Hope in the rehabilitation of people with acquired brain injury 

When people experience an acquired brain injury, their lives are often abruptly and profoundly altered, and for many, rehabilitation becomes a necessity. In Denmark, rehabilitation efforts strive to be holistic, coherent, and goal-oriented, with a strong emphasis on a person-centred approach. While person-centred approaches are not new within the field of rehabilitation, a notable development in the latest edition of the White Paper on Rehabilitation is the explicit mentioning of the word hope. Hope is now proposed as a foundational principle that should underpin all rehabilitation activities. However, as the White Paper is generic, the task of operationalising hope within specific rehabilitation domains is delegated to practice-based environments.

This PhD project explores the concept of hope within a rehabilitation context for adults living with acquired brain injury. The investigation is conducted through three distinct perspectives: the existing literature, the lived experiences of people with acquired brain injury, and the insights of rehabilitation professionals working in brain injury rehabilitation. The dissertation aims to contribute empirically to the field, to further develop the analytical concept of practices of hope, and to propose a framework for the competencies and qualities required of rehabilitation professionals when engaging with hope and hopelessness in clinical practice.

By operationalizing hope as an active element in rehabilitation practice, the findings of this research contribute to an expanded understanding (and conceptualization) of hope within the field of brain injury rehabilitation. The project provides a framework for identifying the qualities and competencies that rehabilitation professionals require to respond sensitively to hope and hopelessness. These insights can inform the education of rehabilitation professionals, both in foundational training and continuing education, as well as contribute to the development of existing competency frameworks.

Håb i rehabiliteringen af mennesker med erhvervet hjerneskade

Når mennesker rammes af en erhvervet hjerneskade, ændres deres liv pludseligt og for mange er rehabilitering en nødvendighed. Rehabilitering i Danmark bestræber sig på at være helhedsorienteret, sammenhængende og målorienteret – og med den enkelte person i centrum. Det er som sådan ikke nyt, at der arbejdes personcentreret i rehabilitering. Det nye er, at der i den nye version af Hvidbog om rehabilitering nævnes ordet håb, som bør danne udgangspunkt for al aktivitet i rehabilitering. Hvidbog om rehabilitering er imidlertid generisk og arbejdet med at operationalisere håb indenfor hvert enkelt rehabiliteringsfelt lægger derfor ude i praksismiljøerne. 

I dette ph.d. projekt undersøges håb i en rehabiliteringskontekst for voksne med erhvervet hjerneskade. Dette gøres gennem tre perspektiver: Ifølge litteraturen, ifølge personer med erhvervet hjerneskade og ifølge de rehabiliteringsprofessionelle, som arbejder med hjerneskaderehabilitering. Ph.d. afhandlingen søger at give, dels et empirisk bidrag, dels en tilføjelse til det analytiske begreb ”practices of hope” og dels et bud på, hvilke kompetencer og kvaliteter der kræves af rehabiliteringsprofessionelle i arbejdet med håb og håbløshed. 

Ved at operationalisere håb som et aktivt element i rehabiliteringspraksis bidrager denne afhandlings resultater til en udvidelse af forståelsen (og begrebet) håb inden for hjerneskaderehabilitering. Projektet tilbyder en ramme for identificering af de kvaliteter og kompetencer, som rehabiliteringsprofessionelle behøver for at respondere sensitivt på håb og håbløshed. Indsigter, der kan informere uddannelsen af rehabiliteringsprofessionelle (såvel grunduddannelse som videreuddannelse) samt bidrage til en udvidelse af eksisterende kompetenceramme modeller.