Sex and Gender Effects in Traumatic Brain Injury: An Educational Trial For Patients and Caregivers

Abstract

<h3>Research Objectives</h3> To investigate the effectiveness of a one-time educational intervention on sex (i.e., biological attributes) and gender (i.e., norms, responsibilities) influences in traumatic brain injury (TBI) for patients and caregivers. <h3>Design</h3> Pilot pre-test/post-test randomized control-group study design. <h3>Setting</h3> Zoom and the University Health Network Research Electronic Data Capture application, of the KITE Research Institute, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute UHN, Ontario, Canada. <h3>Participants</h3> Sixteen individuals with TBI and caregivers (75% persons with TBI, 63% women). <h3>Interventions</h3> Participants were randomly allocated into passive, active or control groups. The passive group received 90-minutes of lecture delivering content, and the active group received the same content in a session structured to foster interaction and dialogue. The control group did not receive any education. All participants completed a pre- and post-test questionnaire measuring knowledge, attitude, and skill towards educational content. <h3>Main Outcome Measures</h3> Individual and group learning gains, and group-average normalized gain (aNG) for knowledge, attitude, and skill were calculated. An aNG of ≥ 30% substantiated the intervention's effectiveness. <h3>Results</h3> Both educational methods led to improvements in participants' scores on knowledge, attitude, and skill. The highest aNG was observed in the passive group (i.e., 100% for knowledge, 50% for attitude, 37% for skill). The active and control groups did not demonstrate an aNG of ≥ 30%, except for the attitude domain of the control group (∼33%). Positive feedback on content, organization, and utilization of the intervention was received. <h3>Conclusions</h3> A passive educational intervention on sex and gender in TBI may be beneficial for persons with TBI and caregivers. Further research is needed to explore the effects of active engagement on knowledge, attitude, and skill acquisition. <h3>Author(s) Disclosures</h3> No conflict to disclose.