Success for brain injury conference

An event in Shrewsbury to celebrate inspirational people who battled back from life-changing brain injuries has been declared a major success.

The Thriving After Brain Injury conference was hosted by Lanyon Bowdler Solicitors at Theatre Severn and attracted people from all over the country.

A range of speakers described their own experiences of living with a brain injury, while others outlined the latest technology aiding rehabilitation, and therapy techniques.

One of the headline speakers was Jack Rutter, who suffered a traumatic head injury after being attacked outside a nightclub and went on to captain the GB football team at the 2016 Paralympics in Rio.

He explained to the audience how stepping out of his comfort zone enabled him to achieve great things, saying “the only disability in life is a bad attitude”.

Shropshire-based neuropsychological rehabilitation specialist Andrew Worthington talked about how positive psychology could help people flourish after a brain injury, and other speakers outlined technology and therapy advances.

Beth Heath, head of clinical negligence at Lanyon Bowdler, who hosted the conference said: "We were delighted with the turnout, with almost every seat in the auditorium full, and people were fascinated with every speaker.

“We heard from Jack Rutter and Alex Danson, a former Olympic hockey player forced to retire due to a serious concussion injury, who had very different stories to tell but were equally as uplifting.

“The technical insight from speakers like Hannah Wright of Royal Buckinghamshire Hospital, who talked us through the rehabilitation challenges faced by patients, and Mike Gomm of Steve Martin Associates, who described the very latest assistive technology which is helping people gain more independence, was superb.

“The feedback we have received from delegates has been fantastic, with people enjoying the blend of specialist knowledge and inspirational personal experiences. We would like to thank all of the speakers and event sponsors for their support, as well as everyone who took the time to be with us for the day.”

As well as raising awareness, the conference donated funds to the Hereford Adaptive Cycling Group and the Peeps charity, which supports people affected by a lack of oxygen to the brain during birth known as HIE (hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy).

Event sponsors were ARAG, Frenkel Topping Group and No5 Barristers Chambers.