IMPROVING THE FUNCTIONAL COMMUNICATION ABILITY OF ADULTS WITH TBI

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13 IMPROVING STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT BY INCREASING SCHOOLFAMILY COMMUNICATION AND

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Improving the functional communication ability of adults with TBI

A randomised controlled trial of a new treatment to improve functional communication outcome for adults with traumatic brain injury

Chief Investigator: Dr Jacinta Douglas

Lead Organisation: La Trobe University

TAC Neurotrauma Funding: $343,802

Project Start Date: 1 June 2008 – 27 May 2013

Background: The majority of adults who sustain moderate or severe traumatic brain injury experience difficulties communicating effectively with family members, friends and people they encounter in their daily lives. These communication problems are a source of considerable ongoing stress and impact negatively on wellbeing for injured individuals. A new approach to functional communication intervention called CommCope-Intervention has been developed. This novel intervention focuses on communication-specific coping strategies that can be readily applied across all situations a person encounters on a daily basis. The intervention allows not only the people with brain injury to participate but also their everyday communication partners.

Aims: The aim of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of the CommCope-Intervention program.

Methods: Adults who had sustained severe brain injury at least 2 years previously participated in the study. They participated in 2 assessments before commencing treatment, 2 one-hour treatment sessions per week for 6 weeks and were followed up for 3 months after treatment had concluded. Treatment sessions were carried out in the participants’ homes and in their local communities with the involvement of family and support workers.

Results: Individuals who completed the CommCope-Intervention program showed significant gains in their ability to interact productively with others at home and in the community. They also reported less stress. Positive changes in communication and wellbeing were maintained up to 3 months after treatment and participants reported that they found their engagement with the program both beneficial and enjoyable.

Conclusions: Overall, these results indicate that this novel intervention focussed on communication-specific coping can produce significant improvement in the functional communication skills of adults who have substantial communication problems as a consequence of severe to very severe brain injury. Not only was significant improvement evident, but it was elicited in adults who sustained their injuries several years previously and the improvement was maintained for at least 3 months. Further, positive change in wellbeing reflected by significantly reduced stress levels was present at the end of the intervention and this reduced stress persisted 3 months after the intervention had concluded. CommCope-Intervention provides a promising and efficient means of reducing communication dysfunction and its negative consequences for people with brain injury. Further research with this program is underway.

Publications: (as at May 2013)

Douglas, J. & Mitchell, C. Measuring communication-specific coping: Development and evaluation of the Communication-specific Coping Scale (abstract). Brain Impairment, 2012;13(1):70.

Douglas, J., Drummond, M., & Cox, J. Improving the functional communication of adults with traumatic brain injury (abstract). Brain Injury. 2010;24(3):153.

Douglas, J. & Mitchell, C. Coping with communication breakdown following severe TBI (abstract). Brain Impairment. 2010;11(2): 213.

Presentations: (as at May 2013)

Douglas, J., Knox, L., Mitchell, C., & Bridge, H. Improving communication-specific coping after traumatic brain injury: Evaluation of a new treatment using single case experimental design. 10^th International Symposium on Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 2013, 8-9 July, Maastricht, The Netherlands.

Douglas, J. Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation Visiting Expert, Singapore Ministry of Health, 2012, 19-27 November, Singapore

Douglas, J. & Mitchell, C. Measuring communication-specific coping: Development and evaluation of the Communication-specific Coping Scale. 9^th International Symposium on Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 2012, 2-3 July, Bergen, Norway.

Mitchell, C. & Douglas, J. Coping with communication breakdown: A comparison between adults with severe TBI and healthy controls. The International Neuropsychological Society Mid-Year Meeting, 2011, 6-9 July, Auckland, New Zealand.

Douglas, J. & Mitchell, C. Coping with Communication Breakdown Following Severe Traumatic Brain Injury. 7^th International Symposium on Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 2010, July, Krakow, Poland.

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Tags: ability of, their ability, adults, functional, ability, improving, communication