{
  "id": 15809777,
  "title": "A champion for brain injury patients",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/20/a-champion-for-brain-injury-patients",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-20T21:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "MIT Technology Review",
    "slug": "mit-technology-review",
    "url": "https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/20/1145297/a-champion-for-brain-injury-patients/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Alissa Totman '13, a champion for brain injury patients, first connected with MIT BrainTrust as a sophomore. The student-run organization linked MIT undergraduates with people who had experienced brain injuries, providing both support and socialization. This early experience shaped Totman's career path. Today, she serves as a physician specializing in brain injury medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She treats adults with various brain-related conditions including head trauma, stroke, and brain tumors. In addition to her medical work, Totman is the founder of Synapse, a nonprofit organization she launched in 2016 while pursuing her master's degree in public health at Harvard. Synapse began as a group Totman and fellow medical student Jaclyn Konopka '14 started during their time at Stanford. The organization now has chapters at 28 universities across the country, a testament to Totman's dedication to providing resources for brain injury patients. Despite running Synapse full-time, Totman remains committed to the cause, recognizing the significant need for support and services in this area.",
  "summary": "Alissa Totman ’13 was a sophomore when she joined MIT BrainTrust, a student-run organization that connects Institute undergraduates and people with brain injuries for support and socializing. “That group was a great way to learn about the human experience of what people go through when they experience a brain injury,” she says. And it laid…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}