Brain Injury Recovery Program

Psychological counseling can occur in both individual and group settings with clients, or significant others. Goals of this therapy include:

• Increasing understanding about brain injury related difficulties
• Increasing the ability to cope with brain injury related difficulties
• Relieving symptoms of anxiety and depression related to brain injury
• Developing realistic future goals
• Promoting acceptance of altered capabilities
  

The school re-entry program, directed by a school psychologist, provides services to meet the special needs of children and adolescents with brain injuries. Services provided include:

• Remediation and improvement of cognitive, sensory/perceptual, physical/motor, and communication deficits
• Coordination between our therapist and school district services, such as homebound teaching
• Providing the student with skills (cognitive and social interactive) to facilitate return to school
• School re-entry facilitation and education of school personnel and special education services

Vocational Programs are developed to meet the specific needs of the individual clients. Services provided range from work readiness and avocational activities to actual return to work and subsequent follow-up. The overall goal of the vocational program is to maximize productive activity in community based settings. This is accomplished through individual and group sessions for:

• Vocational evaluation/counseling
• Job analysis
• Job seeking skills training
• Work readiness
• Job goal development
• Situational assessment
• Work re-entry assistance
• Job coaching

Every year brain injury disables thousands of Americans. Brain injury can result from and accident, stroke, ruptured aneurysm, or from diseases such as multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, or Alzheimer's disease. Regardless of its causes, brain injury may disrupt sensation, movement, or intellectual functions.

The Center for Neurorehabilitation Services, using interdisciplinary teamwork, aims to equip each client with the abilities and skills to have and function at the highest possible levels. A systematic evaluation process helps clarify and measure the client's potential for daily living, education, and work. The process also offers insight into the client's potential for rehabilitation.

The Center for Neurorehabilitation Services team designs comprehensive, individualized treatment plans based on this detailed evaluation process. The team -- in which the client, as well as the family, are integral members -- share one goal, the clients' rehabilitation and re-entry into the community

Many people with brain injuries experience difficulties in the areas of speech and language. This involves many aspects of communication which affect the person's ability to effectively and efficiently interact with others in their lives. Speech and language therapy will address these problems:

• Following auditory directions/conversations
• Reading
• Word finding
• Pronouncing words clearly
• Stuttering and fluency
• Organizing written/spoken sentences
• Abstract reasoning/problem solving
• Swallowing problems
• Social interactive language

Physical Therapy will help clients work toward the highest level of motor function possible. The Physical Therapist is skilled in evaluating muscle tone, muscle strength, coordination, balance, endurance, general mobility, equipment needs, and treating problems in these areas. Treatment for pain is provided as needed.

Biofeedback allows a client to exert conscious control over specific biological responses such as muscle tension, heart rate, or brain waves. The technique, using easily detected signals such as lights or tones, sensitizes a person to bodily change so that those changes can be controlled.For example, once trained, a person can recognize and decrease muscle tension in the neck and shoulders.

Clients of the Center for Neurorehabilitation Services have successfully used biofeedback to relieve epilepsy, sleep disorders, post-traumatic headaches, and muscular and skeletal problems In addition, biofeedback can play a constructive role in the management of stress or pain by giving clients a sense of control over their lives.

This treatment focus area is designed to remediate acquired cognitive deficits. Once a client's strengths and weaknesses have been determined through formal neuropsychological testing an individualized treatment program can begin to address the following:

• Attention/concentration
• Perception
• Memory
• Flexibility of thinking
• Speed of information processing
• Problem solving/reasoning
• Awareness of one's own particular brain injury
• Increasing frustration tolerance to brain injury related problems
• Learning compensatory strategies

Occupational Therapy will help the individual develop new skills to compensate for cognitive deficits. Therapy may occur in the clinic, home, work, or community settings. Goal areas may include the following:

• Activities of daily living - including adaptive driving
• Work and work-site analysis
• Movement and motor skills
• Sensory systems, including vision and balance
• Psychosocial skill

Our interdisciplinary team has provided neurorehabilitation sine the 1980's. In addition to a board certified neuropsychologist and clinical neurologist, the team consists of therapists who hold degrees in psychology, counseling, speech and language pathology, occupational therapy, vocation rehabilitation, social work, and physical therapy.