Over 10,000 Alabamians are impacted by traumatic brain injury (TBI) annually, and many will experience short and long-term cognitive, behavioral, and physical disabilities that impede their ability to return to home, school or work.
From June 29 – July 1, 15 Alabama residents met with Auburn University faculty and students to discover new methods, ideas, strategies and technologies for adjusting to life following a TBI. The camp was organized by the Alabama Head Injury Foundation (AHIF) whose mission is to help improve the quality of life for survivors of TBI and for their families. AHIF was founded by professionals and families in 1983 to increase public awareness of TBI and to stimulate the development of supportive services.
According to Scott Powell, executive director of AHIF and co-director of the camp, the Foundation offers therapy-based camp initiative through partnerships with local colleges and universities. “I see the everyday challenges and struggles faced by those across the state who are living with TBI. I see the faces of survival, of struggle, of faith and of perseverance of the patients, families who are continually working for recovery from TBI.
“These camps are designed to help survivors and caregivers learn new strategies and initiatives that can help those who might have stagnated in their recovery after several years have passed since their initial injury,” he added.
The Auburn camp was a multi-disciplinary approach which included teams from the departments of speech and hearing, audiology, social work, nursing, and kinesiology, working together with the participants individually and collectively. In addition to students from various disciplines in Auburn, occupational therapy students from Tuskegee University also participated in the camp. “Students involved in this camp will gain first-hand perspectives on how other units make recommendations and communicate with participants,” Powell said.
Each unit conducted brief assessments on each person attending the camp and shared their recommendations. As part of the camp, each participant received an Amazon Fire tablet and each unit made recommendations and loaded apps on to those tablets that corresponded with areas identified during the assessments. For example, if there were exercises or tools on a particular app to help with memory, cognition, problem solving, or speech and hearing loss, those apps were put on the individual's tablet to take home and work on.
"Each person has different needs," said Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Clinical Professor Laura Willis. "Having a camp like this allows each person to meet with multiple units in a short time span at no cost and receive recommendations to improve the ability to function and participate in daily life. Each camper is assigned one student and faculty member from each discipline who will be observing and communicating with each other throughout the process.”
“This camp is a unique initiative, focusing on TBI survivors who are 3+ years removed from their injury to jumpstart an additional commitment to improved adjustment to their injury for both the survivor and their caregiver,” said AUSON’s Assistant Clinical Professor Clay Young. “This camp was held in the school’s skills lab and the active learning classroom where nursing students conducted needs assessments and introduced an "at-home action plan" for the survivors. The students will incorporate an interdisciplinary approach. Students from all the participating disciplines will work together in their careers and this will allow an opportunity for them to learn from each other during their training.”
As a land-grant institution, AU and AUSON have a special legacy in serving the community beyond campus through Outreach. AUSON outreach has been partnering with communities, businesses, schools and government to improve and enhance quality of life across the state.
For information on AUSON Outreach, go to https://cws.auburn.edu/nursing/Home/Outreach
For more information on AHIF services, go to https://www.ahif.org/services.html
