“Nebraska Vocational Rehabilitation will implement brain injury resource training”

"In Nebraska, 6502 people were diagnosed in 1994-95 with brain injury as their primary diagnosis,” says Brain Injury Association Co-Executive Director Jan Kauffman. She got the information from a report by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Regulation and Licensure. “But only about 5% get the rehabilitation they need,” says association member, Linda Burkey.

Without learning necessary skills during rehabilitation, Keri Bennett of Nebraska Vocational Rehabilitation in Kearney says many people with brain injury “only achieve modest success in employment. . .due to an inability to integrate new information and learning into their lives.” Many people with brain injury quit their jobs out of frustration and embarrassment from having to repeatedly ask things they can’t remember, such as how to find the copier or the bathroom, says Kathy Moeller of Oregon. Moeller developed the BRAIN BOOK^® Life Management System during her own struggles after sustaining a brain injury in 1990. “I am passionate about the value of practical compensatory skills training because solid strategies are essential for people with brain injury to succeed at work,” she says. “Many of my peers could be working, too, if they were given the opportunity to learn how to compensate.”

The BRAIN BOOK^® System helps brain injury survivors manage issues such as memory loss, lack of organization and loss of emotional control. It goes beyond the scheduling of a day planner, with additional sections to write down specific details that deal with real-life issues.

To bring this resource to Nebraska, Bennett attended training to learn more about the BRAIN BOOK^® Life Management System and how to teach it to consumers. Moeller will come to Nebraska in April to share her expertise with Vocational Rehabilitation staff.

Keri Bennett (right), of Voc Rehab in Kearney, tells trainer Angie Gregg about an individual she met who returned to work by using the BRAIN BOOK^® Life Management System to address problems resulting from a brain injury. Bennett and Gregg will receive further training so they can teach brain injury survivors how to use this new resource.

You can contact Keri Bennett via e-mail at k_bennett@vocrehab.state.ne.us .

Reprinted with permission from State of Nebraska Vocational Rehabilitation Division.