Services to support adults with acquired brain injury (ABI) and return to work goals are varied. In Queensland, Australia, return to work goals may be addressed through private or publicly funded rehabilitation services or through publicly funded employment programs. No set frameworks or processes are in place to guide clinicians in providing vocational rehabilitation to adults with ABI, and the extent to which services address clients’ vocational goals and/or provide vocational rehabilitation is unknown.

This qualitative study investigated the clinical practice and experiences of allied health rehabilitation clinicians (n = 34) to identify current practice in providing vocational rehabilitation to adults with ABI, including pathways and services; models, frameworks and tools; and recommendations for ideal services. Focus groups and online surveys were conducted, with data analysed via content analysis.

ABI vocational rehabilitation was inconsistently delivered within and across services in Queensland, with differences in access to services, aspects of vocational rehabilitation provided and timeframes for rehabilitation. Five key themes were identified regarding ABI vocational rehabilitation and service delivery in Queensland: Factors influencing ABI and return to work; Service provision; ABI vocational rehabilitation processes (including assessment tools and interventions); Service gaps; and Ideal ABI vocational rehabilitation services.

These findings can inform clinical practice and development, and current and future service delivery models for ABI vocational rehabilitation.

Sleep is essential for our overall health and wellbeing. Unfortunately, stroke often induces insomnia, which has been shown to impede rehabilitation and recovery of function. Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is the treatment of choice for insomnia in the general population and is efficacious both when delivered face-to-face or online. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate efficacy of blended CBT-I (eCBT-I) in five poststroke participants with insomnia according to DSM-5 criteria.

A randomized multiple baseline design was used to evaluate improvements in total sleep time, sleep onset latency, sleep efficiency, nocturnal awakenings and sleep quality. The intervention included six weeks of eCBT-I combined with two face-to-face sessions.

All participants completed the intervention. One participant stopped using the diary, while the other four completed it fully. All five sleep diary measures improved, significantly so for nocturnal awakenings. Moreover, after completion of the treatment, four out of five participants no longer fulfilled DSM-5 criteria for insomnia disorder

This is the first study to show that blended CBT-I is potentially effective in participants with post-stroke insomnia. The findings justify extension to a randomized controlled trial.

Decompressive craniectomy is part of the acute management of several neurosurgical illnesses, and is commonly followed by cranioplasty. Data are still scarce on the functional and cognitive outcomes following cranioplasty. We aim to evaluate these outcomes in patients who underwent cranioplasty following traumatic brain injury (TBI) or stroke.

In this prospective cohort, we assessed 1-month and 6-month neuropsychological and functional outcomes in TBI and stroke patients who underwent cranioplasty at a Brazilian tertiary center. The primary outcome was the change in the Digits Test at 1 and 6 months after cranioplasty. Repeated measures general linear models were employed to assess the patients' evolution and interactions with baseline characteristics. Effect size was estimated by the partial η2.

A total of 20 TBI and 14 stroke patients were included (mean age 42 ± 14 years; 52.9% male; average schooling 9.5 ± 3.8 years; 91.2% right-handed). We found significant improvements in the Digits Tests up to 6 months after cranioplasty (p = 0.004, partial η2 = 0.183), as well as in attention, episodic memory, verbal fluency, working memory, inhibitory control, visuoconstructive and visuospatial abilities (partial η2 0.106–0.305). We found no interaction between the cranioplasty effect and age, sex or schooling. Patients submitted to cranioplasty earlier (<1 year) after injury had better outcomes.

Cognitive and functional outcomes improved after cranioplasty following decompressive craniectomy for stroke or TBI. This effect was consistent regardless of age, sex, or education level and persisted after 6 months. Some degree of spontaneous improvement might have contributed to the results.

In Australia, people with disability continue to experience low employment rates (48%), compared to the national average (79%), and employment is even lower (30%) for people with acquired brain injury (ABI). This paper evaluates a pilot study of a new mainstream employment pathway following ABI, called Employment CoLab.

Employment CoLab was piloted across multiple industries using a mix of reasonable employer adjustments, insurance-funded supports and/or access to capacity-building supports. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with four stakeholders; (1) Employees with ABI (n = 5, age 31–49 years, time since injury M(R) = 11(4–26) years); (2) Employers/co-workers (n = 3); (3) Allied health professionals/vocational providers (n = 4); and (4) Injury insurance funders who hold portfolio responsibility for disability employment (n = 5). An explorative economic evaluation was also conducted to compare the cost to the funder for Employment CoLab compared to traditional employment pathways.

Employment CoLab offered a new approach for people with ABI to gain and sustain open employment. Four major themes were identified from participant interviews: valuing employment and diversity; barriers to mainstream employment; reflections on being employed; and being supported over time. The economic evaluation was unable to detect if the pathway was, or was not, less costly when compared to traditional employment pathways.

Employment CoLab is a person-centred collaborative approach which, together with effective social disability insurance approaches, has built new opportunities for inclusive mainstream economic participation following ABI.

Dementia, a slowly progressive disease, is poorly diagnosed. One reason is that it is difficult to use the screening tools. The six-item cognitive impairment test (6-CIT) is brief, with six items, and has a confirmed scoring system that can easily be used by an average individual. This review aimed to analyze the predictive validity of the 6-CIT including comparisons with other tools such as the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

Literature searches were performed on the MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and PsycArticles using the dementia and 6-CITas keywords. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 was applied to assess the risk of bias.

Seven studies with 6,831 participants that met the selection criteria were included. The pooled sensitivity of the 6-CIT analyzed in seven studies was 0.82 (95% CI 0.73–0.89), the pooled specificity was 0.87, and the summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curve was 0.90 (SE = 0.04). The diagnostic performance of the 6-CIT and MMSE was compared in three studies. The pooled sensitivity of the 6-CIT was 0.85, the pooled specificity was 0.91, and the sROC curve was 0.91, whereas the MMSE values were 0.70, 0.93, and 0.68, respectively.

This review presents evidence that the 6-CIT has excellent dementia screening performance and could be used as a potential alternative to the MMSE. The 6-CIT may provide an opportunity for early detection of dementia.

Individuals living in residential aged care facilities with cognitive decline are at risk of social isolation and decreased wellbeing. These risks may be exacerbated by decline in communication skills. There is growing awareness that group singing may improve sense of wellbeing for individuals with dementia. However, to date few studies have examined broader rehabilitative effects on skills such as communication of individuals with dementia.

To determine the feasibility and acceptability of the MuSic to Connect (MuSiCON) choir and language/communication assessment protocol in people with cognitive impairment living in non-high-care wards of a residential facility.

Six individuals with mild-moderate cognitive impairment participated (age range 55–91 years, five female, one male). A mixed method approach was used. Quantitative outcomes included attendance rates, quality of life and communication measures. The qualitative measure was a brief survey of experience completed by participants and carers post-intervention.

Overall, MuSiCON was perceived as positive and beneficial, with high attendance, perception of improved daily functioning and high therapeutic benefit without harmful effects. While there was no reliable change in communication skills over the course of the six-week intervention, most participants successfully engaged in the conversational task, suggesting it is a suitable and ecologically valid method for data collection

The MuSiCON protocol demonstrated feasibility and was well received by participants and staff at the residential facility. A co-design approach is recommended to improve upon feasibility, acceptability and validity of the assessment protocol prior to Phase II testing.

To examine Nigerian footballers’ knowledge and attitudes towards sport-related concussion (SRC) and associated contextual factors.

A cross-sectional study design was used with an online questionnaire distributed to Nigerian footballers affiliated with a registered team. The questionnaire included demographic information and the Rosenbaum Concussion Knowledge and Attitudes Survey (RoCKAS-ST). The concussion knowledge index (CKI, 0–25) and attitude index (CAI, 15–75) were calculated. The association between various contextual factors with “high” knowledge and attitude were determined.

A total of 331 participants completed the questionnaire from 10 football clubs. Mean CKI and CAI scores were 14.0 ± 3.0 (56.2 ± 13.2%) and 54.5 ± 9.4 (72.6 ± 12.5%), respectively, and the association between scores was considered large (r = 0.530; 28%). A small proportion (n = 25; 7.6%) of participants reported a previous diagnosis of an SRC, with a further 40 (12.1%) suspecting they have suffered SRC. Thirty-five participants (10.6%) reported sustaining a SRC but did not seek medical help. Results indicated that men were at 4.8 times greater odds of having a “high[er]” CKI than women, and that those with 5–10 years playing experience had lower odds of a “high” CKI than those with >10 years’ experience. Men had 7 times greater odds of having a “high” CAI than women.

The results of this study suggest that Nigerian footballers have a moderate level of SRC knowledge, satisfactory symptom recognition, and high SRC attitudes. Those working with Nigerian football may consider these findings when seeking strategies to improve concussion knowledge, potentially by improving attitudes and considering sex and playing experience.