By: Nathaniel Tok, Peak Associate
Dr. Tiffany O’Connor, SFU’s recent psychology alum and now a clinical neuropsychologist at Hamilton Health Sciences, has found a relationship between the precariously housed population in BC and high rates of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).
The Peak reached out to O’Connor to find out more.
“Compared to more affluent populations, the literature on TBI in precariously housed persons is limited,” O’Connor said. “We hoped to develop a comprehensive study of TBI in precariously housed persons to develop a better understanding of the rate of TBIs, what types of TBI events were occurring, and who was experiencing them.”
Precariously housed people, as defined in the research article, are “low-income tenants residing in substandard housing often as their only alternative to homelessness.”
According to the CDC, TBI is “an injury that affects how the brain works.” It is usually a result of physical damage to the brain.
O’Connor’s research took place between December 2016 and May 2018 and showed that TBI events were caused by a variety of events, but most often due to falls, assaults, and pedestrian/vehicle accidents, or sporting incidents. She speculates these occurrences could be due to poor living conditions, substance use, and mental and physical disabilities. Previous TBIs can also lead to future incidences. O’Connor also found “schizophrenia spectrum disorders resulted in lower likelihood of TBI.”
While speaking to SFU News, O’Connor said members of the community often experience conditions such as “social and occupational challenges.” In her interview with The Peak, she added the precariously housed population also face “cognitive impairments,” in addition to higher rates of TBI events. These various factors mean it is difficult to recover from TBI events.
O’Connor highlighted the need to engage in research and outreach with the population.
“Right now we are working to increase awareness of this TBI epidemic.” O’Connor said. “Individuals living in precarious housing would benefit from education on how common TBIs are, what the symptoms of TBIs are, and what they should do if they experience one.”
The team hopes education will help prevent the adverse effects of TBI in the population and are working to increase awareness of TBI events. Awareness among health care providers and screening of TBI events will be especially important as mitigation strategies, as it can enable earlier access to care.
The researchers plan to undertake an examination of how TBI events affect “cognitive and daily functioning.” From there, they can establish different recovery methods. .
“We as a society can build better understanding and compassion, and work towards better prevention and treatment efforts to improve the lives of those living in precarious housing,” said O’Connor.
The full research article is available online.
