Ontario Alliance for Action on Brain Injury
For the past few months the Toronto ABI Network has been working closely with four other organizations — Ontario Brain Injury Association, Provincial Acquired Brain Injury Advisory Committee, Ontario Association of Community Based Boards for ABI Services, and Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation — to raise the profile of acquired brain injury. We are working to increase the awareness of the public and to foster partnerships with government to develop and implement the necessary system frameworks, strategies and supports for those affected by ABI.
This collaborative recently formalized into the founding membership of the Ontario Alliance for Action on Brain Injury. The Alliance and a series of public service announcements were launched at Queen’s Park on June 10 and have already served to draw significant attention to ABI. The launch was covered by Canada AM, Global News, CBC Metro Morning, CHCH News, and City-TV among others. The members of the Alliance continue to get requests for interviews and we expect to see more in-depth stories featured in the days to come.
In addition, the Alliance had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the Office of the Premier and the Ministries of Health and Long-Term Care, Children and Youth, Community and Social Services and Community Safety and Correctional Services. This meeting was critical to begin cross-ministerial discussions about the ongoing and varied needs of individuals with ABI and their families and acknowledges that this is not only a health issue. As a result of this meeting, we have been asked to give some preliminary consideration to what is needed to move us forward and we hope to meet with the Premier’s Office again in the fall.
A website has been developed to support our communications and act as a link to the Alliance and a resource of information for the public. For updated information about the Alliance and to view the public service announcements, please visit www.see-us.ca and take the time to send an email to your MPP through this site.
Over the summer we are continuing to work to sustain our efforts, develop a strategic plan for next steps and begin planning our response to the Premier’s Office and represented Ministries.
This work has been supported by PR Post and we are grateful for their public relations leadership. We are also grateful for the support and commitment of the Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation who have been instrumental in moving this forward.
Program Finalized for ABI Network Conference
We are pleased to report that an exciting program has been put together for the upcoming Toronto ABI Network conference to be held on November 3-4, 2008 at the Hilton Toronto.
This two-day conference features:
- four keynote speakers,
- 32 podium presentations,
- 19 poster displays,
- exhibits by most of our 42 sponsors, and
- opportunities to network with over 400 registrants.
See full program details on the program page of our Conference 2008 website or download a PDF version of the program.
Registration for this event is well underway. Please make sure to register early as our events in 2004 and 2006 sold out early.
Information about registration may be obtained from the registration page of our Conference 2008 website, including costs and deadlines.
Recent Committee Activity
Working group addressing concerns around people sent home to wait for inpatient rehab
Through monitoring our central referral process and wait list, the System Coordination Committee has become increasingly concerned about the number of people being discharged home from acute care to wait for rehabilitation. All too often, these people are refusing inpatient rehab when it is offered and may or may not be getting access to the services they require. We also hear frequently of people who are trying to regain access to the system after struggling for many weeks and months without support.
In response to these concerns, the Network has convened a working group to investigate the scope of the problem and develop targeted solutions to address the issues. As a first step the working group has developed a communication that will be provided to individuals and families when being discharged from acute care to wait for inpatient rehabilitation.
This communication will remind people that they have been referred to inpatient rehab, will give basic information about what to expect, and will provide the Network’s phone number to provide a point of contact to follow-up with the referral. These information cards will be distributed to referrers in acute care and will be posted on our website to be downloaded as needed.
We are also recommending that these letters be used when a patient is being discharged to a community hospital to wait for rehabilitation as we sometimes find that they are discharged home soon after being repatriated and follow-up becomes difficult. The Network office will continue to monitor wait times, rehab capacity, and the impact of discharging individuals home to wait for rehabilitation.
Education and awareness events planned
The Network has a number of initiatives underway to support increasing awareness about ABI. We have had the opportunity to work with John Kumpf of the Ontario Brain Injury Association, Dr. Nora Cullen and Dr. Vanita Gopal of Toronto Rehab, and Dr. Chanth Seyone of Toronto Western Hospital, to support the development of an education workshop for family physicians that has been accepted at a national family physician conference. The three-hour workshop entitled, “Acquired brain injury: The basics and beyond” will be held at the Family Physician Forum in Toronto on November 29, 2008.
Another workshop for family physicians specifically about the psychiatric and behavioural issues associated with ABI is being considered for the spring of 2009.
In addition, the Network’s Best Practice Committee continues to support the dissemination of best practices related to substance use and brain injury, family intervention for adolescents with brain injury, and other specialized assessment and treatment best practices.
Data on Referrals Received
The Toronto ABI Network manages referrals for acquired brain injury services in the Greater Toronto Area. Referrals for inpatient service are triaged through the Network office to the first available bed that is appropriate to the individual's needs. The Network also facilitates the process of referring to community-based ABI providers.
The following information reports only on patients/clients referred through the Network office and is not intended to reflect incidence data.
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* Client registration refers to the first instance where a person was referred to the Network. People being referred subsequently for other services are not reported again in this chart.
Toronto/GTA includes: Toronto Central LHIN, Central LHIN, Central East LHIN, Central West LHIN, and Mississauga-Halton LHIN.
Event Listing
The events listed here are provided for your information and are not necessarily being organized by the Toronto ABI Network. If you are interested in further details about any of the events below, please contact the appropriate individual identified in the event listing.
September 5-6, 2008
Evaluation and Treatment of Visual Perceptual Dysfunction in Adult Brain Injury (Level 1)
Facilitator: Mary Warren MS, OTR/L, SCLV, FAOTA
Location: Holiday Inn Waterfront, Peterborough, Ontario
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Contact: MindWorks
Email: info@mindworksgroup.ca
Web: www.mindworksgroup.ca
September 23-24, 2008
Ontario Brain Injury Association in conjunction with Brock University presents a Certificate Training Program:
Neurobehavioural Disorders: Their Origin, Nature and Rehabilitation
Facilitator: Dr. Rodger Wood, University of Wales
Location: Quality Inn and Convention Centre, St. Catharines, Ontario
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Contact: Debbie Spaulding or Ruth Wilcock at OBIA
Phone: 1-800-263-5404
Web: www.obia.on.ca
October 23, 2008
Brain Injury Association of Niagara Conference 2008
Pathways to Discovery: Resilience, Empowerment and Innovation
Featuring keynote speaker Walter Gretzky
Location: Four Points Sheraton, Thorold, Ontario
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Contact: Brain Injury Association of Niagara
Phone: 905-984-5058
November 3-4, 2008
Toronto ABI Network Conference 2008
Location: Hilton Toronto, Toronto, Ontario
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Contact: Cass Bayley, Conference Manager
Phone: 1-888-527-3434
Email: conference@abinetwork.ca
Web: www.abinetwork.ca/conference2008
Get Program and Registration Form Now (PDF)
This listing provides details of events taking place within a few months of the newsletter’s release date. For a more comprehensive list of events of interest to the ABI community, please see the conference listing on our website.
In Brief
Hello and Goodbyes
Cora Moncada has completed her one-year contract as Assistant Executive Director of the Network and has decided to take some time with her family this summer. We wish her well and thank her for her support over the past 12 months.
Shelley Pinto has joined the Network for the summer to manage the referral system. She can be reached at 416-597-3422 ext. 3688 or by email to pinto.shelley@torontorehab.on.ca.
We would also like to say thank you and goodbye to Gaye Walsh. Gaye has been a tireless supporter of the Toronto ABI Network through her participation on our Advisory Committee as the representative for Bridgepoint Health, as well as our Executive Committee and a number of smaller purpose-oriented task groups over the years. Gaye is retiring from Bridgepoint Health on June 30, 2008 and we will greatly miss her leadership and support. Jackie Eli, Program Director, Neurological Support Program, will be replacing Gaye as Bridgepoint’s representative on the Advisory Committee.