Leading organizations and advocates in the field of brain injury came together to release a new joint statement aimed at improving how brain injuries are discussed and understood. The guidance document, titled Communicating about Brain Injury, was developed collaboratively by healthcare providers, researchers, and individuals with lived experience of brain injury.
The statement offers a unified definition of brain injury and its causes, emphasizing that brain injury can develop into a long-term chronic health condition and, in some cases, lead to disability. It also outlines 12 key considerations for communicating about brain injury. Among these, the authors note that the traditional classification system of mild, moderate, and severe brain injury is overly simplistic and does not reliably predict long-term outcomes or recovery paths—reflecting the field’s growing shift toward more nuanced and person-centered frameworks for describing brain injury.
“This joint statement represents a great collaboration between the leading brain injury organizations,” said Rick Willis, President and CEO of the Brain Injury Association of America. “By working together, we’ve created guidance that can help ensure more clear and consistent communication between people with brain injury, caregivers, researchers, and healthcare professionals.”
Importantly, the statement reinforces that people with brain injury should be viewed as whole individuals and be active participants in decisions about their care. It also highlights the dynamic nature of brain injury—acknowledging that cognitive, emotional, and physical effects can evolve over time, and that recovery is influenced by supportive relationships, meaningful engagement, and healthy lifestyle choices.
Amanda Rabinowitz, PhD, Director of the Brain Injury Neuropsychology Laboratory at Jefferson Moss Rehabilitation Research Institute, contributed feedback on the document as part of her service on the Traumatic Brain Injury Model System Knowledge Translation Committee and the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group Executive Committee. “This statement is an important step toward unifying how we talk about brain injury across research, clinical practice, and advocacy,” said Dr. Rabinowitz. “Research has now clearly shown that recovery trajectories after brain injury are highly variable and individual. When communicating with patients, loved ones, and the public, we should strive to be both forthright and compassionate—using language that acknowledges challenges while also conveying hope. The words we choose matter; they shape expectations and can either support or discourage recovery. Our goal should be to communicate in ways that are honest, hopeful, and never inadvertently demoralizing.”
The guidance was created by a diverse group of organizations, including the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine’s Brain Injury Interdisciplinary Special Interest Group, the Brain Injury Association of America and its Brain Injury Advisory Council, the National Association of State Head Injury Administrators, the North American Brain Injury Society, PINK Concussions, members of the former U.S. Brain Injury Alliance, and the TBI Model Systems.
To learn more or access the full joint statement, visit the Brain Injury Association of America’s website.