For too many people in Ireland, surviving a brain injury isn’t where the fight ends – it’s where it begins. Ahead of the election on November 29th, we are calling on candidates to uphold the human rights of brain injury survivors and give them the chance to live the lives they fought so hard for.

In this campaign, we are asking election candidates to commit in the Programme for Government to fully delivery on the Neuro-rehabilitation Framework 2019-2021.

We are asking candidates to fight for the lives of brain injury survivors by:

• Raising awareness of the rehabilitation needs of people with a brain injury and their families in the Dáil.
• Advocating to prioritise funding for long term rehabilitation services for people with brain injury, to address the massive gaps and postcode lottery for services.
• Making Acquired Brain Injury Ireland financially sustainable, so that it can continue to deliver in the community.

Brain injury survivors, their families and friends have been relaying these messages to their local candidates and sharing their lived experiences in the lead up to November 29th. They have spoken of the challenges they’ve faced navigating sizeable gaps in the rehabilitation pathway, the postcode lottery for services and the absence of information about how to adjust to life after acquired brain injury.

“Acquired brain injury is a lifelong journey”, continued Lorraine. “You can maintain where you are, but that part of your brain isn’t going to heal. That’s the way it is forever. So, rehabilitation helps you and educates you about how to live your best life. And you need that support throughout your life.”

Phil Quinlan survived a traumatic brain injury at the age of 15. Describing his experience and the experience of his family he said:

“After playing in an Under 16 friendly football match I clashed heads. I spent 10 days in a coma, given a 25% chance of living, before regaining full consciousness six weeks later. My right side was paralysed, I couldn’t walk, talk nor eat. I was like a toddler in a teenager’s body. I was 15.

Both my parents had to take over my rehabilitation. I was saved by the neurosurgeons and then left to my own devices. I could have achieved so much more had the system kept me and supported me. Information is also, unfortunately, still very thin on the ground. It’s hard to know where to go after one leaves hospital.”