BIRTie

The Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust Information Exchange

Welcome to BIRTie A very happy new year to you and welcome to the first 2012 edition of BIRTie. The end of 2011, our 20th anniversary year, saw us launch our flexible rehabilitation options which will enable as many people as possible to benefit from BIRT expertise. Now, at the start of 2012, we are also looking at ways in which we can introduce Case Managers to a practical understanding about BIRT’s expertise, by launching The BIRT Experience. Case Managers are invited to join us at a BIRT service to experience for themselves how we work - read on to page 5 to find out more.

We are looking forward to the next year with many exciting plans, such as our newest development in Swindon for which we now have planning permission.

We’re very grateful to Tom Fletcher, Harry Judd and Izzy Johnston for all the work they have carried out promoting the work that BIRT does in the national media in the last year, especially for the Eyes Alight appeal. This appeal has made a difference to so many of our service users.

As you can see, we are also undergoing a new branding approach for 2012 which will see new leaflets for our services AND a brand new website!

Lynn Turley Service Director BIRT

Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust 60 Queen Street, Normanton, Wakefield WF6 2BU Tel: 01924 896 100 Email: info@birt.co.uk

www.birt.co.uk

Issue 24, Spring 2012

Flexible Rehabilitation

A

t BIRT we recognise the changing times ahead and the financial constraints that are being placed upon commissioning budgets.

That’s why we have developed our new range of flexible rehabilitation options for adults with acquired brain injury.

Our new rehabilitation options help you deliver a cost effective solution for your client which delivers the support and care that you have told us you want and need.

With a wider choice of assessment and rehab

options – our new flexible rehabilitation options will still achieve the results and outcomes and high standards of clinically led practice you expect from BIRT. As a part of the new opportunities we have developed, we are also able to offer business related incentives to commissioners.

www.birt.co.uk/whereweare Details of all our options are available on our website.

Please call our Business Support Manager on 01924 896100 for details of our business incentives.

There are BIRT local initiatives also available in your region. These can be discussed with the Service Manager at your nearest service. You can find contact details on our website

Information Accreditation We are delighted to report that our communications production system has just passed the rigorous assessment criteria set by The Information Standard.

the quality mark on its materials. The quality mark is a quick and easy way for the public to identify reliable and trustworthy sources of information.

The Information Standard is a certification scheme for health and social care information. It is an independent scheme supported by the Department of Health. Any organisation that produces health and social care information can apply to join the scheme. If an organisation successfully meets the quality criteria of the standard and becomes certified, it can place

BIRT’s Business Support Manager, Catherine Portman, along with The Disabilities Trust Communications Team, worked to show that the structures and processes that the department and the wider organisation has in place mean that all clinical information produced by the Trust and put into the public domain is safe, supported and not misleading.

This specifically relates to the information leaflets that are produced by BIRT. The next leaflets to be produced under IS standards will be ‘The Effects of Brain Injury’, ‘Family Life after Brain injury’ and ‘Managing Finances’ To download our information leaflets visit www.birt.co.uk or pick up a hard copy at your nearest BIRT service.

Dr Brian O’Neil wins UKABIF Award Dr Brian O’Neil, Consultant in Neuropsychology and Rehabilitation at Graham Anderson House, Glasgow, has won a prestigious United Kingdom Acquired Brain Injury Forum (UKABIF) award.

Dr O’Neil, a member of BIRT’s Clinical Executive, won the award for ‘Innovation by a clinician in the field of acquired brain injury’. Dr O’Neil developed, along with Dr Alex Gillespie and colleagues at the University of Stirling, ‘Guide’ which uses new computer

technology to help people with acquired brain injury become more independent.

Lynn Turley, Service Director, BIRT was present at the awards ceremony. “We are absolutely delighted. This is a remarkable achievement which will be of enormous benefit to people with acquired brain injury”. A randomised control clinical trial of ‘Guide’ is being funded by the Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health Directorates.

New Independent Hospital to Open in Swindon BIRT is very pleased to announce that construction of its latest development, a new 20-bed independent hospital in Swindon, Wiltshire, will shortly be underway following the granting of planning permission by Swindon Borough Council.

The service will support adults with an acquired brain injury showing behavioural and/or cognitive deficits which in turn lead to complex care needs. Service users may also have pre-existing or concurrent mental health problems in addition to their brain injury and may be

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subject to detention under the Mental Health Act. Providing assessment and rehabilitation and continuing rehabilitation services, the new hospital will serve people from the South and South West of England and will provide a valuable addition to similar hospital provision in York and Glasgow.

Not only will the development bring much needed beds to the area for those needing to undergo brain injury rehabilitation, but it will also create employment opportunities for people in the area.

Development and Infrastructure Manager, Mike McPeake commented:

“We are very pleased that the building working can now go ahead.

We’ve got a lot to get finished before 2013 and we’re grateful to the local community for the support that they have shown to the build”

Due for completion in early 2013 the service will incorporate independent living facilities, assistive technology opportunities, state of the art design features and a spacious environment with a variety of rooms to meet service users’ individual needs. The development represents a significant investment by the Disabilities Trust, BIRT’s parent charity, ensuring that it remains at the forefront of rehabilitation provision in the UK.

Successful BIRT Workshops for Occupational Therapists Workshops have been held at TEM House in Milton Keynes and Kerwin Court Horsham, on the “Effective use of Functional Skills training programmes for service users with acquired brain injury”.

The workshops, which focus on the Neurobehavioural Skills Training method developed within BIRT, are the first in a series to be conducted around the United Kingdom by BIRT Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist, Liz Parish.

therapists, found the day useful and interesting. Liz is a very accomplished workshop facilitator. The feedback from those attending has been extremely positive.”

Participants’ comments included: “Good practical advice which can be implemented in the work place” “It has refreshed my use of errorless learning and provided me with a structured approach to develop the skills of our support workers”

“A reminder of the value of quality of life over just functional independence. I will take away tools for training BIRT Director of Clinical sessions for support staff; Services, Professor Michael previously I had struggled to Oddy said “These have been know where to start to look stimulating sessions, with thought-provoking discussion, for an evidence base.” relevant to participants “It made me reflect on how I working in both acute hand work over to support inpatient settings and slow staff, and think about how to stream community use an errorless learning rehabilitation. Experienced approach most effectively. The clinicians, as well as new BIRT is delighted to announce that Dr Siobhan Palmer, Clinical Psychologist at Kerwin Court, has been awarded the Qualification in Clinical Neuropsychology by the British Psychology Society's Division of Neuropsychology.

Dr Palmer, who is co-author of the book ‘A Relational Approach to Rehabilitation: Thinking about Relationships after Brain Injury’ and who wrote BIRT's information leaflet ‘Family Life after Brain Injury and Rehabilitation’, was extremely pleased to receive this award.

Dr Palmer said “I am delighted to now be a qualified Clinical Neuropsychologist”.

Professor Mike Oddy, Director of Clinical Services at BIRT, added "We are extremely proud that Siobhan has achieved this after many years of study and practice and value her continuing contribution to the work of BIRT at Kerwin Court and throughout the Trust". Copies of Dr Palmer's book are available from http://www.karnacbooks.com/ and the information leaflet is available to download from www.birt.co.uk/resources.

training programme for support workers will help with implementing programmes for service users. It was great to be given all the references to go away and read.”

For details of workshops in 2012 see page 6 or contact Barbara Munford on 01403 799163 e-mail Barbara.munford@BIRT.co.uk

Roadshows for professionals BIRT is offering free roadshows to groups of ten or more health and social care professionals across the UK. The roadshow teams will come to your place of work and are presented by management and clinical staff from BIRT’s specialist centres. The sessions usually last about 40 minutes.

The roadshows include an overview of the neurobehavioural approach to brain injury rehabilitation, an explanation of the causes and effects of brain injury, BIRT’s outcomes, detail of how BIRT works with service users with brain injury and how the individual is involved in their rehabilitation process and family support - plus much more.

Information leaflets are also available on a range of subjects relating to brain injury. Each roadshow is specific to particular services, therefore actual content may vary.

To find out more or make a booking, please visit www.birt.co.uk or call your nearest BIRT service.

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Stop press: Pre-admisson screens are free for referrals to all BIRT services.

For information on our referral process see www.birt.co.uk/referrals or contact your local service www.birt.co.uk/whereweare

Post-injury personality in the prediction of outcome following severe acquired brain injury Dr Charlotte Cattran and Professors Michael Oddy and Rodger Wood of BIRT and the University of Swansea have recently developed new measures of personality changes which can predict outcome following acquired brain injury. These measures include the BIRT Regulation of Emotion Questionnaire (BREQ), BIRT Motivational Questionnaire (BMQ), BIRT Impulsivity Questionnaire (BIQ), BIRT Disinhibition Questionnaire (BDQ) and the BIRT Social Perception Questionnaire (BSPQ). The

measures assess difficulties occurring as a result of brain injury in these areas, long thought to be crucial in determining how well a person recovers from their brain injury.

Seventy two service users completed self rated versions of the questionnaires whilst a close relative completed relative rated versions of the questionnaires to provide an independent rating of their brain injury. Both service users and relatives were contacted one year later for a follow up assessment. In combination

Neuropsychologist Dr Jo Johnson has written a new booked aimed at young people with a brain injured parent. Dr Alison LutteElliott, Neuropsychologist at Donald Wilson House, Chichester reviewed the book for our readers:

children, it normalises many of the emotions felt by young people in response to changes in their parent. It provides practical tips for how young people can manage their emotions and when to seek help.

The recent publication ‘My Parent has a Brain Injury…A Guide for Young People’ is an excellent book which helps children and teenagers understand the effects of a brain injury and difficulties that may occur as a result.

Professionals from all disciplines would benefit from having this resource to hand, even if they have limited direct contact with children. The needs of children can be overlooked.

A well timed recommendation has the potential to reduce confusion and isolation in the young person.

The author skilfully provides information about the nature and experience of brain injury in an accessible and engaging format.

Through the use of quotations from other

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with measures of cognitive ability and severity of brain injury the BMQ-R and BREQ-R were found to predict outcome accurately one year later. The ability to predict outcomes will assist clinicians in the planning of rehabilitation programmes and assist them in tackling changes such as difficulties regulating emotion and low motivation. BIRT clinicians are using these measures in their current practice. This research was published in September in the journal ‘Brain Injury’.

This book can be purchased from Headway at the cost of £9.99

The BIRT Experience At BIRT we pride ourselves on delivering excellence in specialist brain injury services, particularly in the medico-legal field, and we are always keen to demonstrate this to the professionals we work with.

We’re giving Brain Injury Case Managers the opportunity to spend time at one of our specialist services – at no cost to you or your organisation.

Following arrival/admission you’ll be shown to your own en- suite bedroom where, after settling in, your Key Worker will explain your programme/plan over coffee and refreshments.

You’ll have a guided tour of the centre and be introduced to key members of the team.

You will find out how BIRT conducts a clinical assessment with a member

of BIRT’s in-house interdisciplinary team, and you’ll join service users and staff for lunch in the dining area. There is also the opportunity to evaluate your daily living skills in one of our specially adapted kitchens or see how assistive technology can work for you.

Your BIRT Experience concludes with a meeting with the Service Manager and Lead Clinician. We hope

you’ll give us some feedback on your day, and you will be given BIRT resources to take away which we hope will be helpful to you and your clients.

Case Managers who participate in The BIRT Experience will be featured on our website with a link to their company’s own website.

For more details or to book a place on the BIRT Experience email jan.sabey@thedtgroup.org or call 01924 896100.

BIRT Conference success In September 2011, over 300 delegates from around the world attended The Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust conference 2011, Inspiring Learning and Innovation in Brain Injury Rehabilitation, which took place on 21-22 September in Bristol.

This was BIRT's fourth international conference and included a gala dinner with after dinner speaker, Hardeep Singh Kohli.

On day one of the conference, Professor Rodger Wood, Professor Jeffery Kreutzer, Professor Charles Bombardier and Professor Huw Williams presented engaging plenary sessions throughout the day which dealt with the common theme of emotional and social aspects of recovery. In the closing session of day one, Professor George Prigatano

gave an inspirational and comprehensive discussion of past developments and present day challenges and opportunities in neuropsychological rehabilitation.

The second day offered a number of symposiums and workshops covering a wide range of themes presented by internationally renowned

speakers in the field of brain injury.

The conference was sponsored by Irwin Mitchell solicitors and Barclays corporate. BIRT would like to thank everyone who was involved this year helped to make the BIRT conference a success.

Professors George Prigatano and Michael Oddy at the BIRT Conference 2011

Delegates were presented with engaging discussions on the latest developments in brain injury rehabilitation.

The conference also marked BIRT's 20th anniversary year, which included a photographic exhibition ‘One Piece at a Time’ compiled by BIRT service users for delegates to view.

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Events for your diary 2012 Throughout the year, our services will be offering free educational events to professionals in regions throughout the country.

Wednesday 21 March - Liverpool FREE Seminar for professionals from our Redford Court service team. 'Personality and Behavioural Changes following Acquired Brain Injury'. Devonshire Arms Hotel. Sponsored by Thorneycroft Solicitors.

Thursday 22 March - Ely Training Workshop for Occupational Therapists 9.30am-3.30pm Fen House, 143 Lynn Road, Ely CB6 1SD Thursday 26 April - Glasgow Training Workshop for Occupational Therapists 9.30am-3.30pm Graham Anderson House, 1161 Springburn Road, Glasgow G21 1UU. Friday 11 May - Birmingham FREE Seminar for professionals from our West Heath House/Bristol Road/Community Services service team. 'Working with Capacity: Practical applications within ABI rehabilitation'.

14-20 May - Brain Injury Awareness Week Thursday 24 May - Liverpool Training Workshop for Occupational Therapists 9.30am-3.30pm Redford Court, 7 Birt Close Liverpool L8 7SZ. Friday 22 June - Goole FREE Seminar for professionals from our Goole Neuro Rehabilitation Centre service team. 'Major trauma a strategic approach to achieving efficiency and outcomes".

Thursday 28 June - Cullompton Training Workshop for Occupational Therapists 9.30am-3.30pm The Woodmill, Exeter Road, Cullompton, Devon, EX15 1EA. July (date tbc) - Ely FREE Seminar for professionals from our Fen House service team. 'Helping professionals to train families and carers to further improve service user social communication'.

Friday 5 October - Glasgow FREE Seminar for professionals from our Graham Anderson House service team.'The ripple effect of brain injury in families and relationships', Grand Central Hotel, Glasgow.

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Friday 19 October - Slinfold, Nr Horsham, West Sussex FREE Seminar for professionals from our Kerwin Court service team. 'Behaviour - Formulation and Intervention'.

For more information on any of our Workshops, Seminars or to book a BIRT Roadshow to some to your place of work please visit www.birt.co.uk

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Ste’s Story 19 year old Ste was admitted to Daniel Yorath House in July 2011. He sustained a traumatic brain injury when he was just three years old after being involved in a road traffic accident.

He was previously living in a caring environment with foster parents but it was agreed that he would benefit from a more enabling placement. Ste had little experience of being responsible for undertaking domestic tasks and felt it was time to move forward.

Since coming to Daniel Yorath House Ste has come on a long way. He is now ready to move on to a supported house in the community and is looking forward to applying

for a vocational course. Ste reflects “I’ve grown up a lot since being here” Ste did well during his assessment period at Daniel Yorath House and quickly moved to the Transitional Living Unit (TLU) which he shared with another service user and a member of staff for a number of weeks.

Working with his Occupational Therapist, Ste had many opportunities to practice domestic tasks in the TLU for example he was able to become independent using the washing machine and hanging out his laundry.

He gained even more independence by using a list of tasks to complete and tick them off as he went. This

helped him to focus on the tasks in hand and not get distracted.

One area Ste has made lots of progress in is self-catering.

When in the TLU he was required to plan his meals for the week and shop for them at the supermarket with support. He was supported

also by staff to make healthier independent choices in his diet which has led to him losing weight.

Ste is now looking forward to a bright future in the community thanks to BIRT and the staff at Daniel Yorath House.

C Claims laims t R Rehabilitation ehabilitation t Care Care t Experience Experience t Teamwork Teamwork t Support Suppor t Legal Legal Advice Advice Y You o ou Can Can Trust Trust We believe it is our responsibility not only to help our clients receive comprehensive damages amages for o personal injuries caused by the actions or negligence of another party, but also to ensure that appropriate treatment, therapies and funding is made available as swiftly as possible to facilitate recovery.

With national coverage we aim to provide a seamless service to our clients, from intensive post-hospital rehabilitation, to longterm supported living in the community.

Our service has been developed as a direct result of decades of experience in dealing with the requirements of people aff ec ffe e ted by brain and head injuries.

George Ide LLP is widely recognised for its expertise and success in personal injury claims for accident compensation We are available from day one of a claim to swiftly identify the extent of an accident victim’s rehabilitation needs so that our personal injury solicitors can negotiate the payment of costs

with the at fault party ’s insurers. We also use independent health-care trained case managers who are specialists in their fields.

Whether you have been involved in a car ffe ered a accident, work accident, have suff fall in a public place or are suffering from a work-related industrial disease, the claim solicitors at George Ide will have dealt with many similar cases and possess a vast breadth of knowledge in these areas.

Above alll, we are professional ionall, dependablee, straightforward and eager to help.

F For or mor more e inf information ormation ccontact: ontact: C Claire laire W Watson atson on 01243 812436 Email: clair claire.watson@georgeide.co.uk e.watson@georgeide.co.uk

George Ide LLP is a limited liability partnership regulated in England and Wales, number OC336392. The registered office is 52 North Street Chichester West Sussex PO19 1NQ. George Ide LLP authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority Number 488565 – Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Ser vices Authority - LEXCEL ACCREDITED

on your your side side Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust - 7

Providing the very best support for brain injured patients

The Brain Injury Group is a new type of legal network that brings together the best quality legal advice with specialist support and benefits for your patients and their families.

As a national group of member law firms we also provide in-depth local knowledge so we can signpost local services.

Part of our unique offer is that all our members are dedicated brain injury solicitors with a proven track record in handling brain injury cases, one of the strict criteria we set for members to join the Group.

So you can feel confident referring patients to experts who will help deliver the long-term support they need after a brain injury, along with a range of other practical benefits for the whole family.

‘Brain injury can be devastating for families and carers as well as the people directly affected.

These cases require expert, specialist advice and support and that is what the Brain Injury Group provides.’

Professor McLellan Emeritus Professor of Rehabilitation

For more details about the complete package of support we offer call

0800 612 9660 or visit www.braininjurygroup.co.uk

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The Brain Injury Rehabilitation Trust (BIRT) is a division of The Disabilities Trust and the means by which The Disabilities Trust provides its brain injury services. The Disabilities Trust, First Floor, 32 Market Place, Burgess Hill, West Sussex RH15 9NP Registered Charity No. 800797