8 responses to “Concussion rehabilitation update and a free self-management concussion tool”

  1. Good information.
    Too bad there is so much duplication amongst some of the services

  2. excellent article,

    I am particularly interested in management for patients who are symptomatic for many months or years after their concussion – are more investigations, med trials other rehab measures relevant?

  3. Any guidance for increasing cognitive demands?

    Task for 30 mins then a rest period. Repeat if no Sx exacerbation….

    If all good increase when? 2 days? A week?

  4. Thank you for the responses. For Judith’s question, for clients who are experiencing prolonged symptoms for months or years after their concussion, prioritizing the management of sleep, mood and pain/headache is particularly important. Depending on the prolonged symptoms, this may entail medication trials if warranted and may involve further treatment from other members of the rehab team. For recommendations on the management of each symptom area, the ONF guidelines is an excellent tool: https://onf.org/3rd-edition-guidelines-for-concussion-mild-traumatic-brain-injury-and-persistent-symptoms/

    Regarding increasing cognitive demands, please see MyGuide’s section on thinking skills for more information: https://concussion.vch.ca/cognitive-function-thinking-skills
    It is recommended to gradually increase activities by frequency first, then duration, and lastly intensity. If working on a cognitively demanding task for 30 minutes (plus a brain break) is tolerable, this could be repeated. Once confident with the increased frequency, the length of task could be increased, and lastly increasing intensity or the amount of concentration it requires. Aiming to be in the “therapeutic zone” whereby activities are challenging but doable. For practical steps on gradually returning to activities and pacing: https://concussion.vch.ca/gradual-return-to-activities

  5. Hi there,
    This is fantastic to be able to have some of these resources… Particularly in the context of virtual capacities strengthened and highly utilized, I am wondering if patients outside of VCH can access this. Many small towns across BC have folks struggling with post concussive syndrome and accessing resources is a challenge. With online services what a ripe opportunity to refer patients and support them in self management. Please let me know if this program could evolve to support rural British Columbians and provide equitable access to services.
    Thanks
    Kurt Deschner
    Revelstoke

  6. Thank you for your question Kurt. Currently, individuals residing outside of the Vancouver Coastal Health region in rural areas have access the MyGuide Concussion website for online self-management resources to help facilitate their recovery. For clients to access the education and rehabilitation streams of the GFACS program they must be located within the VCH region – spanning from Vancouver to the Sea-to-sky and the Sunshine Coast areas. However, the hope is that other health authorities and concussion services throughout BC may also look to adopt a virtual model to better serve individuals in remote and rural areas.

  7. Hi – I attempted to access MyGuide using the link provided in both Explorer and Google – but it did not work. Just a heads up. Hopefully it gets sorted.

  8. Thank you for the heads up, Angela. We are sorry to hear that the link wasn’t working when you attempted to use it.
    The link (http://concussion.vch.ca/) is now working on both Explorer and Google Chrome, but the website does work best in Google Chrome.

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