Participation importance and satisfaction across the lifespan: A traumatic brain injury model systems study.

OBJECTIVE: In rehabilitation research and practice, participation is defined as involvement in life situations and most often measured as frequency of engaging in these life situations. This narrow measurement approach overlooks that individuals perceive importance of and satisfaction with participation in activities in various life areas differently. The purpose of this study was to determine differences in meaningful participation (perceived importance and satisfaction) after moderate to severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) across age groups and to identify predictors of participation satisfaction. METHOD: Secondary data analysis of a TBI Model Systems substudy, including the Participation Assessment with Recombined Tools-Subjective (PART-S) that rates participation importance and satisfaction in 11 life areas that we grouped into three domains (i.e., productivity, social relations, out-and-about). We identified differences across age groups (i.e., 16 to 24 years, 25 to 44 years, 45 to 64 years, and 65 + years) and predictors of participation satisfaction. RESULTS: Participation satisfaction in and importance of the 11 life areas varied across age groups. In all age groups, participants rated relationships as being of medium or high importance more often than other life areas. Older adults reported the highest participation satisfaction across life areas, despite having the lowest participation frequency. Consistent predictors of participation satisfaction were cognitive functioning and frequency of participation in the domain examined. CONCLUSION: Participation importance, satisfaction, and frequency are related, yet distinct, dimensions of participation that should all be measured to adequately evaluate meaningful participation. Future research should explore interventions across the lifespan that target modifiable predictors, like functional cognition and access to frequent participation in important life activities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Bilingual problem-solving training for caregivers of adults with dementia: A randomized, factorial-design protocol for the CaDeS trial.

OBJECTIVE: Caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) often experience debilitating caregiver burden and emotional distress. To address these negative emotional consequences of caregiving, we will test and refine a strategy training intervention - Problem-Solving Training (PST) - that promotes self-efficacy and reduces caregiver burden and depressive symptoms. Previous research supports efficacy of PST; however, we do not know exactly how many PST sessions are needed or if post-training "boosters" are required to maintain PST benefits. Additionally, we translated and culturally-adapted PST into "Descubriendo Soluciones Juntos" (DSJ), our novel intervention for Spanish-speaking caregivers. METHOD: In this 2 × 2 factorial design randomized controlled trial, we will test remotely-delivered PST/DSJ sessions for both English- and Spanish-speaking caregivers of persons with ADRD to determine the optimal number of PST/DSJ sessions and ongoing "booster" sessions needed to best help caregivers navigate their current and future needs. AIMS: 1) Compare the efficacy of three vs. six PST/DSJ sessions each with and without booster sessions for decreasing caregiver burden and depression and enhancing caregiver problem-solving; 2) Identify key factors associated with efficacy of PST/DSJ, including age, gender, primary language, relationship to care recipient, and uptake of the PST/DSJ strategy. RESULTS: These results will establish guidelines needed for an evidence-based, culturally-adapted, and implementable problem-solving intervention to reduce caregiver stress and burden and improve caregiver health and well-being. CONCLUSION: This work promotes inclusion of diverse and underserved populations and advances therapeutic behavioral interventions that improve the lives of caregivers of individuals with chronic conditions.

Use of mHealth Technology for Patient-Reported Outcomes in Community-Dwelling Adults with Acquired Brain Injuries: A Scoping Review.

The purpose of our scoping review was to describe the current use of mHealth technology for long-term assessment of patient-reported outcomes in community-dwelling individuals with acquired brain injury (ABI). Following PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a scoping review of literature meeting these criteria: (1) civilians or military veterans, all ages; (2) self-reported or caregiver-reported outcomes assessed via mobile device in the community (not exclusively clinic/hospital); (3) published in English; (4) published in 2015-2019. We searched Ovid MEDLINE(R) < 1946 to 16 August 2019, MEDLINE InProcess, EPub, Embase, and PsycINFO databases for articles. Thirteen manuscripts representing 12 distinct studies were organized by type of ABI [traumatic brain injury (TBI) and stroke] to extract outcomes, mHealth technology used, design, and inclusion of ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Outcomes included post-concussive, depressive, and affective symptoms, fatigue, daily activities, stroke risk factors, and cognitive exertion. Overall, collecting patient-reported outcomes via mHealth was feasible and acceptable in the chronic ABI population. Studies consistently showed advantage for using EMA despite variability in EMA timing/schedules. To ensure best clinical measurement, research on post-ABI outcomes should consider EMA designs (versus single time-point assessments) that provide the best timing schedules for their respective aims and outcomes and that leverage mHealth for data collection.