Currently, over three million adults and children live with the long-term effects and disabilities associated with traumatic brain injury (TBI). For the state of Washington, 5,500 TBI hospitalizations occur each year, which account for about 10 percent of all injury-related hospitalizations. As a result, Provail, an organization with experience helping children and adults with disabilities, wants to do something more to help brain injury survivors.
In April 2011, the Seattle based non-profit announced their plans to build the state's first traumatic brain injury center. Provail has proposed creating two facilities: an eight-room, single-story residential facility and a multistory traumatic brain injury center. In 2010, the organization established the state's first traumatic brain injury clubhouse, called Seattle Brain Works, which provides occupational and physical therapy, counseling, support, case management and other services to brain injury survivors age 18 years or older.
TBI occurs when physical injury causes cellular damage to the brain. The majority of TBI cases (35 percent) result from falls, but motor vehicle accidents, assaults, after birth head trauma, blows to the head or collisions with objects can cause significant brain injuries as well. For Washington residents, transport accidents and falls are the major causes for the rise in TBI-related hospitalizations.
As the brain is the crucial to all life functions, injuries associated with brain trauma can range from mild to severe. In more severe cases, a person can suffer from altered consciousness, including coma, nerve damage, seizures and cognitive impairment - as memory loss, communication difficulties, behavioral problems, sensory issues and emotional problems. Long-term treatment needs may include psychiatric services, medication management, surgery, physical rehabilitation, and living space modifications. And, the costs can be astronomical.
In order to make the TBI center and residential facility possible, Provail is seeking almost $2 million in state capital funds. The organization's TBI clubhouse receives funding from the state's Traumatic Brain Injury Fund, which was established in 2007.
In 2010, the CDC estimated that the number of people who would sustain traumatic brain injury would exceed the combined incidence of breast cancer, HIV, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries. For Washington, rates of TBI have been on the rise for more than a decade. TBI remains a growing public health concern, but through programs such as TBI clubhouses and facilities such as TBI centers, the lives of TBI survivors can be greatly improved.
