A Leader in the Brain Injury Field

Did you know that on an average day three people die of traumatic brain injury and another 23 are treated for brain injuries at New Jersey hospitals?  The Center Head Injuries at the JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute (JRI) in Edison, NJ continues to be a local, state and international leader in the area of traumatic brain injuries. We are one of the only brain injury programs in the nation that has a continuum of care that meets the needs of all levels of brain injury recovery.

Our continuum of care includes both inpatient and outpatient comprehensive rehabilitation services provided through our central New Jersey facilities. 

• JRI's acute inpatient Brain Injury Unit treats individuals with varying severity of injury is located at the main campus of Johnson Rehabilitation Institute
• The Extended Recovery Unit, a specialized brain injury subacute rehabilitation program, is located at Hartwyck at Oak Tree in Edison, NJ
• The Transitional Living Program, also at Oak Tree, is designed for people who no longer need the complete structure of an inpatient rehabilitation program but are not quite independent enough to manage without some level of assistance
   

Over the past few years we have learned that improvement from a traumatic brain injury takes many years. Our job is to stay in the forefront of rapid advances in medicine and technology, as is done through the program for spasticity management. As noted by Dr. Caroline McCagg, Medical Director of the Center for Head Injuries, "This may involve implantation of a pump that delivers the drug baclofen into the spinal canal and has been shown to improve patient comfort and mobility with minimal sedating effects." JRI currently has the largest spasticity clinic in New Jersey.

The JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute has been designated as a "Traumatic Brain Injury Model System of Care" -- one of 16 TBI Model System Centers in the U.S. to receive this award from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. This grant allows JRI to pursue research regarding innovative assessment and rehabilitation approaches for patients with traumatic brain injury, at different stages of recovery. As Dr. Keith Cicerone, Project Director of the JRI Traumatic Brain Injury Model System, notes, "The grant enables JRI to continue its research into state of the art and innovative rehabilitation methods, and complements our long-standing commitment to clinical excellence. We also have the chance to collaborate with existing Model System Centers throughout the whole country."

Among the current projects led by Dr. Joseph Giacino, Associate Director of Neuropsychology, is the assessment of effectiveness of the drug amantadine hydrochloride in promoting recovery of function following severe traumatic brain injury. "Many drugs are used to try to speed recovery of consciousness in individuals with severe brain injuries, but there is very little research available to help physicians select a drug that is effective in treating those with prolonged impairments of consciousness. This trial is expected to help fill that void."

The Center for Head Injuries was the focus of a Discovery Channel program, produced in England, titled "The Man Who Slept for Nineteen Years." Our program was also highlighted on the Oprah Winfrey Show and was the focus of the HBO film "COMA" which aired in 2007.  The center will also be highlighted in a piece on the History Channel in May 2009.