Supporting adults with an acquired brain injury in the community ‐ a case for specialist training for support workers Available to Purchase

Acquired brain injury (ABI) can happen to anyone at any time. As a result, the person can experience a wide range of difficulties related to a combination of physical, cognitive, behavioural and emotional changes. It is the less obvious social and emotional difficulties in particular that present challenges to community integration and require major life adjustment.The type and level of support needed by people living with a brain injury is as unique as the person and their experience. The role of the support worker is open‐ended and tailored for each client; therefore, support workers are expected to have a wide and dynamic range of skills and qualities. Support workers need not only to understand the effects of ABI and its impact on the lives of individuals and their families, but also the influence of different values and attitudes on the support worker/client relationship.This article discusses some of the particular needs of a person after an ABI, what makes the role of the support worker different when working with this client group and what, as practitioners, we need to consider in terms of support worker training. Consideration is given to the influence of new Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulations and the introduction of a personalised system of care, two recent and significant changes related to the provision of adult social care services. Finally, the article goes on to look at an accredited programme ‘Supporting an Individual with Acquired Brain Injury’ as an example of one approach to providing specialist training.