Brain Injury Rehabilitation Services (Inc.) program evaluation

Abstract

This study is a qualitative evaluation of a community based social service agency whose mandate is to provide services for persons living with the effects of head injury. Designed to describe program operations from the perspective of the stakeholder groups, the study was conducted over a nine month period. Brain Injury Rehabilitation Services (Inc.) is a community based, rehabilitative program for persons with a head injury. The program consists of an Interim Learning centre, a District Treatment Program and an Outreach component. BIRS attempts to provide support for individuals with a head injury. Individualized plans of service are developed, in part based on neuropsychological functional assessments traditionally available to survivors of head injury. Methods included a review of BIRS records, interviews, home visits and observations. The researcher’s work was guided by a set of research questions that were to be addressed with a purposive sampling of clients, their families and significant others, staff, board members, government officials, external agency personnel and agency personnel providing similar services in other parts of the province. Questions focused on determining "how" BIRS was operating vs determining outcome of intervention. The findings describe how unplanned change can affect internal and external