Brain Injuries And Discrimination

Randy Rozek • July 9, 2014

According to the Brain Injury Association of America, an average of 1.7 million people in the United States suffer brain injuries each year. Brain injuries do not discriminate, but people who suffer from them are often discriminated against and misunderstood. A traumatic brain injury(TBI) can leave individuals with ongoing impairments that stop them from finding and keeping a job. Such problems might be related to attention, memory, communication, reasoning or problem solving. It can also impair vision, coordination or sleep. Additionally, people who suffer a TBI may feel alienated by their co-workers and employers.

Sometimes a person suffers from a TBI that is less visible, which creates difficulty qualifying for services. In the last 20 years, supported employment services have helped to make a difference for those with TBI. Nevertheless, supported employment services are not always available because many people in the United States do not understand how injuries of the brain work.

What is a traumatic brain injury? A TBI has been defined as an injury that hurts the function of the brain. The severity ranges from the mild to severe. Of the 1.7 million individuals who injured their brains, 52,000 of them die while 1.365 million are treated and released from the emergency department. Some of the leading causes for a TBI include: Falls, car accidents and assaults. Car accidents are the leading cause of TBI and are responsible for 50 percent of all brain injuries. Men are 1.5 times more likely to sustain a TBI than women. When an individual sustains a TBI, they are three times more likely to have a second one. Every 21 seconds, someone in the United States suffers from TBI. People who have a loved one who suffered an injury of the brain should be sure to share details about their loved one’s intellect and activities they liked to do with the medical team. This helps them to give a diagnosis, and it can help them to plan a personalized rehabilitation process.