By Margaret A. Struchen, Monique R. Pappadis, Jason E. Ferguson, and Tresa M. Roebuck

A guide for survivors of moderate to severe brain injury is filled with useful information for adolescents, adults and families on the consequences of traumatic brain injuries. Information includes:

• What is a head injury?
• What is a traumatic brain injury (TBI)?
• How does injury to the brain happen?
• Why is my brain important?
• How serious was my injury?
• What problems may I have after a moderate-to-severe TBI?
• How long will my symptoms last?
• When should I seek medical help?
• Common misconceptions
• Where can I go to get help?

This guide answers many of the questions that survivors, families, friends, coworkers, and relatives will ask about traumatic brain injury. Using clear language and clever illustrations, this guide is helpful for families and survivors at any time or stage post injury.

Acknowledgments

2008 Baylor College of Medicine

This manual is sponsored by a grant from the National Institute on Disability and

Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department of Education for the Rehabilitation

Research and Training Center – Rehabilitation Interventions Following Traumatic Brain Injury (Grant No. H133B990014) and RRTC on Community Integration of Persons with TBI (Grant No. H133B031117) at TIRR Memorial Hermann.

Lash and Associates is distributing this publications via a free downloadable PDF files.

Users may print and download this publication and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/survivor-moderate-severe-tbi/

A Guide for Coping with Moderate to Severe TBI

By Margaret A. Struchen, Monique R. Pappadis, Jason E. Ferguson, and Tresa M. Roebuck

By Margaret A. Struchen, Ph.D. and Allison N. Clark, Ph.D.

The goal of this brain injury training manual is to improve the care that individuals with TBI receive in healthcare settings by improving the knowledge of social workers about acquired brain injury.

Despite the high incidence of TBI, information for social workers on working with clients with TBI has not been readily available. Unlike social workers in specialized brain injury services and rehabilitation programs, those working in general medical and rehabilitation settings, in social service settings or community agencies have few training resources to learn about traumatic brain injury.

This manual helps fill this gap. It is a training resource for social workers on traumatic brain injury (TBI). The training manual will:

• help social workers feel more comfortable and confident in their clinical
• interactions with clients with brain injury
• increase knowledge regarding TBI
• outline skills that are useful in working with clients with TBI, and
• highlight resources that may be useful for clients with TBI and their family members.

Initial sections include general information about TBI and explain common terms used in brain injury treatment and recovery. The remainder of the manual uses a problem-focused model of practice to help social workers apply the information to their clinical practice.

Acknowledgments

© Baylor College of Medicine, 2007
This program is sponsored by a grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education, for the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Community Integration of Persons with Traumatic Brain Injury (Grant #: H133B031117) at TIRR Memorial Hermann.

Lash and Associates is distributing these publications via free downloadable PDF files.

Users may print and download this publication and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/tbi-training-social-work

Systematic Approach to Social Work Practice

By Margaret A. Struchen, Ph.D. and Allison N. Clark, Ph.D.

By Margaret A. Struchen, Tresa M. Roebuck, Monique R. Pappadis, and Jason E. Ferguson

Mild TBI is the most common type of traumatic brain injury. It is often called a concussion. This manual identifies symptoms of mild brain injury and describes the recovery process for adults and their families. Most people have symptoms for only a short time. Some have longer lasting effects from the brain injury. Knowing what to expect after a mild traumatic brain injury can be helpful for individuals and family members.

This manual on mild brain injury covers:

• What is a head injury?
• What is a traumatic brain injury (TBI)?
• How does injury to the brain happen?
• Why is my brain important?
• How serious was my injury?
• What problems may I have after a mild TBI?
• How long will my symptoms last?
• When should I seek medical help?
• Common misconceptions
• Where can I go to get help?

Acknowledgments

2008 Baylor College of Medicine This manual is sponsored by a grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), U.S. Department of Education for the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center – Rehabilitation Interventions Following Traumatic Brain Injury (Grant No. H133B990014) and RRTC on Community Integration of Persons with TBI (Grant No. H133B031117) at TIRR Memorial Hermann.

Lash and Associates is distributing this publications via free downloadable PDF files.  

Users may print and download publications and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/mild-tbi-concussion-symptoms/

I Have a What? A Guide for Coping with Mild TBI

By Margaret A. Struchen, Tresa M. Roebuck, Monique R. Pappadis, and Jason E. Ferguson

This manual answers your questions about what being a social peer mentor to a person with a traumatic brain injury is all about. It is a resource to help you come up with social activities and to help the person with a TBI make and keep friendships.

This manual covers:

• Description of the mentor’s role
• General information about brain injury
• Information about common problems experienced after brain injury with ideas on how to help
• Development of skills
• Ideas about social activities
• Worksheets to plan social activities
• Providing feedback about social communication
• Response to an emergency or problem situations
• Resources

By clearly describing what a mentor is and is not, readers gain a clear understanding of the ground rules for this relationship. The manual gives a clear description of the causes and consequences of a traumatic brain injury, including physical challenges, cognitive (thinking) changes, and changes in emotions and behaviors.  Written in language that lay persons can readily understand, it explains what happens when the brain is injured and how it may affect the person.  There are lists of suggestions for peer mentors to use with the individual that are practical for use at home and in the community.

Peer mentors can help individuals with TBI improve the skills that so often contribute to their loneliness and isolation.  The manual provides practical tips and step by step instructions on finding activities in the community, improving initiation and planning,  accessing transportation, making budgets, improving social communication skills and keeping track of mentoring activities.  Becoming a peer mentor can make a difference in the life of an individual with a TBI and the life of the mentor – this manual shows you how to do it!

Authors:

Margaret A. Struchen, Ph.D.
DeLisa West, Ph.D.
Niki Cannon
LaTricia Eckenrode
Patricia Backus, CCC-SLP
Shawn Jaffrey, CTRS
Melissa Gautreau, B.S.
Jerome S. Caroselli, Ph.D.
Lisa Keenan, Ph.D.

Baylor College of Medicine

This program is sponsored by a grant from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Dept. of Education, for the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Community Integration of Persons with Traumatic Brain Injury (Grant#: H133B031117).

Lash and Associates is distributing these publications via free downloadable PDF files. Users may print and download publications and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/brain-injury-guide/ 

Making Connections after Brain Injury: A Guide for Social Peer Mentors

By Margaret A. Struchen, Ph.D., DeLisa West, Ph.D., Niki Cannon, LaTricia Eckenrode, Patricia Backus, CCC-SLP, Shawn Jaffrey, CTRS, Melissa Gautreau, B.S., Jerome S. Caroselli, Ph.D. and Lisa Keenan, Ph.D.

So What’s Normal?

By Jason and Susannah Ferguson

This short but practical TBI booklet guides survivors, family members and caregivers toward a better understanding of brain injury. It gives an overview of the likely changes seen in daily life as well as expectations for the future. Even persons with cognitive and visual impairments will be able to use this booklet as it has user friendly language, large type, short checklists and colorful graphics.

Topics include:

• Expectations after TBI
• Behavioral/psychological changes
• Role changes
• Loss of social network  
• Memory problems
• Helpful tips

Lash and Associates is distributing these publications via free downloadable PDF files. Users may print and download publications and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/tbi-family-guide/  

The guide was developed by Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Community
Integration of Persons with Traumatic Brain Injury ©Memorial Hermann|TIRR, 2006
Houston, TX

Is this Normal?

By Jason and Susannah Ferguson

By Angelle M. Sander, Ph.D.

The entire family is affected when a spouse, parent, child, sibling or grandparent has a traumatic brain injury. This guide answers the questions commonly asked by families immediately after the injury and with the passage of time.

• What is a Traumatic Brain Injury?
• What Problems May Your Loved One Have After TBI and What Can You Do To Help?
• How Long Will These Problems Last?
• How Does Brain Injury Affect Family Members?
• Ways to Reduce Stress • Will My Family Ever Get Back to Normal?
• Where Can You Turn for Help?

Emotional trauma is the inevitable partner to the ph ysical trauma of a brain injury. Just as each brain injury is different, so is each family. However, researchers have learned that there are common questions, worries, and fears shared by many families. Yet, too often, families feel alone and isolated as they struggle to find information, locate others with similar experiences, and find someone to listen. As survivors of brain injuries and their families struggle to rebuild their lives, the needs for information and support become even more important.

Picking up the Pieces after TBI helps families do just that by explaining the consequences and effects of traumatic brain injury is clear language and examples that families will be able to readily understand. It not only explains the physical, cognitive (thinking), behavioral and emotional changes that can occur after a traumatic brain injury, it provides families with suggestions and strategies on “what to do”.

The authors recognize that the survivor is not the only person who needs care. The stress on caregivers can be enormous as families adjust their roles and responsibilities at home. There is a special chapter for families on reducing stress, improving problem solving skills, and overcoming negative thinking.

This practical approach to family education is evident throughout the manual. Whether you are a family in the early days of brain injury treatment or whether months or years have passed, this manual has information that will help you understand the complexity and challenges of living with brain injury.

Resources

The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR) and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas are nationally recognized leaders in scientific research on traumatic brain injury. By including individuals with TBI and family members or friends in all aspects of their research, training, and education, they recognize that their voices are important and their views provide critical insights into the meaning of survival. The publications produced by TIRR and Baylor College of Medicine provide information for families, paraprofessionals, healthcare professionals, and peers about the effects of traumatic brain injury and the process of rebuilding lives after brain injury.

Lash and Associates is distributing these publications via free downloadable PDF files. Users may print and download publications and are encouraged to inform others of this resource by referring them to http://www.lapublishing.com/blog/2009/family-guide-tbi-recovery/

Please be sure to cite the title and author for each publication whenever using this material on websites, newsletters or handouts in order to acknowledge the authors and their work. This request also applies to any partial use of material.

This work was funded by Grants #133A980058-01 (TBI Model Systems Collaborative Projects, Angelle M. Sander, Ph.D., Principal Investigator), H133470015 (TBI Model Systems, Walter M. High, Ph.D., Principal Investigator), and H133B990014 (Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Interventions for TBI, Walter M. High, Ph.D., Principal Investigator) from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education. Lash and Associates Publishing/Training, Inc. assists in the dissemination of this information by providing a PDF file for printing and distribution at no cost.

Picking up the Pieces after TBI: A Guide for Family Members
By Angelle M. Sander, Ph.D.

Concussion and the Classroom

By Phil Hossler, ATC

The National Athletic Trainers Association has given permission to distribute the article.

For a free PDF file download, simply click on the following title, Concussion Carryover in the Classroom by Phil Hossler.

This was originally published in the NATA News, July, 2007, pp. 32-35.

Recommended reading

Getting A-Head of Concussion

By Phil Hossler, ATC and Dr. Ron Savage, Ed.D.

This manual is an innovative approach to understanding the effects of concussion in school age children and adolescents. The authors identify all the people who may be involved with the student-athlete at home and in school.