The InTransition Program: Maintaining Continuity of Care through Transitions

Traumatic Brain Injury 101 Video Available Online

Proponency Office for Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PR&R)

The Proponency Office for Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PR&R) has published a new video, called "Introduction to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)." The video demonstrates the U.S. Army's commitment to detect, treat, and track Traumatic Brain Injuries, especially mild TBI, also known as concussion. To view it, click "More" (video is displayed on the bottom half of the page).

The most important tool for rehabilitation is education. The Proponency Office for Rehabilitation and Reintegration (PR&R) has worked closely with subject matter experts in the area of traumatic brain injury to produce these patient education tools. The content matter was originally developed by Womack Army Medical Center, located in Ft. Bragg, NC, and has been reviewed by clinicians and various healthcare personnel to ensure the most accurate and beneficial information is provided to our Soldiers.

These education tools cover exercises and techniques that patients can use to assist with their rehabilitation from injuries associated with TBI. In addition to instructions for patients to aid in their recovery, there are also supporting visual images. These tools are only to be used under the guidance of a health care provider.

•  In Theater Acute Concussion (Adobe PDF)
• Not for Acute Period Concussion (Adobe PDF)
• 10 Ways to Improve Your Memory (Adobe PDF)
• TBI and Mood Changes (Adobe PDF)
• Rehabilitation for Healthy Sleep (Adobe PDF)
•  Headache and Neck Pain (Adobe PDF)
•  Head Injury and Dizziness (Adobe PDF)
• Introduction to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) - VIDEO at http://www.armymedicine.army.mil/prr/edtraining.html

Intrepid Center Merges Art, Science for Brain Treatment

By Lisa Daniel
American Forces Press Service

BETHESDA, Md., June 28, 2010 – When the National Intrepid Center of Excellence opened its doors here last week, the sense of hope in reversing the rising tide of brain injuries and psychological illness in servicemembers was palpable.

From its warm design and family-friendly amenities to its best-in-the-world diagnostic and assessment equipment, the center boasts the convergence of art and science that officials hope will become the new normal in researching, diagnosing and treating traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.

As Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III said at the center’s June 24 dedication ceremony, the need for such a center could not be more pressing. Hundreds of thousands of servicemembers are believed to have suffered TBIs and PTSD during their service in Afghanistan and Iraq, and many go undiagnosed, suffering the “invisible wounds” of war without explanation.

The TBI Family Caregiver Panel's Results Updated April 14, 2010

Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs have approved the panel’s “Caregiver's Journey” and it has been added to the Panel’s TBI web site: The Journey Home - the CEMM Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Web Site: http://www.traumaticbraininjuryatoz.org/  

This site provides an informative and sensitive exploration of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), including information for patients, family members, and caregivers. Topics include types and symptoms of brain injury, TBI treatment and recovery, and helpful insights about the potential long-term effects of brain injury. Animation is used to help patients clearly understand the brain, and the results of injuries to different parts of the brain. Survivors and their caregivers share courageous stories about their own experiences, providing down-to-earth facts along with inspiration and hope.

Caregivers of family members or friends who have a TBI are encouraged to log-on to this site and go to: Caregiver's Journey for information on the important role caregivers play in TBI recovery and resources for caregiver support and self care strategies.

Get to Know the National Intrepid Center of Excellence for Psychological Health & Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE)

1. What does NICoE stand for?

NICoE stands for the National Intrepid Center of Excellence.

2. What is NICoE?

The NICoE is a newly established treatment planning and research facility designed to provide cutting edge treatment planning, diagnosis, research and education for military personnel and their families dealing with recurring mild TBI and psychological health conditions.

Living With TBI

Posted by Communications, DCoE on March 23, 2010 

Ninety percent of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are mild, and most people are able to resume their normal lives. However, some individuals with a mild TBI and those with moderate or severe TBI may have longer-lasting symptoms or life-long symptoms that interfere with daily life. Thankfully, help and treatment options such as community reintegration programs are available for individuals who have experienced a TBI. Living with TBI requires knowledge and work, so as you begin your journey, it might help to prioritize your goals. This means setting goals that you can achieve in the short-term and long-term. 

If you are a military member, you are at increased risk for sustaining a TBI compared to your civilian peers

Why?

• In general, young men between the ages of 18 to 24 are at the greatest risk for experiencing a TBI
• Operational and training activities can be dangerous
• Increasing deployment to areas where warriors are at risk for experiencing blast exposures

Experiencing a TBI can happen in garrison and even during activities you do for fun, such as climbing mountains, parachuting and riding your motorcycle. Here we have provided general facts about TBI that every service member, veteran and family member should know.

Having Trouble Adjusting To Home Life?  afterdeployment.org Launches Enhanced Website

March 5th marked a major refresh of afterdeployment.org. While the site’s essential mission to offer web-based tools targeting behavioral health issues remains the same, the site’s re-engineered architecture and content management technologies deliver wide-ranging content from diverse sources, all within a common user experience. A learning management system integrated into the new site supports the delivery of eLearning assessments and workshops that facilitate self-paced learning and behavior-change strategies.

“The need for online behavioral health tools, available 24/7 and accessible in the comfort of one’s home, has never been greater,” says Dr. Robert Ciulla, leader of the afterdeployment.org project and acting Division Chief for Population and Prevention Programs at the National Center for Telehealth and Technology (T2).

The new site, focused on the needs of the entire military community, showcases expanded content, easily accessed connections to real-time support, quick health tips, a ‘geolocator’ to find local providers, and updated graphics with banner links to core resources such as the Real Warriors Campaign.

The website will now offer continually refreshed material (health tips, daily quotes, and brain teasers); RSS feeds, podcasts, and links to Facebook and Twitter.

New DCoE Web Site Offers Specialized Content, New Features for Visitors

New DoD Center Helps with Psychological Health & Traumatic Brain Injury

Here is a link to the Interagency Brain Injury Task Force Report from January 2008: http://www.dcoe.health.mil/reports/TBITaskForceReportJanuary2008.pdf

Here is a link to the NIH Consensus Development Conference on TBI rehabilitation. Note that it was over 10 years ago - many of the recommendations for future directions still (unfortunately) stand:
http://consensus.nih.gov/1998/1998TraumaticBrainInjury109html.htm

Here is a Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) link to a nicely done presentation on the TBI Model Systems: http://www.dcoe.health.mil/reports/TBITaskForceReportJanuary2008.pdf

Traumatic Brain Injury Web Site

http://www.traumaticbraininjuryatoz.org/Home.aspx is a web site that provides an informative and sensitive exploration of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), including information for patients, family members, and caregivers. Topics include types and symptoms of brain injury, TBI treatment and recovery, and helpful insights about the potential long-term effects of brain injury. Animation is used to help patients clearly understand the brain, and the results of injuries to different parts of the brain. Survivors and their caregivers share courageous stories about their own experiences, providing down-to-earth facts along with inspiration and hope.

This site is a direct result of the congressionally directed TBI FAMILY CAREGIVER PANEL. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and the Defense Health Board sponsored this panel.  Jon Dodson served on this panel.

Click here to download document Traumatic Brain Injury: An Exploding Problem by Janice Arenofsky, a frequent contributor to VFW on medical issues

Click here to download document TBI: The Invisible Injury from the Brain Injury Association of America

Department of Labor 14 January 2009 Announcement on the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program

SUBJECT: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) 

The Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program would like to share the following resource from the U. S. Department of Labor (DOL):

The DOL has undertaken a project that focuses on the employment challenges of service members returning to the United States with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  The goal of the project is to educate employers and the workforce development system on TBI and PTSD as well as on accommodations they can make for these individuals.