Using the Internet to Provide Peer Support
Support groups for individuals with brain injuries have been increasing in number over the past several years, yet participation is limited to a small percentage of those persons who sustain traumatic brain injuries. Many people find support group meetings inaccessible due to a variety of reasons, including distance, transportation, physical accessibility, time of day, and lack of same-circumstance peers. The increasing use and availability of the internet holds promise for overcoming some of these problems of accessibility for significant numbers of persons with brain injury. We originally proposed to study the effectiveness of peer support provided via a "chat room" format on the Internet. However, despite national promotion, we only identified a handful of individuals interested in participating in such a group. As a result, we conducted surveys to investigate the lack of apparent capability to participate and/or interest in Internet-based support groups. Surveys were conducted of persons receiving mailings from four state affiliates of the Brain Injury Association, as well as with persons participating in the ORTBIMS longitudinal study. Statistical and qualitative analysis are being applied to the survey results in an effort to determine current levels of use, applications of use, and barriers to use. These are being compared to national statistics in an attempt to determine if persons with a brain injury are able to access the technology as easily as the general public and, if not, what barriers need to be addressed to allow for full participation by persons with brain injury.