Rising healthcare expenditure and more explicit rationing of healthcare resources is a central feature of healthcare systems globally. In Australia, reform efforts have targeted the high cost areas such as the public hospital system. This has increased the demands on professionals to reduce length of stay and complicated post-hospital referral of people with complex and severe injury. In the area of traumatic brain injury (TBI), pressures on existing rehabilitation resources and a changing healthcare environment, with greater emphasis on efficiency and evidence-based practice, confront professionals' efforts to provide equitable care. In this paper, some of the key issues important in understanding patterns of referral in TBI are presented. It is argued that referral decisions exemplify a negotiation of professional claims and value judgements that not only conceal the uncertainty in decision-making, but also more notably, reflect the lack of attention to equity in the broader politics of care. Case studies are used to illustrate these issues and to discuss the implications for equitable care in the contemporary healthcare environment in Australia. The paper concludes by outlining the challenges and opportunities in applying evidence-based decision-making in TBI and some future directions for attaining more equitable patterns of referral.

Community integration is often cited as the ultimate aim of rehabilitation. However, outcome studies show that following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), many people do not return to valued life roles or reach previous levels of integration within their community. More recent research, in association with extensive clinical experience, reveals significant variability in outcomes within this group. Although some people return to productive activity and maintain a network of family and friends, others lead lives characterised by boredom and loneliness. This paper has two aims. The first is to examine TBI community integration outcome literature and selected theoretical models. The second is to describe a Community Approach to Participation (CAP), an individualised and collaborative model of community-based practice, which endeavours to address the poor outcomes identified following TBI. The CAP will be illustrated in the detailed case study of Sarah.

Community-based rehabilitation for people with acquired brain injury (ABI) is largely driven by goals set in the course of rehabilitation by clients and service providers. A preliminary study investigating the perspectives and practice of experienced rehabilitation coordinators was undertaken to explore issues that influence goal-setting in community rehabilitation settings. Detailed interviews and subsequent rounds of clarification were conducted with six experienced rehabilitation coordinators. Key themes identified through inductive analysis include cognitive influences, other client influences, service provider influences and the client-service provider relationship in the goal-setting process. Based on the findings, a preliminary descriptive schema of goal-setting in a community-based rehabilitation service for people with acquired brain injury is suggested. Factors such as training, experience, and values of the rehabilitation coordinators are also discussed in terms of their influence on goal-setting. Some strategies to assist a person with ABI to identify and work towards achieving realistic goals are identified. Suggestions for enhancing community-based rehabilitation practices with people with ABI, and scope for future research are noted. This paper constitutes a general overview of goal-setting in community-based ABI rehabilitation.

The ABI Behaviour Consultancy (the Consultancy) is a community-based service specialising in the management of challenging behaviour following acquired brain injury (ABI). Although there are many accounts in the literature of behaviour management techniques, very few describe how to tailor and implement programs to work in nonspecialised community settings where a client's environment has little structure and few resources. The Consultancy is often called upon to manage situations where existing behaviour interventions have not been successful, often because of incorrect assumptions about the client with ABI or because of unrealistic expectations of the setting. The Consultancy has developed a six-stage framework for the management of challenging behaviours that includes site visit, crisis management, engagement, intervention, education, and ongoing review. Case examples are used to illustrate each of these stages.

Many individuals require long-term community-based support following acquired brain injury (ABI). However, very few studies have examined individuals' perceptions of these support needs. The present exploratory study examined individuals' perceptions of community-based support following severe ABI. Participants included eight individuals (aged 20–48 years) with severe ABI, seven relatives and three case managers. The individuals were receiving long-term specialised lifestyle support ranging from 3–70 hours per week. A structured interview with open and closed questions was developed to explore perceptions of individuals' support needs across the areas of personal and home-based activities, community-based activities, self-organisation and vocational activities and social and psychological well-being. The questions investigated whether support was needed, the importance of support, the sources of support, the effectiveness of support and the need for change. A comparison of the three respondent groups' perceptions of support indicated a general consensus that community-based activities were the most important and most effective area of support. When the issues raised by the three respondent groups were compared and contrasted two main themes emerged from the data, which were labelled “relationships” and “individual choice versus support needs”. These themes are discussed in relation to the provision of long-term community-based support services following ABI.

Transitional Living Programs (TLPs) have been a standard component of traumatic brain injury (TBI) rehabilitation services for over two decades. The twofold aim of this study was to describe a TLP service model, and to examine the efficacy of standardised TBI-specific outcome scales for TLPs. A consecutive series of 50 residents admitted to the TLP over an 18-month period were administered a number of outcome measures at both admission and discharge. Mean duration of PTA for the sample was 60 days and average length of stay was 7 weeks. Measures included the Sydney Psychosocial Reintegration Scale (SPRS), the Mayo-Portland Adaptability Inventory (MPAI), the Brain Injury Community Rehabilitation Outcome (BICRO) scales and the Assessment of Living Skills and Resources Scale (ALSAR). Results showed significant improvements in the global scores for the SPRS, MPAI and ALSAR from admission to discharge. In contrast, a number of the BICRO scales exhibited floor or ceiling effects. Correlational analysis found moderate to strong associations between the SPRS, MPAI and ALSAR across a number of functional domains. Results to date show promise in identifying measures that are able to detect change over the course of a TLP admission. The findings lay the foundation for ongoing research into the effectiveness of such programs.

The aim of this study was to examine the clinical practice of a community team that is one component of the statewide, government-funded, specialist Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program for New South Wales, Australia. The 467 clients served by the community team of the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Service at Liverpool Hospital, Sydney during the calendar year 2000 were identified and their use of clinical services described. A random sample of 50 clients from this group was studied in further detail, with specific reference to the type of therapy interventions they received. This was compared with the therapy interventions received 2 years later, in 2002. A total of 8046 occasions of service (OoS) were recorded for the 467 clients during 2000, with a median number of 8 OoS per client. All disciplines contributed to this number, with case managers providing the largest number of OoS (n = 2734). Between 65–75% of clients attended medical clinics and received services from case managers, with between 15–30% of clients receiving services from allied health disciplines. The random sample received a median of 9 OoS during 2000, and a median of 3 therapy interventions per client. Therapy interventions pertaining to living skills were addressed in 66% of the group, interpersonal relationships in 54%, and occupational activity in 44%. Although the community team continued to provide a comparable number of OoS in 2000 and 2002, 56% of the random sample had been discharged by 2002. There were significant group differences between those who were discharged and those who remained in the service. Additionally, for those who remained in the service, there was a significant reduction of OoS and therapy interventions between 2000 and 2002. The data were used to draw together a model of clinical practice of the community team.