Roseville, CA – Of the 1.7 million people who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year, 52,000 die, 275,000 are hospitalized and 1,365,000 are treated and released from an emergency department. A traumatic brain injury is a blow, jolt or bump to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal function of the brain.
But the real story, the one embedded in the lives of brain injury survivors, their families, friends and caregivers, goes far beyond the number and statistics. The personal impact of a brain injury can be devastating. It can create despair for individuals, upheaval in families and the need for long term or life-long assistance to carry out the most basic activities of daily living.
Sutter Roseville Medical Center offers a monthly support group for brain injury survivors. This group meets the last Wednesday of every month from 2 – 3 p.m. at Sutter Rehabilitation Institute. Facilitated by Alyssa Rose, Recreational Therapist, this group offers a safe and caring environment for those who suffer acquired and traumatic brain injuries. Rose says the goal is to educate the community on brain injuries and to provide available resources and preventative information.
Those in the support group know first-hand that a brain injury can happen anytime, anywhere to anyone-brain injuries do not discriminate. In addition, just as no two people are exactly alike, no two brain injuries are exactly alike. For some, brain injury is the start of a lifelong disease process. The injury requires access to a full continuum of medical treatment and community-based support from teams of qualified and specialized clinicians.
Because it’s important for survivors to have resources, the Sutter Rehabilitation Institute brain injury support group supports the Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA ). BIAA is a national organization that helps people with brain injury and their families by providing information, resources and support and by advocating for life-saving research and treatment. In addition, BIAA recognizes March for Brain Injury Awareness Month to raise awareness and to honor the millions of people with brain injuries.
The Sutter Rehabilitation Institute brain injury support group meets on Wednesday, April 25, at 2 p.m., at Sutter Rehabilitation Institute, located on the Sutter Roseville Medical Center Campus, 6 Medical Plaza (Building #6), in Conference Room 19. For more information call 916-878-2573