To the back of Bourke, delivering brain injury rehabilitation to remote areas in New South Wales
To the back of Bourke, delivering brain injury rehabilitation to remote areas in New South Wales Conference Paper
11th National Rural Health Conference: Rural and remote Australia: the heart of a healthy nation
- Author(s): Virginia Mitsch
- Published: 2011
Abstract: Rural disadvantage extends beyond health to areas of injury and disability with people with disabilities in rural areas experiencing significantly more social problems than their urban counterparts, but have access to fewer resources including rehabilitation services. Given that many Aboriginal people live remotely, and have poorer health outcomes compared to the non-Aboriginal population, they face a double disadvantage. Living with disability such as acquired brain injury (ABI) presents challenges for those living remotely, which are only intensified for Aboriginal person within the same context. Acquired brain injury (ABI) referring to a sudden onset injury, is the result of external trauma such as motor vehicle accidents, falls and assaults, or from non-traumatic (internal) causes such as stroke or aneurysms. Prevalence rates across Australia show that 77, 800 people with an ABI (under the age 65) resided within NSW, prevalence rates for more rural and remote areas in NSW can only be estimated. The challenges of rehabilitation following injury for people from rural and remote areas are complex and ongoing. These challenges include lack of coordination of services, the need to move to metropolitan areas for more complex rehabilitation, the economic and isolation impact of this on families and dislocation from their community. Rehabilitation for traumatic brain injury and sudden onset acquired brain injury (between ages 5-65) in NSW is delivered through a network of 14 services which constitute the NSW Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program (BIRP). Delivery of brain injury rehabilitation to rural and remote areas of NSW by the NSW BIRPs at Dubbo, Bathurst and Albury is highly problematic due to distances and limited resources. This paper reviews the literature regarding the prevalence and impact of acquired brain injury in rural and remote Australia and the higher prevalence among the Aboriginal population. It will report on a study to address the issue above and improve the delivery of brain injury rehabilitation within rural and remote areas NSW and the resulting action plan.
- Urls: https://www.ruralhealth.org.au/11nrhc/papers/11th%20NRHC%20Mitsch_Virginia_C2.pdf
- Publisher Location: Perth