Improving Orientation after Brain Injury

People often have trouble with orientation after an event, such as, a stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), or even just prolonged hospital stay. A person may be confused about the day of the week or time of day. They may not remember their name, address, or phone number. Improving orientation is SO important because we would all be a little agitated if we were struggling in this way. How can we improve orientation?

• Orient the person as soon as you walk in the room. Hi, (persons name). It’s Ms. Eileen, your speech therapist. Today is Wednesday, November 15th and it is 7:00 in the morning. We are going to do some speech language therapy in your home today in Media, Pennsylvania.

• Start a memory book and review daily. Essentials include the following:

  • Calendar

  • Written/visuals for Days of the Week and Months of the Year

  • Orientation sheet with the persons name, age, birthday, home address, family members, and names of therapists

  • Daily memory log with details of each day

  • Visual schedule for the day