Beyond The Rhetoric: Recent Legal Changes Which Impact On Brain Injury (BISWG)

I'm attending the Brain Injury Social Work Group (BISWG) conference today looking at the recent legal changes which impact on brain injury.

The day will be set out as follows (see link)

I have been interested to hear from a commissioner for brain injury services based in the North East of England where a specific pathway for people with brain injury, ranging from mild to complex injury, has been in place since July 2015. One of the aims of the pathway was to try and reduce the number of days in hospital people with brain injury spend following the initial injury thus freeing beds so desperately needed.

The pathway identified that within the North East an average of 50 people per week were present in the various A&Es with some level of brain injury but only four of those required intervention.

Looking at hospital stays, of patients who had been in hospital for more than four weeks, three people per week required brain injury intervention.

The aim was therefore to try and reduce hospital stays by one day for those in hospital for five days total and by 10 days for those in for 15 weeks or more.

A truly fantastic aim and one I hope they are able to meet and look forward to seeing the results in their year one audit.

Case Study:

I have just had the pleasure of listening to the mother of a young man who suffered a significant brain injury following an accident when he was only 19.

L was at university studying for a degree when he was hit by a taxi following a night out with friends celebrating the end of exams. L's mother was contacted and told his injuries were so severe that he may not survive and the next 48 hours were critical, however despite the odds being against him, L fought to survive.

L spent the first two years following his injury as an inpatient in a specialist brain injury unit before being discharged home with his mum. L did not have a personal injury claim and sadly this has meant his mum has faced a constant uphill struggle to ensure L gets the appropriate care and rehabilitation he needs to enable him to achieve his potential and try and lead as independent a life as possible.

L's mum has highlighted for me the difference between what may be available to those with a brain injury through statutory services and what could be available privately. L received rehabilitation for 12 months following his discharge however after those first 12 months any rehabilitation needs, such as physiotherapy, have to be met privately and in L's case from his benefits.

L's mum has also fought hard to ensure L has access to neuropsychological services to help manage his behavioural issues associated with his brain injury but so far has been unsuccessful. This demonstrates the differences where, with a claim, such services can be put in place privately in a quicker, more collaborative manner and without the exhausting need to fight endlessly with social services.

L is fortunate in many ways as he has his family who are caring for him and fighting for him but for others the statutory provision currently leaves a lot to be desired and being able to put private packages in place for injured individuals through Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence claims enables us to help our clients achieve their potential far more than they could otherwise.

My thoughts on the role of a social worker

The BISWG conference has reminded me about the need for access to specialist brain injury social workers for both the injured person and their family.

A specialist social worker can help with setting up an appropriate care package but also other aspects which may not immediately spring to mind such as additive technologies, bus passes, keypads and benefits etc. They can also offer assistance for establishing a workable daily schedule to involve all therapies and help the injured person develop their social and cognitive skills.

In a successful claim, this is the role a specialist case manager would undertake and again there is a need to ensure they are specialists in brain injury so can understand the individual, their specific needs and the impact brain injury has on behaviour.