Improving Participation and Quality of Life in Individuals with Chronic Brain Injury and Their Care Partners

Research Summary

Shannon Juengst, Ph.D.

Dr. Juengst’s overarching research program aims to improve the lives of individuals with neurological disorders and their care partners. Most of her work focuses on Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), with secondary foci in stroke and care partners of adults with acquired and neurodegenerative conditions. Dr. Juengst seeks to develop, test, and implement effective methods for monitoring and improving emotional and behavioral problems that individuals with TBI experience as they live in the community through the following research areas:

• Developing more effective and efficient methods for following individuals long-term and implementing behavioral interventions to manage behavioral, cognitive, and emotional problems across the continuum of their lives.
• Investigating self-management interventions for care partners of adults with neurological disorders, including TBI, stroke, spinal cord injury, and Alzheimer’s disease to improve their health, well-being, and quality of life.
• Examining how to best leverage smartphone and other mobile technology to improve health outcomes, particularly for underserved individuals.
• Minimizing health disparities by including translation and cultural adaptation for Spanish-speaking individuals throughout all her research work.
  This multifaceted and patient-centered research program will improve access to care and promote evidence-based assessment and interventions for all individuals living in the community after TBI and for their care partners.

Illustrative overview of research program:

Current External Grant Funding

90DPTB0012-01-00, NIDILRR Bell (PI); Juengst (PI: Module) 10/01/17-09/30/22
North Texas Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems
To conduct innovative research to improve patient outcomes, participate in multi-site research with other TBIMS centers, and provide resources to patients and families.

1R03HD094445-01, NIH NICHD Juengst, Shannon (PI) 07/01/18-06/30/21
The Behavioral Assessment Screening Tool: Psychometric Validation and Mobile Health Tool Development
To use Rasch Measurement analyses to validate the BAST in adults with chronic TBI and to develop and pilot a short mHealth version of the BAST, paired with assessment of heart rate variability (HRV) for remote community-based neurobehavioral symptom monitoring.

Communities Foundation of Texas Juengst/Osborne (Co-PIs) 01/01/20-12/31/20
Translating and Adapting Problem Solving Training for Spanish-speaking Care Partners of Adults with ABI.
To culturally adapt and pilot test a Spanish-language version of Problem-Solving Training – “Descubriendo Soluciones Juntos” (DSJ) for community-dwelling care partners of adults with acquired brain injuries.

Top Ten Publications in the past 5 years

±Juengst SB, Myrga JM, Fann JR, Wagner AK. Cross-lagged panel analysis of depression and behavioral dysfunction in the first year after moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury. Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 29(3), 260-266, 2017.

±Juengst SB, Terhorst L, Dicianno BE, Niemeier JP, Wagner AK. Development and content validity of the Behavioral Assessment Screening Tool (BASTβ). Disability and Rehabilitation, 41(10), 1200-1206, 2019.

±Juengst SB, Terhorst L, Wagner AK. Factor structure of the Behavioral Assessment Screening Tool (BAST) in traumatic brain injury. Disability and Rehabilitation, 42(2):255-260, 2020.

±Juengst SB, Silva V, Goldin Y, Cicerone K, Lengenfelder J, Chiaravalloti N, Driver S, Mellick D, Dart G, Kew CL, Nabasny A, Bell KR. Care partner problem solving training (CP-PST) for care partners of adults with traumatic brain injury during inpatient rehabilitation: study protocol for a multisite, randomized, single-blind clinical feasibility trial. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 80, 9-15, 2019.

Higashi R, ±Juengst SB. Patient-centered measure development and Spanish validation exemplar. Health Literacy Research and Practice, 3(4): e243-e249, 2019.

±Juengst SB, Terhorst L, Kew CL, Wagner AK. Variability in daily self-reported emotional symptoms and fatigue measured over eight weeks in community dwelling individuals with traumatic brain injury. Brain Injury, [Epub ahead of print], 2019.

±Juengst SB, Osborne CL, Holavanahalli R, Silva V, Kew CL, Nabasny A, Bell K. Feasibility study of Problem Solving Training (PST) for care partners of adults with traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, burn injury, or stroke during the inpatient hospital stay. Archives of Rehabilitation Research & Clinical Translation, 2019.

±Juengst SB, *Royston AR, Huang I, *Wright B. Family leave and return-to-work experiences of physician mothers. JAMA Network Open, 2(10): e1913054, 2019.

±Juengst SB, *Nabasny A, Terhorst L. Cohort differences in neurobehavioral symptoms in chronic mild to severe traumatic brain injury. Frontiers in Neurology, 10, 2019. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2019.01210

Vega M, *Nabasny A, ±Juengst SB. “Descubriendo Soluciones Juntos” – An Argument for Adapting Problem-Solving Training for Latinx Care Partners after TBI. Rehabilitation Psychology, [Epub ahead of print], 2020.

±Indicates Corresponding or Senior Author; *Indicates trainee mentored to publication

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