Promising Practices for Supporting Employees with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
When it comes to employment, several promising practices exist to help transitioning service members with TBI, PTSD and many other disabilities and/or serious combat-related injuries succeed in the workplace. Providing natural workplace supports is one of these practices.
Natural support refers to support from supervisors and co-workers that occurs routinely in the workplace. It is called "natural" because it includes supports already provided by employers for all employees, including:
A natural support person -- such as a supervisor or mentor -- can offer guidance on appropriate interpersonal skills and work behaviors, assist with one-on-one job training at the worksite, problem-solve as needed, and help acclimate the individual to the work environment. As the employee with a disability develops job skills, the interaction with the natural support person often decreases or "fades," gradually transitioning the employee as he or she learns to perform the job independently.
Most natural support providers are not trained to be professional job coaches. A job coach is typically provided by an outside agency to assist the employee. (See the America's Heroes at Work "Job Coaching" fact sheet.)
To learn more about job accommodations, including natural supports such as mentoring, employers should contact their local state vocational rehabilitation agency by visiting http://askjan.org/cgi-win/TypeQuery.exe?902.
Information about other promising employer practices - including job coaching and customized employment - can be found on the America's Heroes at Work Web site: www.AmericasHeroesAtWork.gov.
This fact sheet was developed in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor's (DOL) Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Job Accommodation Network, the Veterans' Employment and Training Service, the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, and the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center.