Brain Injury Hospital Proposal Support

September 10, 2013

To whom it may concern:

Four years ago, my only child, Brenna Deshawn Dowd, lived a normal life, pursuing her goal as a criminal justice major. On May 25, 2010, she was four classes away from her Masters in Criminal Justice Administration, with all the hopes and dreams of being a voice for young people and children who had no voice in the justice system.

She suffered a concussion as the result of an automobile accident in April 2009. Little did we know how critical a concussion could be. She began to lose her depth perception and proudly held that knowledge to herself. When I discovered her declining vision, I insisted on her seeing a vision specialist. Twenty-four hours after the fourth eye repair surgery, my daughter was comatose, unresponsive.

Thus began our journey through a health care system that is, at best, inadequately responsive to the medical and rehabilitation needs of a person who suffers a hypoxic-anoxic (HAI) brain injury. We were given no hope, yet Brenna knew me from the very beginning. She was not brain dead. Her brain stem was healthy. She still had at least 50% of her brain functioning and the neurologist said it was too early to assess damage until at least 8 weeks. I learned through this journey that few in the medical profession are knowledgeable about brain injury rehabilitation and recovery.

As a mother who approached numerous rehabilitation centers on Brenna’s behalf, I learned the discriminatory practices against those who suffer HAI. I have learned that while the Federal government’s intent is that HAI patients are to be included in the same therapeutic opportunities as TBI, that intent has not trickled down to rehabilitation centers.

For your benefit, I am attaching a recent letter from Linda C. Degutis, DrPH, MSN. Director, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Her paragraph four affirms the government’s intent to include HAI and TBI on the same levels.

“For the purposes of this section, the term “traumatic brain injury” means an acquired injury to the brain. Such term does not include brain dysfunction caused by congenital or degenerative disorders, nor birth trauma, but may include brain injuries caused by anoxia due to trauma.”

Brain injury rehabilitation is perhaps the last medical frontier, one we cannot afford to ignore. We know so little about this magnificent organ and thousands of patients have so much to gain from a hospital whose sole focus is on brain injury rehabilitation.

The latest figures of the CDC and NIH reports 3.5 million new TBIs every year. This is a critical increase over the previously reported 1.7 million new TBIs per year. HAI patients continue to be uncounted. With this ever increasing number of brain injuries, the numbers of facilities available in the United States are critically limited. In this great country of ours, there is room for more. For the sake of future generations, we must move forward in establishing more brain injury rehabilitation hospitals.

Please give Dr. Senno’s proposal serious consideration for the future of all patients with a brain injury.

Sincerely: 

Pamela G. Blaxton
Founder-Director, Brenna’s Hope Foundation