Project Summary
Background: This study has shown that when acute rehabilitation uses real-life activities as part of treatment (contextualized treatment), patients with traumatic brain injury have better outcomes. However, only about 35 percent of treatment is provided using real-life activities. Real-life activities are sometimes difficult to use in treatment, but therapists and their leaders have some ideas on how to make it less difficult so that contextualized treatment can be used more often.
Proposed Solution to the Problem: The team at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (Columbus, Ohio) along with three other rehabilitation sites in Florida (Tampa VA), Indiana, and Lima, Ohio will be developing and testing a package of materials to inform other therapists and leaders about the treatment and how to most easily use it.
Objectives: The main objective will be to increase the awareness of rehabilitation team leaders and frontline therapists to the effects of treatment with real-life activities (contextualized treatment) and how they can use it in their setting. The project team will reach other therapists and leaders nationally to motivate and increase their ability to use the treatment, in the hopes that contextualized treatment will be used more often. The team expects that this will improve outcomes for patients with brain injury.
Activities:
- The stakeholder team will develop a package that informs other stakeholders about the treatment and how to use it most easily.
- The package will be tested with four rehabilitation team settings, and revised with feedback.
- The team will give the package to stakeholders nationally through online webinars and in-person presentations, using trusted sources.
- The team will continue to communicate with other stakeholders about contextualized treatment using social media.
Outcomes and Outputs (projected): The project team will produce a dissemination package that will increase knowledge, enthusiasm, and capability for use of contextualized treatment among therapists and team leaders at the participating institutions (85-100 stakeholders impacted) and about 1,800 therapists and 200 team leaders distributed nationally. Over the long term, the team aims to maintain interest in using contextualized treatment, which will be assessed by the number of visits to the web page. In the long term, the team also hopes to increase the use of contextualized treatment and improve the outcomes of patients.
Patient and Stakeholder Engagement Plan: The stakeholders will be therapists and team leaders. They will meet monthly and work online to:
- Develop a dissemination package tailored to their needs.
- Test the dissemination package with their team.
- Assist with reaching their colleagues nationally and with presenting the training.
- Continue to communicate with other stakeholders distributed nationally regarding experiences with contextualized treatment.
Project Collaborators: The collaborators include the Tampa VA, the Indiana University School of Medicine, Mercy Health St. Rita’s Medical Center, and CARF International.