Statewide Brain Injury Rehabilitation Services

There are three adult inpatient BIRP units, all located in the Sydney metropolitan area – Liverpool Hospital, Westmead Hospital and Royal Rehabilitation Centre Sydney.

Suitability for admission to these specialist units is medically assessed and based on age, nature and severity of injury and readiness for specialist rehabilitation. Referrals are managed by the inpatient medical teams.

Eligibility and exclusion criteria

Primary eligibility criteria for the adult brain injury specialist inpatient units include:

• Recent severe or very severe traumatic brain injury assessed using a post-traumatic amnesia scale, imaging, Glasgow Coma Scale or other clinical markers
• Age between 16 and 65 years
• Rehabilitation goals which require access to a specialist, interdisciplinary team
• Significant non-traumatic acquired brain injury where the person otherwise fits within the eligibility for the specialist inpatient brain injury rehabilitation unit

Exclusion criteria may include:

• Brain injury is not the primary diagnosis, and the care required for the primary diagnosis or significant co-morbidity is beyond the scope of service available at the brain injury unit or prevents the person from identifying functional goals and engaging in rehabilitation.
• Acquired brain injuries resulting from progressive and degenerative neurological disorders.

Inpatient specialist brain injury rehabilitation services are available at the major children’s trauma hospitals in NSW – Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead and John Hunter Children’s Hospital.

Referral for assessment for specialist inpatient services can be made by the medical team once the child is medically stable.

Services available in community BIRPs vary according to local resources and to meet local needs. They may include adult and/or paediatric services, transitional living programs, outpatient clinics, community rehabilitation programs and/or case management services.

Referrals can be made by hospitals, outpatient clinics, general practitioners, community health services and by the injured person themselves (or a family member).

People referred will be considered for suitability for the programs available at that BIRP before services can be offered.

Eligibility

These eligibility criteria for community rehabilitation programs apply across all priority groups.

• The person must be deemed able to engage with, and benefit functionally from, BIRP services.
• The person must have complex needs which can, and need to be, addressed with an interdisciplinary approach, including allied health inputs and rehabilitation case management.
• The brain injury must be the primary reason for the person requiring a specialist rehabilitation service.
• The person is aged up to 65 years. People aged over 65 years will be considered on a case-by-case basis, primarily considering their current life roles and the nature of their functional goals for rehabilitation.
• People are eligible only for those services available within their own, or nearest LHD (in some circumstances BIRPs may have an arrangement with adjacent LHDs to offer specific services).

The eligibility criteria provide guidance only. In certain circumstances, people may or may not be accepted for community BIRP for a range of reasons. Potential referrals should be discussed with the most appropriate service manager using the Service Directory.

Priority groups

Given the demand for community BIRP services, a priority hierarchy has been developed to ensure BIRP services are available to the most appropriate people.