Brain injury patients and their families learn to live with their pathology

only in the Basque country programme

-the Hospital in Gorliz form to some 200 families a year in its school of brain damage (EDC), which teach patients and their families to manage his illness at home once received the hospital. high

-students learn the causes and the effects of different diseases causing brain damage (such as stroke or traumatic brain injury), the goals of rehabilitation and the odds of recovery.

– they are taught what things must also take into account to prevent a relapseguidelines to manage their autonomy and control symptoms, and informing them of what social resources and assistive technologies available to deal with your situation.

– medical rehabilitation, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and social. workers participate in the EDC

– brain injury patients and their families are people that life changes completely from one day to the mañAna, and there is still enough ignorance of this pathology at a general level ”, drew Begoña Bereciartua, Gorliz Hospital social worker.

Gorliz (Bizkaia), 2012-June Patients of brain damage have a common feature marks the way of dealing with his illness, which is that his life changed in five minutes and of the overnight already nothing again as before. A stroke is the most common cause, although many also patients who become in him through traffic accidents.

This situation of uncertainty and ignorance of patients and their families, the Hospital in Gorliz has School of brain damage (EDC), where both others learn to know his illness, to live with her and to handle day to day once they receive the discharge from hospital. At the general level, this disease is not much known, and patients and their families do not know how to face her, bearing in mind that, in addition, his life will never be as before ”, drew Begoña Bereciartua, social worker at the Hospital and one of the formers of the EDC.

Training in school, only in the Basque country, is divided into two parts. First, patients learn alongside a Physiatrist, a nurse and a physical therapist, the more technical aspects of their disease. Are taught what is brain damage, diseases that produce, what are their forecasts and objectives we are pursuing with the rehabilitation ”, points bereciartúa Y.

In a second part, also a Physiatrist, alongside an occupational therapist and a social worker, they teach the practicalities of life that awaits the patient and their families. At this stage we explain what they have to take into account to prevent a relapse, guidelines to handle the autonomy they have or the necessary care, available technical AIDS, control of symptoms and inform as well as social resources available to deal with your situation ”says social worker. In fact, the majority of patients, after passing through the school, out already with the first step to access to the aid of the provincial Council, which is the application of valuation of the unit ”. It is this part of the programme when they also learn to manage in basic care, such as those related to food, hygiene, mobilization or waste disposal. Even in cases in which it is possible to, join the self-management of the patient, trying it stimulates itself or with the help of relatives or caregivers that part of the body which have less mobility ”. Are also working the collaboration of the Association of brain injury and FEKOOR, the Association of diminished physicists ”, concludes bereciartúa Y.

The EDC, in operation since 2010, is more than 100 patients a year and over 220 families and carers. Are always more families, because many patients do not have the cognitive capacity to assimilate the concepts ”, indicates bereciartúa Y, which adds that, until now, the program has been very well received and the families are very satisfied ”, according to the results of the survey have been made.

Once the training already at home, patients are controlled during their outpatient rehabilitation or six months and a year from its high medical. Even so, patients and their families have the door open to ask us any questions, or even when a spontaneous recovery and sees the patient more receptive to take advantage of rehabilitation ”, says the expert.