Brain Injury Awareness Week 2021

August 16th, 2021

This week (16-22 August 2021) marks Brain Injury Awareness Week in Australia, as we acknowledge the many Queenslanders and their families who live with brain injury every day.

With more than 76% of NIISQ participants having experienced a traumatic brain injury as a result of their motor vehicle accident, we are always looking for ways to help their lived experiences as they navigate their lives post-accident.

This year we have partnered with Synapse, Australia’s brain injury organisation, and their theme for this week – ‘every brain injury is different’. We take it that extra step in that every injury is different, as many of our participants experience multiple injuries as a result of their accident.

Our CEO, Neil Singleton, is featured as a guest blogger for Synapse in support of this week. Head on over to their blog <here> to read more about his thoughts and keep reading below for some helpful links to resources that may be useful for you or someone you know that is living with a brain injury.

We are also pleased to share an uplifting story kindly provided by one of our participant families, as well as one of our newly announced research projects that closely targets people with brain injuries.

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Brain Injury Awareness Week – helpful links and websites

In recognition of Brain Injury Awareness Week, we are sharing links to additional resources for people with traumatic and acquired brain injury. Please share with anyone you feel would benefit from these resources.

Understanding brain injury
While every brain injury is different, Synapse has a range of information on hand that can help explain the impacts.

If you’re after information about brain injury, or would like to better understand a particular aspect, their fact sheets are a good place to start. Created by specialists for individuals, families and carers, they cover a wide range of topics including rehabilitation, relationships, and returning to study or work.

Find out more

STEPS – Skill To Enable People and communitieS

STEPS is a Queensland-wide self-management based information and skills group program for adults aged 18-65 years with adult-onset Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) and their families and friends. Causes of ABI may be traumatic (e.g. car accident, fall, assault, etc.) or non-traumatic (e.g. stroke, tumours, poisoning). The Program is a service arm of the Acquired Brain Injury Outreach Service (ABIOS), Queensland Health which is part of Metro South Health Service.

The STEPS Program model aims to:

• Establish a state-wide sustainable model of self-managed networks of support for people with ABI across Queensland.
• Help people understand the effects of acquired brain injury, how to look after themselves, and how to participate more in their communities.
• Provide resources to establish and maintain individual and group self-management strategies and programs locally
• Train community leaders and people with ABI to develop and sustain support networks, and
• Provide a group intervention with core curriculum to establish networks in metropolitan and regional areas of Queensland.

Find out more

Connecting with others with similar lived experiences
No matter where you live, there’s a number of ways you can connect to, and develop meaningful relationships with, others that have similar lived experiences to you.

In addition to STEPS (above), Synapse also offers a community hub for people to join and meet others in similar circumstances to their own.

There are different communities depending on your circumstances, as well as forums and personal journeys.

Find out more