A crisis in the community

National Brain Injury Awareness Week is a campaign that aims to raise awareness of brain injury in the community.  The week is important to people with brain injury as it acknowledges they have a recognised injury and brings them together with other peers who have similar experiences.  

For over 21 years the Brain Injury Association of Tasmania has been working to raise community awareness of brain injury and its impacts, and to reduce the incidence of brain injury. BIAT also drives change to improve the lives of, and provides a voice for, people living with or affected by brain injury.

BIAT’s theme for NationalBrain Injury Awareness Week in 2020 is Brain Injury in the Community. During the week, which runs from 17–23 August, BIATwill be highlighting the reach and impact of brain injury across the community.

Events planned for the week span from Ulverstone to Huonville and focus on a range of issues including peer support and female concussion. With an estimated 2.2 percent of Tasmanians living with brain injury, the week will serve to remind people that brain injury can, and does, happen to anyone, anywhere at any time during a person’s life.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, many Brain Injury Awareness Week events are being held online and will be accessible to a wider audience both locally and nationally.

BIAT is launching the week with a Video Premiere at 10:00am on August, Monday 17.  In addition to the official launch, the video will feature a short presentation on BIAT’s new Brain Injury PeerSupport Program Resources: 

• "The Value of Shared     Experiences - A Brain Injury Peer Support Guide"
• Peer Support Program Overview     Video

These resources form part of BIAT’s recently completed NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) Information, Linkages andCapacity Building Project: Rethinking Brain Injury. 

Tuesday features a Q&A session with retired clinical neuropsychologist, Mark Lamont, streaming live from the Ulverstone Brain Injury Peer Support Group.  

Earlier in the year, BIATwas pleased to support local online journal The Tassie Athlete (www.thetassieathlete.com.au) - who profiled Launceston mountain bike cyclist Izzy Flint, and her concussion journey following a devastating crash in New Zealand. More recently we caught up with Holly Radburn and her dad, Mike, to video their story of the ongoing impact of Holly’s fourth concussion.  On Wednesday and Thursday, we will be showcasing the lived experience of sporting concussion from the perspective of these two remarkable, youngTasmanian women.  

In keeping with the community theme, BIAT is heading to Huonville on Friday to provide the brain injury prevention component of the 2020 Rotary Youth Driver Awareness (RYDA) program. Run over three weeks, Alf Archer co-presents every RYDA Crash Survivor session, sharing valuable insights on life with brain injury sustained as a result of a motor vehicle crash.

On Saturday, August 22, BIAT will publish an update from 11-year-old Tasmanian Izzy Elliott who founded Scrunch_Iz in early 2019 in memory of her uncle Brodie who sustained a brain injury as a teenager. For over 18 months Izzy has been busy sewing and selling hair accessories to raise awareness of brain injury and funds for the Brain Injury Association of Tasmania. 

To keep up to date with all BIAT’s Brain Injury Awareness week 2020 events:

Like/Follow the BIAT Facebook page: www.facebook.com/braininjurytasmania or go to:- https://www.biat.org.au/education-training/biat-bia-week

Subscribe to the BIAT newsletter: https://bit.ly/BIATsubscribe