Session Host Name: David Loring Host's Role: Introduction
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation: The State of our Science and Practice
Summary Abstract:
The field of neuropsychological rehabilitation might be said to have come of age. Clinical guideline writers feel confident to write practice guidelines that are backed by evidence, prescribing interventions for managing impairments in a range of cognitive domains. But, in some domains, evidence for the efficacy of interventions is weak. Systematic reviewers and meta-analysts differ in their conclusions about the evidence, and vary in their willingness to make recommendations for practice. In this presentation I will discuss the current state of our evidence base and the methodologies we are using to evaluate the efficacy of our interventions. I will argue that we can make much better use of Single Case Experimental Design methodology to generate strong intervention efficacy evidence, highlighting some of key developments in this methodology in recent years. I will compare evidence for interventions that target restoration of cognitive functioning and those that use compensatory strategies to manage cognitive impairments. A major contribution that neuropsychology can make to rehabilitation science and practice is to leverage neuropsychological theory to understand impairments in cognitive functions and to drive the development, and implementation, of interventions. I will illustrate this with reference to our work on ‘neuropsychological nudges’ to support task management and their recent implementation in a reminding app designed to support individuals with brain injury to improve everyday functioning. A comprehensive formulation should always underpin neuropsychological rehabilitation practice and I will discuss ongoing work on an updated biopsychosocial formulation framework to guide neuropsychological assessment and rehabilitation. The value of formulation is to highlight the reciprocal relationship between cognitive, emotional, physical, social, and environmental factors and everyday functioning, and the importance of developing neuropsychologically-informed psychological therapies to address the wellbeing needs of people conditions that impact on neuropsychological function. To illustrate this, I will discuss our work on the development of a positive psychotherapy intervention for people with acquired brain injury.
The science and practice of neuropsychological rehabilitation are in a good place, with sufficient evidence to justify the endeavour. But there remains a need for innovative, practical interventions that are relevant to the lives of people with neuropsychological conditions. So, there is plenty of opportunity for the next generation of clinicians and researchers!
Number of Credit Hours: 1.0
Level of Instruction: Intermediate
Learning Objectives:
1. To be able to summarise the current evidence relating to interventions for cognitive impairment after brain injury
2. To be able to discuss the contribution of a range of methodologies to the evaluation of efficacy of neuropsychological interventions
3. To be able to discuss the use of neuropsychological theory in the development of interventions for cognitive impairment after brain injury
Presenter(s):
Jonathan Evans, PhD
University of Glasgow
Jon Evans is Professor of Clinical Neuropsychology at the University of Glasgow and honorary Consultant Clinical Psychologist with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. Jon was the first Clinical Director of the Oliver Zangwill Centre for Neuropsychological Rehabilitation in Ely, Cambridgeshire. He is now Programme Director for Clinical Neuropsychology training programmes at the University of Glasgow.
Jon has published more than 200 papers, books and book chapters in the field of cognitive neuropsychology, neuropsychological assessment and rehabilitation. He has received several awards from the British Psychological Society including the May Davidson Award (for clinical psychologists who have made an outstanding contribution to the development of clinical psychology within 10 years of qualification); the Barbara Wilson Lifetime Achievement Award (for outstanding contribution to clinical neuropsychology in the UK) and the M.B Shapiro award (a late career award for clinical psychologists who have achieved eminence in their field).
Jon has been a member of INS for more than 20 years. In 2015 he was elected to the Board of Directors, and took on the role of Chair of the International Liaison Committee (ILC), which is now the Global Engagement Committee (GEC). Jon was responsible for re-establishing the Charles Matthews Fund Workshop Program, which has seen educational workshops run in India, Chile, Argentina, Lithuania, Thailand, Botswana, the Philippines, and Grenada in recent years. In 2020 Jon was elected to the presidency of INS, with his presidency commencing in February 2023.
