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Anthony Gold's Claims and Medical Claims Department specializes in treating claimants who have suffered a brain injury as a result of an accident or negligent treatment. Recent media reports have led me to think about what the intended audience understands when they read "brain injury" (I will comment further on these stories below). A layperson will most likely imagine a scenario in which the aggrieved party would be unable to function autonomously, suffer from a significant physical disability, forcing him to remain in bed / wheelchair and possibly requiring care in a home. institutional environment.
The reality is that there is a range of injuries ranging from coma to concussion and all the nuances in between. This blog will focus on "mild" traumatic brain injury and, more specifically, those suffering from it, suffer from permanent symptoms.
To confuse things, sweet does not really mean sweet when it comes to symptoms that will affect a client for the rest of his life. Sweet can, and often does, be devastating. I can not emphasize this too much. A mild brain injury can include things such as (and this is not an exhaustive list) memory loss, the inability to process information as quickly and comprehensively, the reduction or loss of meaning (as the taste or smell), loss of inhibition and (this is a big problem) a change of personality.
From my experience as a representative of asylum seekers, a psychiatric injury often goes along with the maintenance of a mild traumatic brain injury. This is often a delayed reaction. For a while, the individual will focus on his immediate physical recovery after an accident (fracture healing, follow-up appointments, physical therapy, etc.). A client with a brain injury often denies that there is a brain function problem and, even if he recognizes that there is a problem, he is convinced that he is not sure what is going on. it will eventually belong to the majority who will be able to recover from any cognitive deficit. .
But what about those who do not recover? Take the example of the project manager who is no longer able to process the information as quickly as before. Mechanisms for adaptation can be learned, such as taking detailed notes, dictating instructions for oneself, taking photographs as visual aids, and using badistants to delegate tasks. All of this has financial implications when it is understood that projects take longer, that fewer projects can be undertaken and that additional staff absorb the costs of profits. The reduced gain capacity will be a factor in maintaining the psychiatric response to brain injury. Depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorders (all well-known psychiatric injuries after brain injury) can in turn affect a person's ability to learn coping strategies. It's an ever-increasing vicious circle. As lawyers, it is our duty to ensure that any future loss is duly considered and investigated so that the claimant is properly compensated. This can be a delicate task if your client denies the existence and / or severity of his injury.
The media reports to which I refer in my introductory paragraph concern the marriage breakdown of James Cracknell and Beverley Turner announced in March 2019. There are many reports, so I'm not going to refer you to one in particular . Those who know James' story will know that he suffered a brain injury in 2010, which resulted in (among other things) a distinct personality change. At the time of the accident, referring physicians told the couple that 75% of marriages with brain injury were unsuccessful. They were determined not to be part of this majority. Over the next few years, the media reported on James' recovery, his return to sport, the challenges he had set himself and, more recently, his return to school and his participation at the boat race. For the media, it may have been a shock division, but for those who are familiar with brain damage, the result is sad and familiar.
When working with clients who have suffered a brain injury and you consider their case from a forensic point of view, it's easy to overlook the fact that when a person suffers brain injury, it affects the whole family and others. The wounded and their entourage face a daily struggle relentlessly. Years later, after the shock, sympathy and support shown in the immediate aftermath, people with brain injury are always up to the job, victims of brain damage.
James's story – or, I should say more accurately, his family's story – shows that the fact of having a brain injury does not mean that it must be fatal. His brain injury does not define it. But that does not mean that life will be beautiful after a certain period of recovery. There are wounds for which time is not a complete healer.
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