Authors

  1. Brenner, Lisa PhD
  2. Selinger, Marilyn PhD
  3. Glazner, Judith E. MS

Article Content

Objective: To identify factors that may contribute to long-term durable medical equipment (DME) costs related to mobility for veterans with a history of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Design: Retrospective chart review pilot study. Setting: Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Eastern Colorado Health Care System. Participants: Eighteen veterans with a history of TBI who have received services at the VA for at least 10 years. Intervention: Not applicable. Main outcome measure: Paper and computer charts were reviewed for data regarding mobility (including changes in mobility status), brain injury-related factors (severity of injury, age at injury, and time since injury), and durable medical equipment costs. Results: Analysis revealed 3 distinct groups: (1) those with limited mobility and stable high DME costs, (2) those who maintained relatively unassisted mobility status and low DME costs, and (3) those whose mobility decreased and DME costs increased. Conclusions: Observations suggest that long-term DME costs secondary to ambulation status in this population may, in part, be related to functional mobility changes over time. With the goal of preserving mobility and decreasing costs in persons aging with brain injury, further examination of the characteristics of the third group may be warranted. Doing so may assist with both rapid identification of individuals with decreasing mobility and treatment planning. Moreover, exploration of rehabilitation maintenance programming for such individuals may be indicated.