Mayo Clinic Traumatic Brain Injury Model System

MAYO CLINIC TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY (TBI)MODEL SYSTEM CENTER PROJECT SUMMARY Mayo Clinic's Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Model System Center (TBIMSC) will capitalize on longstanding collaborations with the Minnesota Brain Injury Alliance (MN BIA) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to test a new way of delivering medical and social services. This trial will address three chronic unmet needs of individuals with TBI and their families in the U.S.: 1) ineffective connection to specialized medical and community resources in the transition from hospital to community-based care and beyond; 2) limited access to TBI experts; 3) lack of primary care provider (PCP) knowledge about the complex needs of individuals with TBI. Target populations are: 1) individuals with TBI eligible for BIA provided Resource Facilitation (RF); 2) their families; and 3) their PCPs. TBIMSC medical-rehabilitation expertise will be integrated with RF services to deliver direct clinical care remotely using telemedicine and other information and communication technology. All target populations will be connected to each other and to TBIMSC clinicians to achieve the following anticipated outcomes in intervention group participants: 1) individuals with TBI will show greater improvement in participation in desired roles and quality of life; 2) their families will report reduced caregiver burden and distress; and 3) their PCPs will report increased self-efficacy and mastery in caring for individuals with TBI. Costs between usual care and intervention groups will be compared. The expected products of this research are establishing the program in the community and reporting its results; the long term goal is development of a replicable, sustainable, and cost effective model of telemedicine care that integrates TBIMS Centers and BIAs nationwide to improve outcome following TBI.