Disorders of Consciousness Program

About the program

Our top priority is to help you bring your loved one home. We address responsiveness and identify a means of communication for family members as best as possible.

The Disorders of Consciousness (DoC) Program at Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation – Dallas provides specialized assessment and treatment for improving function in individuals with a disorder of consciousness. Detailed education and training for caregivers plays a big part in this program and is critical to being able to bring your loved one home.

Our DoC program meets and exceeds all requirements for treating persons with disorders of consciousness set forth by the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems (TBIMS) program, sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR).

We draw on the knowledge of an experienced team of brain injury specialists to address the range of medical, physical, functional and emotional issues you face. This interdisciplinary team is led by a physiatrist, a physician board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, and includes rehabilitation nurses; physical, occupational, speech, respiratory and recreation therapists; psychologists and neuropsychologists; dietitians; case managers; and other clinical and support staff as needed.

Together, we optimize the recovery of individuals at every level of injury from those in a minimally conscious state to those with mild traumatic brain injury.

Eligible patients

Patients appropriate for this program are no longer in a coma (meaning their eyes are open at least some of the time), but have not regained a level of consciousness that allows them to respond consistently to their environment, communicate reliably or complete basic self-care activities.