Brain injury victims’ treatment ‘inadequate’

PLACING brain injury sufferers in psychiatric hospitals and nursing homes is hindering their recovery by preventing them from living independent lives, it was claimed yesterday.

More than 10,000 people in Ireland are affected by acquired brain injury (ABI) and incidence of the condition as a result of accidents or illness is increasing every year, said the Peter Bradley Foundation.

Established in 2000 by the family of Dubliner Mr Bradley, who suffered two brain injuries in his youth, it provides assisted living to ABI victims, allowing them to lead independent lives in their own communities.

The foundation yesterday launched its Mind Your Head campaign to highlight the consequences of not wearing protective headgear during activities such as cycling, working or sports.

It also called on the State to allocate extra funding to meet the growing demand for services.

“In Ireland we are only now beginning to understand acquired brain injury and to recognise it as a distinct and unique disability,” Peter Bradley Foundation CEO Barbara O’Connell said.

“We continue to find people with ABI wrongly placed in psychiatric hospitals and nursing homes because of a lack of understanding and because there are no adequate support services for those suffering with ABI. It is possible for people with an ABI to regain a measure of independent living if given the proper support services.”

Sam Fleming from Galway was just 20 when he suffered a brain injury after a cycling accident, leaving him severely disabled and unable to walk. He was not wearing a helmet at the time.

After eight months of hospital treatment, he was discharged and lives in a Peter Bradley Foundation house, where he is encouraged to live as independent a life as possible.

“For six years we desperately tried to find help and support,” his mother Pam said.

“His brain injury had not only disabled him but had also affected his personality. Not knowing what to do left us all frustrated and tired.”

With more than 400 children on bikes injured on the country’s roads between 1998 and 2005, the foundation urged all cyclists to wear a helmet at all times.

Meanwhile Ms O’Connell urged the State to increase funding to the foundation, which has seen a growing demand for its services.

“The Health Service Executive has been supportive of our work but additional resources at local level and increased priority would greatly benefit the 10,000 people with ABI in Ireland,” she said.

“The lack of increased core funding is putting pressure on our ability to provide the services required by people with ABI across Ireland.”

* www.peterbradleyfoundation.ie