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Tidskrift

Sammanfattning

A traumatic brain injury can be defined as an injury caused by an external trauma - a condition which affect nearly 9,500 people in Norway every year. The most important causes related to traumatic brain injury are traffic accidents, violence, and sports accidents in which 10% of the injuries are so severe that long term and specialized rehabilitation is necessary. The average age of those victimized by traumatic brain injury is approx. 30 years. Brain injury rehabilitation concerns assessment measures of different areas of function. There is a range of country-specific interventions and treatments reflecting the different traditions of healthcare in Europe. The injury profile is often complex, and it may thus be difficult to evaluate the effect of the treatment. To match this diversity of treatment modalities, a wide range of outcome measures are used to evaluate the efficacy of intervention or treatment. Standardized outcome measures can be used to chart areas of attention in regard to individualized treatment, patient prognosis, and effect of treatment. Use of these measures may lead to the establishment of a common language among experts and contribute to research and development. As such, standardized outcome measures are well established internationally, but practical matters concerning organisation and utility in the everyday clinic are not so well documented. Do these measures in fact reflect a correct image of the clinic? Are they too demanding on resources in a busy everyday clinic? There is a need for a national standard for a group of valid outcome measures in rehabilitation medicine. The purpose of this article is to discuss the utility and benefits of implementing standardized outcome measures in clinical rehabilitation practice.

MeSH