The BART Foundation aims to promote better outcomes for brain injury survivors by answering three questions: Which alternative therapies are likely to work, where can they be found, and how can they be afforded? One way we fulfill our mission is by carefully monitoring global research and clinical trial outcomes and sharing that information in user-friendly language with the TBI/ABI community.
While cognitive rehabilitation is not listed as an alternative therapy that we officially support, it played an important part in Bart’s ongoing recovery following the injuries he sustained in the car crash. For over a year, he participated in a cognitive rehab program that helped him learn strategies to stay on-task, manage distractions, frustration, and anger issues, and to help him think more effectively.
This recent article from DVIDS (Defense Visual Information Distribution Service) by Sofia Desta of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center explores how cognitive strategies play a key role in TBI rehabilitation, recovery, and return to duty of service members—and, ultimately, their return to civilian life. Select highlights of the article are included below. The entire story is available on the DVIDS website.
Empowering Recovery: The Role of Cognitive Strategies in Rehabilitation from Traumatic Brain Injury
One potential consequence of traumatic brain injury (TBI) is its impact on cognitive functioning, leading to challenges in an individual’s capacity to concentrate, learn, and remember. In certain cases, TBI may affect regions of the brain responsible for various cognitive functions. Neuropsychological testing is employed as a means of detecting if cognitive dysfunction exists, and the level of impact on the patient. Through these assessments, healthcare professionals ascertain whether there are alterations in aspects such as attention, processing speed, executive function, memory, and language skills, all of which can be influenced by TBI.
“Cognitive rehabilitation is a complex collection of techniques that are designed to enhance attention, strengthen problem-solving, and increase recall and processing speed,” says Evelyn Galvis, an SLP at the Intrepid Spirit Center at Eglin Air Force Base – one of 13 TBI and brain health sites that constitute the Defense Intrepid Network (DIN) for TBI and Brain Health. “Structured practice allows the patient to utilize, practice, and reinforce effective compensatory strategies to enhance memory function of increasing length and complexity. All interventions are aimed at enhancing overall cognitive functioning and neuroplasticity,” adds Galvis.
To address challenges in cognitive functions, NICoE provides a group class called Cognitive Strategies taught by an SLP and an occupational therapist (OT), as part of the center’s four-week Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). Started in 2020, this course is designed to promote cognitive functioning and health across various aspects of patients’ lives. Service members are taught encoding strategies such as mnemonic devices or note-taking techniques to help retain information.
Instructions on habit formation are also a critical part of cognitive rehabilitation. Given that service members spend only four to six weeks in IOPs within the DIN, it’s crucial for them to apply the acquired knowledge once they reintegrate into their daily routines.
In addition to compensatory strategy training, patients can use neuroplasticy-based brain-training programs to exercise their brain like their body. The Brain Fitness Center at NICoE offers programs that enhance cognitive rehabilitation and allow patients to implement strategies learned in therapy. The IOP patients have full access to the library of programs offered through the Brain Fitness Center.
Additionally, Eglin ISC implements community reintegration group activities such as fly-tying, glass sculpting, pottery wheel classes and salsa dancing. These group activities improve memory by challenging patients to recall steps, routines, patterns and following multi-step directions, making it a great mental exercise. Physical movement classes improve cardiovascular health, flexibility, coordination and muscle strength, reducing stress and boosting mood through the release of endorphins. “We implement a multi-modal approach to wellness and cognitive rehabilitation by co-treating with our music therapist Ms. Meire Palmer and art therapist Mr. Kevin D’Augustine,” adds Galvis. For service members who are also bilingual and get Foreign Language Proficiency Pay, Eglin provides interventions in Spanish to help maintain proficiency and mental flexibility.
To read the full article, visit the DVIDS website.
Guidestar Seal of Transparency
