To promote greater independence near treatment completion for a brain-injury client, which strategy is most appropriate to teach?

• A. Increasing memory-retention span
• B. Training visual-perceptual skills
• C. Using word-repetition drills
• D. Teaching compensatory strategies

Answer: (D)

The focus is on promoting independence by teaching compensatory strategies. Near treatment completion, the most effective approach is to equip the person with ways to adapt tasks and daily routines to work around remaining deficits, rather than trying to restore functions that may be permanently impaired. This includes using external supports and structured methods—like checklists, step-by-step plans, calendars and reminders, labeled containers, and environmental tweaks—that help accomplish tasks safely and autonomously across different settings. These strategies generalize well, improve efficiency, and encourage real-world carryover. In contrast, efforts like memory drills aim to increase cognitive capacity that often doesn’t transfer readily to everyday independence, and targeted perceptual or language drills may not directly boost daily functioning.