Resources

Technical Assistance

Developing a Mentoring Partnership Program

A growing body of literature validates the benefits of peer support for families facing medical crises; however, no such model for individuals with TBI or their families has previously been implemented or evaluated. We have created and evaluated the impact of a mentoring program for individuals with TBI and their families within New York State. The evaluation of the TBI Mentoring Partnership Program was co-funded through a grant from The Jacob and Valeria Langeloth Foundation.

In the program, individuals with TBI or family members who are veterans of the experience of TBI (i.e., mentors) are trained and then matched with individuals with TBI or their family members new to the challenges of TBI (i.e., partners), to provide information and counsel, largely by phone. Extensive materials have been developed to support the training of mentors. These can be downloaded from the Publications section for your free use.

To learn more about the TBI Mentoring Partnership Program, you can download TBI Consumer Report, Issue No. 7, which describes the program and initial evaluation results. If you are a brain injury association or other organization interested in obtaining more information about technical assistance in establishing a mentoring program in your state or locality, please e-mail Dr. Mary Hibbard at mary.hibbard@mssm.edu.