New brain injury specialist certification available
Will provider meet your clients’ needs?
How many times have you been assured by the director of a home health agency that the agency was experienced in the care of brain-injured patients, only to find out they know nothing about brain injury? It happens all the time, but now you have an easy way to determine whether an agency, attendant care agency, or inpatient rehabilitation program has the appropriate personnel for your client’s special needs.
The Brain Injury Association in Washington, DC, formed the American Academy for the Certification of Brain Injury Specialists (AACBIS) in May 1996 to develop a certification program, which is nearly complete. The certification program, which should be available in early 1998, will eventually provide three levels of certification, representing progressive stages of knowledge and training. Those include:
• Level I, Basic. This is for direct care staff.
• Level II, Intermediate. This is for licensed professionals, such as nurses and case managers.
• Level III, Advanced. This is for program directors.
"We’re trying to establish a minimum acceptable standard for providing appropriate care to brain-injured patients," says J. David Seaton, executive director of Tangram Rehabilitation Network in San Marcus, TX, and a committee chair for the AACBIS.
"For me, this certification is a very important piece in selecting providers for clients," says LuRae Ahrendt, RN, CRRN, CCM, a nurse consultant with Ahrendt Rehabilitation in Norcross, GA. "If an individual receives the brain injury specialist certification, it says to me that they do know how to care for people with cognitive impairment. "It also tells me that the agency that employs those individuals has a higher standard of care and clients will need less case management and monitoring on my part as their case manager."
"It’s a step beyond an agency simply saying that they do brain injury. It shows that they’ve made a commitment to provide better care for brain injured patients," says Ahrendt.
"The field of brain injury has grown rapidly in the last two decades and has been largely unregulated," says Seaton. "It’s true for both licensed and nonlicensed direct care staff. In addition to establishing a minimum standard, we’re trying to promote continuing education and professional development in brain injury rehabilitation."
For more information, contact: AACBIS, Brain Injury Association, 1776 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Suite 100, Washington, DC 20036. Telephone: (202) 296-6443.
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