Biopsychosocial factors of quality of life in individuals with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: a scoping review.

PURPOSE: Individuals with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) experience changes in their quality-of-life (QOL) post-injury. Given the vast literature that exists about QOL after TBI, a scoping review was performed to identify the different biopsychosocial factors that affect a person's QOL after a moderate to severe TBI. METHODS: A scoping review was conducted using the following electronic databases: MEDLINE, CINAHL, Embase, and PsycINFO. Terms relating to TBI and QOL were used. RESULTS: There were 7576 articles obtained from the databases, resulting in 535 full-text articles. Ultimately, 52 articles were extracted, which consisted of biopsychosocial QOL factors after TBI. The biopsychosocial factors of QOL after TBI included 19 biological factors (i.e., sex, TBI severity, cognition), 16 psychological factors (i.e., depression, self-efficacy, coping styles), and 19 social factors (i.e., employment, social participation, social support). Factors such as fatigue, self-awareness, transition, and discharge from hospitals are known issues in TBI literature but were minimally reported in studies in this review, identifying them as potential gaps in research. CONCLUSION: Identifying biopsychosocial factors relating to QOL after TBI can enable health services to develop targeted rehabilitation programs for individuals with TBI.

Clinician reports of self-awareness after traumatic brain injury: a retrospective chart review.

BACKGROUND: Impaired self-awareness (i.e., a lack of insight) is experienced by most individuals who have sustained a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). During the early recovery period post-injury, these individuals may not be able to recognize their abilities and limitations, hence, negatively impacting their daily life and function. Although there are assessments and interventions to improve self-awareness after TBI, little is known about how clinicians assess and address this impairment in an inpatient rehabilitation setting. OBJECTIVE: To examine how clinicians assess, report, and provide interventions for impaired self-awareness after TBI. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted on interdisciplinary rehabilitation clinician entries for individuals with TBI (n = 67) who received inpatient rehabilitation within a five-year period (2014-2019). A reflexive thematic analysis was used to identify themes pertaining to self-awareness. RESULTS: Three themes were generated to explore clinician responses to their clients' impaired self-awareness: 1) 'recalling and understanding' described clinician observations of client behaviors and expressions of self-awareness, 2) 'applying and analyzing' identified clinicians providing relevant tasks and advice to clients, and 3) 'evaluating and creating' described clinicians actively interacting with clients by providing feedback, guided prompts, and a follow-up plan. CONCLUSION: Clinicians produced varied responses to clients' impaired self-awareness after TBI. Findings may help to develop research priorities and integrated knowledge translation initiatives to increase evidence-based practice for impaired self-awareness after TBI.

Living in a reshaped reality: Exploring social participation and self-identity after TBI.

Individuals with a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) experience substantial changes in their life. This constructivist grounded theory study aimed to develop an explanatory model that explores the impact of changes in social participation and self-identity after sustaining a TBI. Sixteen participants with moderate to severe TBI (mean age = 49.8, 69% male) were recruited, and were on average 16.4 years post-injury (SD = 10.4). Data from semi-structured interviews were analysed thematically. An overarching theme of "living in a reshaped reality" was identified, which depicted how changes in social participation and self-identity influenced ongoing experiences with TBI. Three main themes were generated: (1) "there's nothing that's the same" highlighted the daily challenges individuals faced post-injury, (2) "rebuilding and restarting" described how individuals with TBI navigated through their unfamiliar reality, and (3) "embrace it and run with it" explored participants' reactions towards life with a TBI. An explanatory model was developed, consisting of the overarching theme ("living in a reshaped reality") with the three integrated themes. Future research and clinical practices can build on this understanding to develop programmes to help individuals address their needs in post-injury life.