CRPG

Fenix – Reconstruction of projects of active and professional life, after accident or illness that generate significant changes in functionality.

Holistic neuropsychological programs have been recommended as a practice standard during post-acute rehabilitation, to reduce cognitive and functional disability after moderate or severe brain injury (Cicerone, et al., 2011).

In 2001 we start the setting up in CRPG, a Holistic Neuropsychological Rehabilitation program for people who sustained a brain injury.  At that time, there was no structured response in Portugal after physical rehabilitation, therefore people with brain injury, where discharged from the hospital, without addressing psychological (cognitive, emotional and behavioral) and social (unemployment, isolation) consequences.

Elements of the program: multidisciplinary team; educational therapeutic community; psycho education; psychotherapy – to develop acceptance and learn strategies to achieve mood regulation; autonomy training skills, communication and interpersonal training skills and cognitive stimulation to compensate for the deficits. Although the program has a strong group component it is tailored, according to the individual needs assessed.

Between 2009 and 2011, in partnership with Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences – University of Porto, School of Health - Institute of Porto and Institute of Health Sciences - Portuguese Catholic University, we design and carried out a study to evaluate the efficacy of the Holistic Neuropsychological Rehabilitation program held in CRPG. The objective was to evaluate the impacts on the Rehabilitation program with multidomain measures: quality of life, cognitive functioning, autonomy, emotion stability and brain activation with resource to functional magnetic resonance.

The results of this research enabled empirical evidence to be added in relation to the positive impacts of Rehabilitation; namely improvements in quality of life, autonomy and emotional stability. Additionally, results showed an improvement in working memory and executive functioning. These gains were perceived by the client himself, his family and the technical team. Also, the changes verified in the pattern of brain activation after rehabilitation, suggest an increase brain efficiency following participation in the rehabilitation.  In December 2013 IEFP - Employment and Vocational Training Institute (Governmental Entity) set up a national working group to define a vocational rehabilitation methodology for people with acquired brain injury. CRPG’s rehabilitation program, being a program with evidence of results, served as a model to be followed for creating a national response to this need. CRPG was responsible for the technical training of professionals and transfer of competences to 3 more teams to implement this program in the south, center and north of the country. The first phase of the pilot (June 2014 until November 2017) project is already implemented and has given rise to a specific financing measure for this population that is accessible to other institutions that want to respond with quality to this challenge.

The methodology is stabilized, and we deliver the program in group format (10 clients per group), 4 times a year in CRPG.

hospitals and physical rehabilitation Centers

Name : Neuropsychological Rehabilitation

Team Email : sandra.guerreiro@crpg.pt