HEALTHCARE COORDINATION AND BRAIN INJURY
The brain damage occurred as a result of a vascular brain stroke, traumatism skull brain injury, epileptic seizure, or any other cause, requires a real healthcare coordination for its treatment as any other disease. Since the moment the injury takes place, it is necessary to work intensively at the area health area in order to save the life. After that, we must continue with a multidisciplinary rehabilitation for different injuries and enter in the social field and professional reintegration through the patient’s greater autonomy.
People who suffered brain damage cross a long way through the different kind of administrations, mainly Health and Social Welfare, in order to be attended, consequently receive additional physical and emotional wear. In addition, the possible lack of coordination between administrations places the affected person "in no man's land" where they do not receive any treatment and end up getting worse their injuries. Possibly if they would receive the treatment earlier, their deficits would be minimized or eliminated, obtaining thereby a better patient’s health and life quality.
In the Rehabilitation Centre Casaverde a pioneering service is carried out, as the patient “without moving from the bed" passes through the different administrations or rather the organizations themselves are dealing with him through perfectly coordinated units that treat the different brain injury stages. The Subacute Unit with private patients or funded by the Health’s Department and the Reintegration Unit with private patients or funded by the Department of Social Welfare.
The patient joins the Subacute Unit at Casaverde, after having suffered the injury and when is stable. This unit works hard in patient’s rehabilitation and health care at the same time as it begins to analyze the preserved abilities on which the patient will have to develop for his/her autonomy and return to society. Completed this stage, the person continues at Casaverde Reintegration Unit. In this unit, we work on preserved or recovered skills in order to achieve the greatest possible autonomy level and a better social and professional reintegration, without forgetting the continuity of healthcare and rehabilitation treatments. Finally, the patient is convalescent and keeps on being employed at the Ambulatory Unit or at home while followed by a multidisciplinary Casaverde team for 18 months.
All this work requires a quick and effective coordination and a permanent contact with referral hospitals and Social Welfare departments. Along with the described clinical work, the obtained data is used in a research project carried out by Casaverde Foundation to learn about the benefits that provides an adequate coordination in Healthcare System. As well as, the much-needed cost savings for the sustainability of ours National Health System, essential to ensure our future as a society.
We know that we live in difficult moments, but we must persevere in looking for information and innovative approaches. It is necessary that as a society, we apply to ourselves the phrase that says: “Only if you dare to dream, your dreams may turn into reality one day”.
