Effectiveness of a Driving Intervention on Safe Community Mobility for Returning Combat Veterans
Abstract
Veterans have an elevated crash risk post-deployment facing un-intentional injury or death. Our intervention addressing driving risks faced by Veterans post-deployment takes a multi-factorial approach. Addressing risk factors faced by veterans necessitates considering co-occurring effects of TBI/ PTSD/ other blast related injuries as well as the impact of deployment experiences/exposures on driving. Intervention provides critical information on the combat veterans driving fitness, impact of medical and psychological conditions on driving, and driving rehabilitation needs. Effective driving interventions have potential to reduce driving errors and impact real-world driving (violations, citations and crashes). Furthermore, promoting driving fitness may also have carryover effects supporting other key arenas of community re-integration such as family functioning, employment, societal participation, and satisfaction with life. Feasibility of our intervention was tested in prior work, and early data suggest efficacy of the OT-DI for combat veterans with mild TBI, PTSD, and/or orthopedic conditions. The efficacy study did have limitations including a small sample, attrition, and mostly male subjects. In our current effectiveness study we are seeking to expand our study sample, providing power for more detailed analyses of OT-DI outcomes include reduction of driving errors (measured via simulated driving evaluation), as well as real world outcomes (violations, citations, and crashes based on state department of motor vehicle records).
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1144238
Entities
People
- Sandra Winter
- Sherrilene Classen
Organizations
- University of Florida