Technology and brain injury: friend or foe?
When a person suffers a brain injury, family members often rush to find all possible ways to help the recovery process. Technology is such an important part of life these days that there are many people who see technology as the wave of the future for treating brain injury deficits, and many therapists would agree with them.
According to Quora.com, more than 500 new apps are released every day around the world. With each new application there is the possibility to live differently and learn something new. In the world of rehabilitation, new applications mean new ways for therapists to delve deeper into the world of technology to find different ways to help patients who have suffered a brain injury.
When looking for apps that can help with brain injury recovery, it’s important to remember a few key points:
- What is the purpose of the application?
- How difficult is the app to learn?
- Does the use have any cost?
- Are there different skill levels?
It is important to think about what a patient needs when looking for a specific application to help with brain injury recovery. For example, if a patient needs to learn to read, an application with many instructions would not be a good option. Finding an app with simple instructions, like focusing on completing words or completing sentences, would be a good option. There are many adult apps that will also help with the learning to read process, which may work well for people who are relearning those skills after a stroke or brain injury.
Apps that have complicated instructions or steps to start the program are generally not good for someone trying to work on cognitive skills. An app with two or three short address descriptions, or individual step-by-step instructions that can be viewed when using the app, may work better.
There are thousands of free applications available for different types of smartphones and tablets. With free apps, there may still be in-app charges that exist beyond the free portion of the download. It is important to read the details of the application before purchasing to ensure that you do not need a lot of money to play and participate.
The goal of an app when used as a therapeutic tool is to help someone improve their function in a specific area. Some apps offer difficulty levels, so when an area or level is reached, there is a next step to continue learning a task or practicing a skill. This leveled learning is useful when a patient wants to learn just one or two games, rather than having to go through multiple applications to find increasingly difficult tasks to complete.
With the purchase of any app, it’s important to give them a try – a free app is always a good option, and it’s a way to find interesting and fun ways to work on therapy goals without getting bored. Try different games, even if they don’t feel interesting, as you may be surprised at what you can learn and how much even simple games can improve skills that have been interrupted by a brain injury.