Patterns of care, outcomes, and resource use for patients with complex neurobehaviour in a subacute brain injury rehabilitation in patient unit: a retrospective clinical audit
About the Project
People and organisations involved
Lead researcher: Shannon Galletly, Nurse Unit Manager, Brain Injury Rehabilitation Unit, Princess Alexandra Hospital
Clinical research partners:
Dr Grace Scott
Janelle Griffin
Hailey Simpson
Kiara Higgins
Leah Seiler
Catherine Bomford
Meg Ingram
Annerley Bates
Andreea Kelso
Dr Ryan Bell
Academic partners:
People with acquired brain injury (ABI) who experience complex neurobehavioural challenges can require highly specialised rehabilitation care. These behaviours may affect recovery, increase length of stay, create safety risks, and place significant demands on patients, families, and staff.
This Bright Sparks project will examine patterns of care, outcomes, and resource use for patients with complex neurobehaviour admitted to the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Unit (BIRU) at Princess Alexandra Hospital. Using a retrospective clinical audit of routinely collected hospital data from 2023 to 2026, the study will provide the first local evidence describing this high-needs patient group and current rehabilitation practices.
The project will also include a targeted review of national and international models of care and clinical guidelines for neurobehavioural rehabilitation.
Aim and objectives
This project aims to better understand the characteristics, management, and outcomes of patients with complex neurobehaviour in a subacute inpatient brain injury rehabilitation setting and will:
- Describe patient characteristics, behavioural incidents, and rehabilitation outcomes.
- Examine current care processes, interventions, and resource use.
- Identify patterns associated with more complex neurobehavioural presentations.
- Compare local practice with best-practice models of care and clinical guidelines.
- Identify gaps in care that could inform future service improvement and model-of-care development.
Expected outcomes and impact
The project will generate new evidence about neurobehavioural rehabilitation within an Australian inpatient rehabilitation service. Findings are expected to identify potentially modifiable patient, staff, and environmental factors associated with behavioural incidents and rehabilitation outcomes.
This work will support the future co-design of a structured, evidence-informed neurobehavioural model of care for BIRU. The longer-term goal is to improve patient safety, reduce unwarranted variation in care, support staff decision-making, and enhance rehabilitation pathways for people with complex neurobehavioural needs after brain injury.
The findings will also contribute to peer-reviewed publications, conference presentations, and future research and quality-improvement initiatives.
Project status and timeframe
Status: Commencing early August (ethics waiver under review)
Timeframe: 6 months
Key stages
- Establish audit criteria and complete literature review
- Extract and quality-check clinical data
- Analyse patterns of care and outcomes
- Integrate audit and literature review findings
- Prepare final report and dissemination outputs, including manuscript development
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Researchers
Advanced Occupational Therapist BIRU
Professor
