Training workshops in acquired brain injury and challenging behaviour are currently being organised for 2010. Details for workshops in the metropolitan area as well as Bathurst, Griffith, Lismore, Tamworth and Coffs Harbour will be advertised as they are confirmed.

BIA NSW Interagency Meeting

The next BIA NSW Interagency Meeting, to be held on March 17th at Parramatta, will focus on Disability Employment Services. More...

Paralympics in 2012 - support wanted

One of our members, Stephen Bastick, is working hard towards competing at the 2012 Paralympic Games in the UK.  Members may remember that Steve successfully completed a Brain Injury Awareness charity ride in September 2007, raising funds for BIA NSW. Steve is now seeking emotional, physical and financial support to be able to achieve this goal. More...

BIA NSW Board

The Association has an elected Board of nine members and at the 2009 AGM, three Board positions (Secretary, and two Ordinary positions) were declared vacant.   Seven nominations were received for the two Ordinary positions and the subsequent election resulted in Dr Ian Baguley and Ms Sylvia Miles being elected to the Board. More...

Sincere thanks to outgoing long term board members Nick Rushworth, Raad Richards and Dr Kath McCarthy for their dedication to the Board of the Association.

Call for Contributions

The Council to Homeless Persons is currently calling for contributions on the topic of Acquired Brain Injury and Homelessness, to be included in the February 2010 edition of Parity (the leading journal in Australia regarding homelessness issues).  Although it is difficult to know the exact numbers of people living with an ABI who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, studies cited by Brain Injury Australia point to there being a significant proportion of the homeless population living with an ABI and likewise, a significant number living with a ABI who are at risk of homelessness.

All contributions are welcome and need to be submitted by Friday, 19th February, 2010.

For more information see attached Call For Contributions or contact Noel Murray, Parity Editor at or (03) 9419 8699. 

Brain Injury Awareness Week 2010

Brain Injury Awareness Week - 16th to 22nd August 2010 - will this year focus on Falls and Acquired Brain Injury.  

Brain Injury Australia recently prepared a 2008-09 Policy Paper on falls-related Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) for the Federal Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA).

Falls are now both the leading cause of Traumatic Brain Injury in Australia (responsible for 42% of hospitalisations in 2004/2005) and the leading cause of injury hospitalisations overall (accounting for 1 in every 3 - or 126,800 - injury admissions in 2003/2004).  Executive Officer of Brain Injury Australia, Nick Rushworth, would greatly appreciate your feedback on the Paper's contents, or to hear of your experience of falls-related TBI.  Nick can be contacted at ..

A brain injury can mean a life changed forever: there can be dramatic personality changes, chronic health problems, or serious physical and cognitive disabilities.  A brain injury can make it difficult to make friends, learn new things, or solve problems.  And many people with a brain injury need help with everyday living for the rest of their lives.  More...

SHUT OUT: The experience of people with disabilities and their families in Australia: Report

At the end of 2008, people with disabilities and their families were invited to provide their experiences and input into a national consultation process to develop a National Disability Strategy.  Those experiences have now been compiled into a Report.  More...

BIA NSW CarerLink Peer Mentoring Program

BIA NSW CarerLink Peer Mentoring Program is up and running partnering Carers who have gone through similar experiences. CarerLink facilitates support for people who have become carers of someone who has sustained an ABI, through a peer mentoring model, allowing people to share their experience with someone who is a ‘veteran’ to the caring role having experienced a similar challenge. This program provides a complement to other services and programs available for people with ABI and their families, to be accessed as part of their re-engagement with the community. 

Please open this link for further information and for answers to frequently asked questions. More...

Current Research 

The BIA NSW Summer 2008 Newsletter highlighted two areas of research within the brain injury sector .

To view the full research articles, The Other Side of the Coin: Training Communication Partners to Improve Communication for people with TBI  and Walk Thru Walls: Drama Therapy for People with Acquired Brain Injury click here.

Research Project - Social Skills after Acquired Brain Injury

Researchers at University of NSW are looking for individuals with an acquired brain injury to be participants in a social skills research project.  More...

 

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