JONESBORO – A professor at Arkansas State University is repurposing a sports medicine assessment tool originally created for student-athletes to assist military veterans coping with lingering effects of concussions sustained during service.
Dr. Scott Bruce, a professor of athletic training and co-chair of the Veterans’ Suicide Prevention Program, is employing the Global Well-being Index® (GWBI) in his work with veterans. The GWBI, initially developed to evaluate concussion symptoms in athletes, assesses four domains: physical and somatic, sleep, cognitive, and emotional and behavioral health. This survey, honed over 15 years, asks participants about their symptoms during the past year, assigning points based on severity. A higher score indicates more severe or frequent symptoms, with a total possible score of 50. Scores of 40 or higher suggest elevated risks for depression or anxiety.
Dr. Bruce noticed that veterans with a history of concussions might continue to experience symptoms, even if they do not explicitly recognize them as tied to head injuries. "It has been my belief since the beginning that many of these veterans have a history of not just one concussion, but of multiple concussions. What I didn’t expect to find was the number of veterans who are suffering from residual symptoms," Bruce explained.
According to Bruce's findings, 58.6% of veterans surveyed reported at least one concussion, while 40.8% indicated a history of multiple concussions. Despite this, only 12 individuals reported having no ongoing symptoms on the GWBI, highlighting a potential gap in understanding how lingering head trauma may manifest. "When we compare it to the concussion symptoms they reported, 38 reported no concussion symptoms. Somehow, that does not make sense," Bruce stated, suggesting that the veterans’ issues might often go unrecognized as concussion-related.
The GWBI traces its roots to concussion assessment tools designed for college athletes. Bruce’s work on the GWBI began during his tenure at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where researchers consolidated multiple surveys into the streamlined GWBI tool now in use.
Among its findings, early research on the GWBI linked a history of concussions to a higher likelihood of sustaining future injuries. This spurred additional inquiry into concussion symptoms among athletes, creating a pathway toward the survey's current form and broader application.
Dr. Bruce believes the GWBI holds potential as an early screening method for veterans, particularly as part of mental health evaluations. He has shared his findings at professional events, including the 77th National Athletic Trainers’ Association Clinical Symposia and AT Expo.
"The results are extremely positive where the GWBI can be used as a screening tool for further mental health assessment," Bruce said. "If a participant scores 40 or more points on the GWBI, they should then be assessed further for depression and anxiety."
Dr. Bruce continues to advocate for the application of the GWBI to identify veterans at risk, underscoring its potential for better addressing service-related injuries and mental health challenges.