Office Of Rehabilitation Research Articles

REHABILITATING the CARE in NURSING HOMES

F ILLINOIS WE ARE rehabilitating the care given in qu lif ed, licensed nursing homes to aged, chronically ill, and disabled patients. We are changing nursing homes from grim, gray places where patients lead static lives to homes in which patients are helped and encouraged to become as independent as their physical limits permit and to lead active and useful lives. This is the work of the Rehabilitation Education Service which became a permanent division of the Illinois Public Aid Commission in 1960. The service was initiated with a three-year pilot study conducted by the Commission, in cooperation with the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation of Peoria, and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. The project was the first of its kind to be initiated in the United

Total Rehabilitation of Epileptics—Gateway to Employment.

This book is based upon proceedings of an institute sponsored by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and National Epilepsy Leagure, and the University of Illinois School of Medicine. This was the first national institute on the total rehabilitation of epileptics and was conducted May 25 through May 27, 1960, in Chicago. The institute was for the specific purpose of developing informational materials for this publication. Every participant was selected by the planning committee as an authority in some phase of epilepsy, rehabilitation, or employment. Their papers are presented in the contents and are followed, in most instances, by discussions which drew upon a wide range of professional experience and allowed for expression of divergent thought as well as formulation of opinion and statements of agreement. This compendium of information is intended as a resource handbook for individuals, agencies, and organizations concerned with the

Erratum: Space Cooperation: U.S. Outlines Plan for United Nations Role

In the announcement on the National Rehabilitation Research-Training Center [ Science 134, 1351 (27 Oct. 1961)], the U.S. Public Health Service was erroneously credited with establishing the center. The center was established by the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare's Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Erratum: Space Cooperation: U.S. Outlines Plan for United Nations Role

In the announcement on the National Rehabilitation Research-Training Center [Science 134, 1351 (27 Oct. 1961)], the U.S. Public Health Service was erroneously credited with establishing the center. The center was established by the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare's Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.

THE PICNIC BASKET (a one-act play, 30 minutes, produced for the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, U. S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, by PLAYS FOR LIVING, a division of Family Service Association of America.)

THE PICNIC BASKET (a one-act play, 30 minutes, produced for the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, U. S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, by PLAYS FOR LIVING, a division of Family Service Association of America.)

PSYCHOLOGIC STUDIES IN NEUROLOGIC DISEASES—A REVIEW: PARKINSON'S DISEASE AND MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS*

Journal of the American Geriatrics SocietyVolume 9, Issue 10 p. 857-867 PSYCHOLOGIC STUDIES IN NEUROLOGIC DISEASES—A REVIEW: PARKINSON'S DISEASE AND MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS* MANUEL RIKLAN PH.D., MANUEL RIKLAN PH.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y. Chief Psychologist, St. Barnabas Hospital; Assistant Professor of Surgery (Clinical Psychology) New York University Post Graduate Medical School.Search for more papers by this authorERIC LEVITA Ph.D., ERIC LEVITA Ph.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y.Search for more papers by this authorLEONARD DILLER Ph.D., LEONARD DILLER Ph.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y. Coordinator of Training and Research in Psychology, Institute of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, New York University Medical Center.Search for more papers by this author MANUEL RIKLAN PH.D., MANUEL RIKLAN PH.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y. Chief Psychologist, St. Barnabas Hospital; Assistant Professor of Surgery (Clinical Psychology) New York University Post Graduate Medical School.Search for more papers by this authorERIC LEVITA Ph.D., ERIC LEVITA Ph.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y.Search for more papers by this authorLEONARD DILLER Ph.D., LEONARD DILLER Ph.D. Departments of Psychology and Neurosurgery, St. Barnabas Hospital for Chronic Diseases and New York University-Bellevue Medical Center, New York, N. Y. Coordinator of Training and Research in Psychology, Institute of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, New York University Medical Center.Search for more papers by this author First published: October 1961 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-5415.1961.tb00427.xCitations: 5 † This study was supported in part by the Sister Elizabeth Kenny Foundation; the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare; and the John A. Hartford Foundation. § Research Associate, Department of Psychology, St. Barnabas Hospital. Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume9, Issue10October 1961Pages 857-867 RelatedInformation

Head-Position Identification

A binaural recording of traffic sounds that reached an artificial head oriented in five different positions was presented to five subjects, each of whom responded under four different criteria. A Type II ROC curve for the five listeners was linear, P(Y|C)=0.60 P(Y|I)+0.44, and therefore consistent with a guessing model and inconsistent with the detection theory model, Further analysis of the results showed that performance (percent correct and information transmitted) was independent of criterion and did not change systematically over successive trials. (This work was supported by contract from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.)

Book Reviews : Rehabilitation Centers Today, by Henry Redkey. A report on 77 rehabilitation centers, prepared in co-operation with the Conference of Rehabilitation Centers, and published by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. 231 pp. u.s. GOVT. PRINTING OFFICE. Washington, 1959. $1

Book Reviews : Rehabilitation Centers Today, by Henry Redkey. A report on 77 rehabilitation centers, prepared in co-operation with the Conference of Rehabilitation Centers, and published by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. 231 pp. u.s. GOVT. PRINTING OFFICE. Washington, 1959. $1

Training Normal Hearing to Greater Usefulness: A Progress Report

There is current widespread interest in the use of hearing by blind individuals for the purpose of better orientation and better mobility. The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation is now supporting at least three hearing projects of major proportions. The most recent grant was made to C. W. Shilling Auditory Research Center, in Groton, Connecticut. They are equipped with the most modern instrumentation and, according to John Dupress, of the American Foundation for the Blind, they intend to do research which will lead to the identification of auditory cues used by skilled blind travelers. They also intend to design training material for the rehabilitation of blind persons who are not able to travel independently with a cane or a dog. Matching funds for this project have been provided by Seeing Eye, Inc., Morristown, New Jersey. A second project has been in progress about two years at the Industrial Home for the Blind, in Brooklyn, New York. Their objective is service to blind individuals who are hard of hearing. An excellent description of this project, written by Dr. Moe Bergman, the principal investigator, appeared in the December 1959 issue of the New Outlook.1 In the same issue of the New Outlook there appeared also an introduction to the hearing research project in progress at the Cleveland Society for the Blind.3 Our purpose is to develop methods for training normal hearing of blinded persons to greater usefulness. The following article describes the research further and presents some findings.—F.M.N.

Intelligibility of Natural and Distorted Speech Led through Ten Hearing Aids to Normal and to Deafened Individuals

Three female and two male voices were taped reading sentences which were re-recorded after being led through ten hearing aids with electroacoustic characteristics ranging from very good to poor. Normal ears and ears with varying types and degree of deafness were used. A latin square design assured proper comparisons among aids. Each listener repeated 100 colloquial sentences which were taped under a natural speaking condition, 100 under a nasal-plus-speeded condition, and 100 under an interrupted speech condition. Comparisons of normal and deafened groups in terms of percentage of words correctly understood show that the deafened group always did poorer even though corrective amplification was used. In most cases the hearing aids were ranked in similar orders by both groups within a speech category, but were ranked differently from the natural voice condition to the distorted conditions, especially by normals. The data have also been analyzed in terms of the minimum number of voices and types of speech distortion necessary to provide an adequate test battery for such purposes. Comparisons have been made between performance on each aid versus the many electroacoustic characteristics known for each aid. (This research is supported in part by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation.)

Instructing Nursing Home Personnel in Rehabilitation Techniques

IN ILLINOIS, as in most other States, complete and intensive rehabilitation services are limited to a, few urban areas, not-ably Chicago and Peoria. Elsewlhere in the State public and private nursing homes are expanding rapidly to care for chronically ill and disabled persons. Some of these persons at other times and under other circumstances, would have been hospital patients. But hospital care for such patients is frequently inappropriate, unavailable, or economically prohibitive, or no agencies are available to help them obtain hospital care. In many sections of Illinois hospital care is not available in the patient's community, and the local physician must rely upon the nursing home for inpatient care wlhen care at home cannot be provided. The shrinking size of private dwellings and the dwindling number of family members available to provide home care has further increased the use of commercial and county nursing homes for both private pay patients and recipienits of public assistance. Likewise, there is frequent evidence of the need for general hospitals to concern themselves more with measures to prevent the development of conditions which may require nursing home care after a hospital stay. The vocational rehabilitation of residents of nursing homes presents several significant problems. For instance, in the average Illinois community there is often little knowledge or appreciation of the philosophy and techniques of rehabilitation and the vocational potentials that may emerge from physical rehabilitation. Similarly, there is often little knowledge of the interests or services of the Federal Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and its counterparts in many of the States. The Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Forest Park Founidation of Peoria, through the Peoria Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and the Illinois Public Aid Commission joined forces to colnduct a 3-year research demonstration project, the rehabilitation education service. Begun in February 1957, the project, the first of its kind in the United States, proposed to look for the answers to these questions. * What a-re the rehabilitation needs among patients of a selected group of public and private nursing homes? * Can the existing staffs of these homes, in cooperation with local physicians and services in the local community, meet these needs if they receive adequate training in the philosophy and techniques of rehabilitation? * What kind of training can be developed to provide staffs with a knowledge of rehabilitation techniques and to increase their appreciation of the philosophy of physical and vocational rehabilitation? * What kinds of teaching materials can be developed that other agencies and schools can Mr. Hackley is coordinator of the rehabilitation education service of the Illinois Public Aid Commission, Peoria. The project is supported by grants from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, the Forest Park Foundation of Peoria, and the Illinois Public Aid CommLssion.

Jobs for the Homebound

OBS FOR THE HOMEBOUND is a 5year demonstration project in vocational rehabilitation operated by the home care department of Montefiore Hospital in New York City. The project is a direct outgrowth of the department's 11 years of experience in providing comprehensive medical care at home to chronically ill, medically indigent patients. The home care department provides treatment for 85 to 95 patients in the Bronx and upper Manhattan. The patients' illnesses are of such severity that they are unable to attend outpatient clinics and can be maintained at home only with close medical supervision. Care is provided by a medical-social team composed of physicians, social workers, nurses, recreation and art therapists, and physical therapists. Basic to the philosophy of the home care department is the belief that an indispensable component in medical treatment of the patient is helping him cope with the overwhelming emotional, social, and economic needs which arise with long-term illness. One of the most prevalent of these is the patient's need for meaningful activities appropriate to his physical condition. Without such activity the patient becomes apathetic and withdrawn, and he may suffer both medically and psychologically. From the inception of home care, services included a program of diversional activities, and this provided satisfactory occupation for the majority of patients. However, some patients seemed unable to derive satisfaction from leisure-time activities, and from them came a small but very steady stream of requests for real work. Unfortunately, the community had no facilities for the vocational rehabilitation of homebound patients who were as sick as those found in home care. A survey of rehabilitation facilities for homebound patients in other parts of the country showed that the type of patient seien in home care was consistently excluded from vocational rehabilitation services. It was decided that the home care patients' persistent requests for work could not be ignored and that investigation of the possibility of their engaging in economically productive activity was warranted. The jobs for the homebound project was initiated on March 1, 1956. The investigation was supported, in part, by a demonstration special project grant from the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The New York Chapter of the Arthritis and Rheumatism Miss Clarke is co-director, with George M. Warner, M.D., home care executive, of the jobs for the homebound project, department of home care, Montefiore Hospital, New York City.

Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

Office of Vocational Rehabilitation

Vermont Pilot Study on Industrial Homework

The Pilot Study here described is a direct outgrowth of the Workshop on Industrial Homework (representing thirty-one states) held in Washington, D. C., in March 1954, under the joint sponsorship of the American Foundation for the Blind, National Industries for the Blind, and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation. At the close of these sessions, the sponsoring agencies were asked to activate the findings of the workshop through a demonstration pilot study preferably in a rural location. It was also stipulated that such a study be integrated so as to serve all disabilities. At the request of the Department of Welfare, Division of Services for the Blind, and the Department of Education, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, of the State of Vermont, the AFB and NIB consented to sponsor the pilot study of industrial homework in that state, in conjunction with the OVR, and carried it through as here set forth.

Placement of rehabilitated patients.

It is our purpose to make a progress report on a joint undertaking entered into by the vocational rehabilitation service, Department of Education, commonwealth of Virginia, and the McGuire Veterans Administration Hospital, Richmond, Va., wherein the commonwealth detailed to McGuire a state vocational counselor on a full-time basis. Thus the full facilities of the state in the areas of vocational counseling and job placement were brought to the veteran at the earliest practical moment in his illness or after his injury. As it was determined that we were to make a pilot study, prior approval was obtained from the central office of the Veterans Administration and the office of vocational rehabilitation, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The office of vocational rehabilitation underwrote the salary of our counselor for a trial period as a part of its research program. The Veterans Administration has had in operation for some time a

The Doctor and Vocational Rehabilitation for Civilians in Massachusetts

AN OPPORTUNITY for members of the medical profession to take part in the vocational rehabilitation of handicapped civilians is presented to the private practitioner and specialist through a program administered by each state in partnership with the federal government. Recently, a pamphlet entitled The Doctor and Vocational Rehabilitation for Civilians was sent to all members of the American Medical Association, with a copy of a letter from Henry H. Kessler, M.D., consultant to the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Federal Security Agency, to inform every physician of the new services available for the assistance of handicapped patients. The Division of Vocational . . .

Amputation lessons from the war

This then was the contribution of the war toward the advance of knowledge concerning amputations that only by an integrated plan of action can the amputee be properly served. Such a program includes the five points of psychological preparation, surgery, after-care of stump, prothesis and training. The war experience points a lesson to those of us who in civilian life are responsible for the rehabilitation of the physically handicapped. In four years that produced 18,000 military amputees 120,000 civilians lost their limbs by accidental injuries and disease. For them no comprehensive program comparable to the military program exists; but if they are to be reassimilated into American life, they must be provided with those facilities. It is the hope of the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation that civilian centers will be established that will follow the satisfactory trend of military amputation centers.

Government Services

<h3>Appointments in Vocational Rehabilitation</h3> Clifton K. Himmelsbach, Surgeon, U. S. Public Health Service, and Frank F. Furstenberg, Surgeon, U. S. Public Health Service Reserve, have been appointed assistant regional representatives in the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, Federal Security Agency, effective in December. Dr. Himmelsbach will be assigned as assistant regional representative to the Kansas City, Mo., office and will provide assistance to the state vocational rehabilitation agencies in the organization and administration of the physical restoration phases of the vocational rehabilitation program. He will also serve as liaison with medical and hospital organizations and with other agencies interested in the vocational rehabilitation of disabled persons. Dr. Himmelsbach graduated at the University of Virginia Department of Medicine, Charlottesville, in 1931. He was clinical director of the U. S. Public Health Service Hospital, Lexington, Ky., from 1937 to 1939 and was director of research from 1939 to 1944. Dr. Himmelsbach is well