Abstract for presentation at 6th World Congress on Brain Injury

The objective of this pilot study is to evaluate reliability and validity of the Hebrew translation of the Extended Functional Assessment measure: Functional Independence Measure + Functional Assessment Measure (FIM+FAM). An additional aim is to explore the applicability of the measure as an outcome measure for TBI patients in Israel.
Design: Retrospective study of patients with severe TBI studied upon admission and release from a post acute rehabilitation program and at approximately one year post injury.
Method: A convenience sample of 15 individuals with primary diagnosis of severe TBI who will consent to participate, will be assessed and interviewed approximately one year post injury. Main outcome measures: ratings of the 30 FIM +FAM items by two rehabilitation team members in order to test for inter-rater reliability. Cognitive ability will be assessed using the Loewenstien Occupational Therapy Cognitive Assessment (LOTCA) and the Modified six elements task of the Behavioural Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS). The Israeli Adults Assessment of Participation Questionnaire will provide a current participation profile. Data of these tests from the rehabilitation period of the 15 individuals will be collected from the medical files. Pearson correlation will be used in order to calculate inter-rater reliability and to analyze the correlation between FIM+FAM at admission and other tests a year post injury.
Results: The main findings will be presented.
The discussion will address the results found and elucidate the significance of using the Extended Functional Assessment measure to evaluate TBI outcome.