How Your Brain Injury OT Skills Translate to Driver Rehabilitation

For many people who have brain injuries, getting back behind the wheel is more than just a way to get around. It’s a sign of independence and freedom.

As a Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS), you already know how important it is for your patients to be independent and realize just how much driving can be a big part of their daily lives. You may not realize, but your current skills make you the best person to help these people reach their goal through the growing field of driver rehabilitation.

Understanding the Patient Population

As a CBIS, you help people deal with problems from brain injuries such as concussions, head trauma, strokes, or diseases like Parkinson’s. These patients often have changes in their bodies, minds, and vision that make it difficult for them to do everyday tasks safely, like driving.

When reaction times are slower or patients have trouble remembering things or making sense of what they are seeing, it may seem to them like it’s impossible to drive. However, many of your patients will be able to drive again safely and with confidence. Driver rehabilitation makes this possible by providing structured evaluations and interventions to safely return people to this independent activity.

CBIS Skills and Overlap

As a CBIS, you have many skills that are transferable to driver rehabilitation. A lot of these skills you have when you treat patients after an accident can be used to help get people back in the driver’s seat.

You already assess memory, attention, judgment, and executive function, all of which are important for safe driving. Your work helping patients improve their coordination, strength, reaction time, and vision is similar to the functional focus of driver rehab. The same rules apply to getting someone back to driving and training to use new skills for everyday tasks or coming up with ways to help with cognitive processing.

Common Goals

The goal of both a certified brain injury and driver rehabilitation specialist is the same: to help people become as independent as possible while keeping safety in mind.

As an OT with CBIS credentials, you already make individualized treatment plans that help people get back to the things that are important to them after they have a brain injury. Driver rehab is just a more focused version of that work. Driver rehab specialists help clients get back the skills they need to drive on their own or learn how to safely drive a modified vehicle.

Combining your current skills with targeted driver rehab training can help your patients reach one of the most important milestones in their lives, which is getting back behind the wheel.

Training and Mentorship

Driver rehabilitation is a field that is growing rapidly, and there is an increasing need for OTs who have both the clinical knowledge and the compassion to help patients through the process.

Susie Touchinsky at Adaptive Mobility Services gives therapists like you the training and support they need to feel confident transitioning into this rewarding field. You’ll learn in a structured, hands-on environment, directly from a professional who has been through similar experiences to you.

Contact Us Now

If you work as a CBIS and want to take your career to new levels, you might want to think about becoming a driver rehabilitation specialist. You already have the base! Now it’s time to make a bigger difference.

Find out how Adaptive Mobility’s educational program can help you turn what you know about brain injuries into a new, exciting job. To find out more or set up a consultation, check out our courses at Adaptive Mobility Services today.