Abstract for presentation at 6th World Congress on Brain Injury

Studies have emphasized the importance of training health professionals to interact more with families, both during their interventions in critical care and in rehabilitation. In response to difficulties experienced by families and professionals in cases following the birth of a child with a disability, Pelchat (1989) developed an interdisciplinary Family Intervention Program, PRIFAM, in collaboration with families of these children.
Objectives: 1. To adapt this PRIFAM program to the needs of TBI clientele and to train health professionals to use it in their interventions. 2. To evaluate health professionals’ satisfaction with their training.
Method: With the collaboration of professionals in participating TBI clinical centres, the content of the PRIFAM intervention was adapted to both critical care and rehabilitation for this clientele in. Up-to-date educational technology was used to present a one-semester course over the internet. To encourage learning from direct interaction, participants (nurses, psychologists, special educators, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, social workers and clinical care co-ordinators, n=23). also had six face-to-face meetings. Teleconferencing was also an important tool. The training was based on a philosophy of partnership and a reflexive practise approach.
Results and Conclusion: The professionals felt better equipped to assist both the individuals and their families and thought that, through its collaborative approach, the PRIFAM program led to a sharing of responsibilities among the partners. In a previously validated questionnaire, the global score for satisfaction with the training was 82%. This attests to it being an excellent pedagogical resource.