Planning for young adults with brain damage in New South Wales

Abstract

Adults with brain damage may have acquired it from three principal causes: from developmental disability or in very early life as a result of illness; in early adult life mainly from trauma, usually road accidents; and in late life due to dementia but also stroke and tumour. Whilst the resulting disabilities can be very similar, requiring comparable management strategies and causing similar stresses for their carers, there are very diverse avenues for service provision for these three categories, the only common feature perhaps being under-provision. There may be a case for “brain damaged persons unite!” with the prospect of more rational provision of support.