ABSTRACT
The rehabilitation of patients sustaining traumatic brain injury is aimed at restoring proper psychosocial functioning. The latter is variously defined, depending on national and cultural backgrounds. I have found that, in Western countries, the return of the patient to work at a job commensurate with his or her residual capacity constitutes an objective, integrative, and measurable index of outcome that is well correlated with the patient's subjective evaluation of the quality of life as determined by the Rehabilitation Need and Status Scale (RNSS). I have used this criterion in outcome studies of traumatic brain-injured patients at the Loewenstein Rehabilitation Hospital since 1974. In the last few years, it has gained a central place in the planning of the rehabilitation program.
