ABSTRACT
A leading cause of mortality and long-term disability within the United States is Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), with an estimated 1.7 million related deaths, hospitalizations and emergency department visits annually (Frieden et al., 2006). At least 5.3 million Americans have long-term needs for assistance with activities of daily living as a result of TBI (Thurman et al., 1999). There are also many unaccounted for incidents of TBI that are managed outside of the emergency department or hospital, or who receive no care (Frieden et al., 2006), and TBI is a contributing factor to a third of all injury-related deaths in the US (Frieden et al., 2006). TBI also carries a heavy fi nancial burden, with associated direct and indirect medical costs estimated to be in the area of $60 billion in the US in the year 2000 (Frieden et al., 2006).
