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Learn about cognitive rehabilitation for veterans with TBI - understanding brain functions, impairments, and distinctive symptoms. Explore treatment approaches and the importance of a multidisciplinary team for effective therapy.
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Cognitive Rehabilitation for Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury Celeste Campbell, Psy. D. Megan Kelly, M.S. CCC-SLP Washington DC VA Medical Center
Mechanism of Injury Shock waves Shrapnel Acceleration/Impact
What is cognition? The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.
Parietal Lobe(Visual and Sensory Integration, Spatial Orientation, Academic Performance) Frontal Lobe (Executive Functions) Occipital Lobe(Vision and visual processing) Cerebellum (Balance, Muscle Coordination Temporal Lobe(Auditory Comprehension, Memory) Brain Stem (Involuntary processes - Respiration/ heart beat/blood pressure, Arousal/Alertness, Regulation of Appetite/Sleeping)
Frontal Lobe Executive Functions Planning/Organization Judgment Initiation Abstraction Emotional Regulation Self-Monitoring
The Limbic System The seat of emotion
Impairments Resulting From Brain Injury • Physical • Mobility • Coordination/balance/skilled motor activity • Vision/hearing • Cognitive • Attention • Memory/New learning • Conceptual skills/abstraction • Problem-solving/ Decision-making • Initiation • Self-Monitoring • Perceptual-Motor • Visual neglect/field cuts • Motor apraxia/sequencing • Motor speed
Impairments Resulting From Brain Injury • Communication • Articulation • Tangential speech • Word-finding • Perseveration/ hyperverbal • Confabulation • Reading comprehension • Writing • Behavior • Impulsivity/ disinhibition • Poor judgment • Poor motivation/ apathy/ lethargy • Emotional lability/ angry outbursts/ depression • Poor goal-setting and planning • Social • Withdrawal • Inability to learn from social interactions • Argumentative • Lack of empathy • Irresponsibility and lack of dependability
A Word About mTBI AND PTSD Overlapping Symptoms • Sleep disturbances/insomnia/fatigue • Irritability/anger/aggression • Problems thinking and remembering • Changes in personality/mood swings • Withdrawal from social, work, family activities • Hypersensitivity to noise
Distinctive Symptoms Concussion: • Headaches • Dizziness/vertigo/balance problems • Reduced alcohol tolerance • Sensitivity to light PTSD: • Flashback/ intrusive memories • Increased startle response • Hypervigilance, physiological arousal • Nightmares, night terrors “TBI does, however, have a unique physical origin that sets it apart from mental illness and is best addressed by a multidisciplinary approach that includes a sensitivity to the cognitive, emotional, and behavioral manifestations of brain trauma.” - Dr. Gerald Cross, Acting Principal Deputy Under Secretary For Health, Department Of Veterans Affairs, Before The Subcommittee On Health, House Committee On Veterans’ Affairs, Thursday, September 28, 2006
WHAT IS COGNITIVE REHABILITATION? • A systematic, functionally-oriented service of therapeutic cognitive activities based on an assessment and understanding of the person’s brain-behavior deficits -The Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine Remediationcompensation Working ON a deficit to correct it Working AROUND a deficit to accomplish a task
everyday activities that present difficulty: • Recalling appointments and daily tasks • Buying groceries • Cooking • Medication management • Money management • Withdrawing money from ATM • Social interactions • Academic and work re-entry • Managing emotions
Considerations when doing cognitive Rehabilitation • Cognitive functioning cannot be isolated • Cognition is complex, have to be creative in order for it to be successful • Engage the patient and their family or caregivers/dependents • Other factors affecting cognition • Age/developmental level • Health • Co-morbidities (substance abuse, PTSD, mental illness) • Emotional state/stressors • Training generalization - is not automatic • Communication • Pacing • Repetition • Concrete • Accessible • Structured
Treatment Approaches • Top-down & bottom-up rehabilitation • Higher order cognitive processes & more basic processes • Rehearsal & practice - Repetition • Ecological validity - Relevance to real life • Teamwork & partnering • Establish social support and feedback • Time outs, relaxation & affect regulation • Self-regulation for frustration with cognitive tasks • Reinforcement - Reward • Confidence building - Reality based
Team Approach • Veteran • Family/Friends/Supports • Neuropsychology/Psychology • Speech-Language Pathology • Occupational Therapy • Physiatry • Sleep medicine • Vision • Audiology • Recreation therapy • Driver’s rehabilitation • Legal advocacy • Vocational Rehabilitation • Substance abuse treatment • Complementary/alternative medicine
Therapy for Attention • Adapting Environment • Direct Attention Training • Metacognitive Approaches • Behavior Therapy • Pharmacological
EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS • Planning and organizing daily tasks • Planning a weekly menu and grocery list • Selecting class schedule around work schedule • Selecting day of the week for book club • Planning a weekend trip • Organizing a party
Therapy for Memory • Education: • Sleep hygiene • Routine • Nutrition • Exercise • Internal Strategies: • Mnemonics • Visualization • Association • Chunking Shirley Smith Jim Crew
Therapy for Memory • Paper calendar • Memory journal • Checklists • Medication pill box • Keychain voice recorder • Captain’s Log, Wii (Big Brain Academy, Nintendo DS) • GPS
There’s an App for That! • iCal • Taskmaster • Timer • Grocery List • Tripit • Med Reminder • PTSD Coach • Where’s My Droid? • Brain Trainer • Words Free
There’s an App for that! • Dragon Dictation Naturally Speaking software
There’s an App for that! • Evernote
Academic Reentry • Pomodoro, Flashcard Plus, Dictionary/ Thesaurus • ebooks/Kindle • Note-taking • Outlining templates • Active reading strategies • Organizing binder/ notebook • Study skills strategies
Vocational Reentry • Organization • External devices and software • Compensatory strategies • Recalling colleagues’ and clients’ names • Accommodations • Job coaches
“Independence Way” • Simulated grocery store, Metro stop, ATM • “Ambu Track” (grass, brick, and cobble stone surfaces)
GROUP THERAPY • Living with TBI • Problem Solving • Social Cognition • Speech/OT Cognitive • Academic • Geo-caching • Recreational Therapy/outings
SOCIAL COGNITION GROUP • Emphasizes dynamic, emotional factors rather than “cold cognition” • MODULES • Emotion Perception and Expression • Identity and Readjustment • Social Problem Solving • TECHNIQUES • Psychoeducational handouts • Videotaping and mirrors • Role plays • Real life examples • Homework activities • Field trips • Long-term projects
Telehealth • Convenient for the patient • Decreased anxiety • Decreased no-show rate • Adequate quality of signal • We want to get into patients’ homes
research • TRICARE does not pay for cognitive rehabilitation • ECRI Institute report concluded the evidence supporting cognitive rehabilitation is too inconclusive to justify coverage • “If one applies the standards of the ECRI report to other aspects of rehab, I believe that one must reach the conclusion that there is insufficient evidence to support the effectiveness of neurological management, psychiatric treatment, physical medicine interventions or pharmacologic treatments for traumatic brain injury” (Cicerone, 2011) • Institute of Medicine has launched it’s own study
research • “There is substantial evidence to support interventions for attention, memory, social communication skills, executive function, and for comprehensive-holistic neuropsychologic rehabilitation after TBI” (Cicerone, 2011) • PRACTICE STANDARDS (at least 1 class I study with class II or II evidence) • Meta cognitive strategy training is recommended for deficits in executive functioning after TBI including impairments of emotional self-regulation,…attention, neglect, and memory. • Specific interventions for functional communication deficits, including pragmatic conversational skills, are recommended for social communication skills after TBI. • Memory strategy training is recommended for mild memory impairments from TBI, including the use of internalized strategies and external memory compensations.
Take Home Points • Anchor treatment in goals that are important to the patient • Focus on a team based approach • Do not underestimate the importance of including friends, family, and caregivers in treatment • Remember the impact of personal, emotional and social factors on cognitive functioning • Compensatory strategies and devices must be individually configured to the patients’ needs • Be creative! • Be responsive to new developments in medicine and technology • Continued research is imperative!