The Role of Hope in Rehabilitation and Long-term Outcomes among patients with Comorbid Spinal Cord and Traumatic Brain Injuries.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) are two potentially devastating conditions alone; when they co-occur in an individual they can be doubly so. The role of hope in rehabilitating oneself and recovering emotionally is examined in this paper. More specifically, Snyder's Model of Hope (1991) is examined as a tool that can aid in the rehabilitative process and help treatment providers, their patients, and the families of patients keep hope alive during a time of physical and emotional upheaval. This paper further examines the roles of hope in a rehabilitation program at Craig Hospital, a private, non-profit hospital dedicated exclusively to the rehabilitation of SCIs and TBIs and designated as a TBI and SCI Model Systems Center.