Pre-hospital and trauma care: The Southeastern Michigan TBI System (SEMTBIS) at the Wayne State University School of Medicine and the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan serves the metropolitan Detroit area, a seven county region of 4.8 million persons. Included in the SEMTBIS are three acute care hospitals located in Detroit. They include Detroit Receiving Hospital (DRH) and Sinai Grace Hospital (SGH), which are part of the Detroit Medical Center, and Henry Ford Hospital (HFH). DRH and HFH are both Level I trauma centers. SGH is a Level II trauma facility. As partners with Wayne State University School of Medicine, HFH and DRH are involved in extensive research and education in the field of trauma and emergency medicine. In fact, DRH trains nearly 60 percent of Michigan's emergency room physicians. DRH is the first Level I Trauma Center in the state of Michigan, and one of the first in the country, as verified by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma. Furthermore, the Emergency Medicine department at SGH, which is the designated trauma center for northwest Detroit, serves more than 60,000 people each year.

Comprehensive rehabilitation: SEMTBIS is a major referral base for several local and remote hospitals that want top-tier rehabilitative treatment for patients with brain injuries. SEMTBIS provides a comprehensive continuum of care and specialized services for persons with traumatic brain injury wherein persons sustaining a TBI are followed from the time of injury through long-term community integration. The Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation consultation team facilitates continuity from trauma service to inpatient rehabilitation admission. Comprehensive brain injury rehabilitation for the SEMTBIS is provided in the 26-bed, Neuroscience Unit at the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan, which is a free-standing acute rehabilitation hospital. This Neuroscience Unit is comprised of a multidisciplinary treatment team who specialize in the care of individuals who have sustained a traumatic brain injury. The services also include weekly team conferences, patient/family educational programs, family support groups, home and equipment evaluations, and access to one of the top-ranked learning resource centers in the country.

Post-Acute Services in Rehabilitation: Post-acute services are provided through the outpatient Neurorehabilitation Clinic. An integrated team approach, utilizing physiatrists, psychologists, vocational rehabilitative specialists, and speech, occupational, physical, and recreational therapists, is provided via the outpatient Neurorehabilitation Program. Additional services include an onsite formal driving evaluation as well as assistance with reintegration into academic systems and vocational services. This Model System also places an emphasis on working closely with the families in order to provide optimal care for the patient. Referrals to one of the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan's 25 satellite outpatient neurorehabilitative programs, which are located closer to the patient's home, is facilitated for those persons who have traveled a significant distance to receive specialized acute rehabilitation. The SEMTBIS research staff initiates multiple follow-up contacts with the enrolled participants. Linkages and referrals to community-based services are arranged as needs are identified during subsequent follow-up encounters. SEMTBIS collaborates with the Brain Injury Association of Michigan to better serve persons with TBI in the state of Michigan. This joint effort is designed to enhance dissemination of educational materials about recovery following a TBI, strengthen community awareness about prevention, advocacy, education, and research as it relates to TBI, and create, nourish, and enhance support systems for survivors of a brain injury and those who share their lives (e.g., local brain injury support groups) throughout the state of Michigan. In fact, the Detroit local chapter of the BIA-MI meets at the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan.

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