one-off event or box-ticking exercise.
From pitch to ward and back again
During her Neuropsychology postgraduate studies, Stephanie held an honorary hospital role supporting patients with acquired brain injuries (e.g. stroke, tumours). She facilitated exercise rehabilitation and social activities, observing the positive impact of engagement on recovery. This experience, working alongside medical professionals, solidified her appreciation for the brain's resilience and directly shaped ConcussED's educational approach.
It starts with school
For several years Stephanie worked as an educational assistant with school-aged children with learning disabilities and acquired brain injuries. Stephanie’s classroom experience has heavily informed how ConcussED works with teachers and schools, ensuring training and support tips are pragmatic and realistic, yet tied to the latest science and guidance on concussion. This approach of considering the needs, motivations, and reality for the client, is the foundation of ConcussED’s approach.
Founded through expertise
Our Founder, Dr Stephanie Adams, holds one of the only PhD’s in the world on concussion education.
Her work spans psychology, physical activity for health, and brain health. Stephanie is an Honorary Fellow in Sport & Brain Health at the University of Edinburgh, Sport & Wellbeing Advisor at Scottish Brain Sciences, Director and Founder here at ConcussED, and a concussion education consultant to sportscotland.
Stephanie is known for her leadership contributions to several global concussion education initiatives outside of the ConcussED portfolio, including the Sport and Exercise for Brain Health MOOC hosted on the FutureLearn platform, and the University of Calgary’s Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on concussion. Stephanie brings experience from teaching and leadership roles across university, business, school and sport settings.
She is the Co-Chair of the Scottish Concussion Advisory Group, which is responsible for the Scottish Sports Concussion Guidance, and she is a member of the SHRed Concussions Knowledge Translation Committee.
Stephanie’s additional professional memberships & qualifications include:
Associate Member of the Royal Society of Medicine (RSM)
Associate Member of the Physical Activity for Health Research Centre
Member of the British Psychological Society (BPS), Division of Sport & Exercise Psychology
Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA)
PhD specializing in concussion education (University of Edinburgh; Principals Career & Edinburgh Global Scholarships)
MSc Human Cognitive Neuropsychology (Distinction; University of Edinburgh)
BSc (Hons) Psychology with a focus in neuro- and developmental psychology (Acadia University, Canada)