Brighton Brain Injury Service (BBIS)

The Brighton Brain Injury Service provides specialist subacute inpatient rehabilitation for patients who have experienced a moderate to severe Acquired Brain Injury. Our rehabilitation service is patient-centred, goal directed and focuses on inter-disciplinary service provision to ensure a supported and sustainable transition to community living. The Brighton Brain Injury Service team work closely with patients and their families to ensure that they are active participants in the decision-making and therapy processes.

Service details

The Brighton Brain Injury Service is a 10-bed specialist inpatient neurorehabilitation facility providing comprehensive rehabilitation for patients with an acquired brain injury. Specialist neurorehabilitation services are delivered onsite by a team of caring and experienced interdisciplinary health professionals. The team of rehabilitation specialists includes:

• Rehabilitation medicine specialists
• Nurses
• Physiotherapists
• Occupational therapists
• Dietitians
• Social workers
• Speech pathologists
• Psychologists
• Pharmacists
• Music therapists
• Allied health assistants.

Patients can also access additional services, including:

• Podiatry
• Rehabilitation engineers
• Prosthetics and orthotics.

Services provided in the Brighton Brain Injury Service are tailored to the specific needs of each individual patient. These services can include:

• Complex equipment prescription.
• Enteral nutrition.
• Hypertonicity management.
• Positive behaviour support.
• Specialist assessment and management of patients in a Prolonged Disorders of Consciousness (PDOC).
• Tracheostomy management and weaning.

Patients have all their meals provided during their stay and will be accommodated in a single room with an ensuite that is shared between two patient rooms.

Brighton foreshore and parklands

Location

The Brighton Brain Injury Service is located in Ebbtide House on the Brighton Health Campus, overlooking Moreton Bay with direct access to the Brighton Foreshore Parklands. The Brighton Health Campus can be easily accessed via Hornibrook Highway with free off-street parking, so family and friends can visit throughout the patient’s rehabilitation journey. Bus stops are located adjacent to the campus, on the Hornibrook Highway. The nearest railway stations are at Sandgate and Shorncliffe, with bus connections available.

Visiting hours

We encourage patients’ family and friends to visit during their stay. Visiting hours are flexible and can vary depending on the needs of the patient. The Brighton Brain Injury Service is an intensive neurorehabilitation environment, so it is important that patients can freely participate in therapy and have adequate opportunity to rest (e.g., between rehabilitation activities and nursing cares). Visitors can ask Brighton Brain Injury Service staff about the specific visiting arrangements for their friend or relative.

Visitors are asked to consider the needs of the other patients who may be sharing the facilities with their friend or relative. Visitation may be restricted during medical and/or nursing procedures and in emergency situations. Visitors should not attend the Brighton Brain Injury Service if they are unwell (e.g., coughs or colds, gastro symptoms, etc.). Children are welcome to visit but must be always accompanied by an adult.

Referral requirements

To be eligible for admission to the Brighton Brain Injury Service patients must:

• Have a primary diagnosis of acquired brain injury with moderate to severe impairments.
  • This can include patients in a Disorder of Consciousness.
• Be aged between 16 and 65 years of age.
• Be medically stable.

Dispensation to these criteria may be possible on a case-by-case basis. If the patient does not meet the eligibility criteria listed above, please contact the referral and admissions team to discuss whether the individual clinical and rehabilitation needs of the patient can be met by the Brighton Brain Injury Service.

Patients with the following care needs may not be suitable for admission to the Brighton Brain Injury Service:

• The patient has a progressive neurological condition as a primary cause of functional deterioration.
• The patient is experiencing significant exacerbation of existing or acute mental illness that cannot be safely managed within the service.
• The patient suffers from severe behavioural disorders, which present as a risk to staff, patients, or the environment.

The Brighton Brain Injury team is happy to discuss any potential referrals. If it is unclear whether the patient’s care and rehabilitation needs can be met through the services available at the Brighton Brain Injury Service, then please contact us to discuss further.

How to access this service – Referrals

Referrals to the Brighton Brain Injury Service are accepted from health professionals located across Queensland. Please complete the Brighton Brain Injury Service referral form and email to BrightonBrainInjuryService@health.qld.gov.au.