Victoria’s first publicly funded adult concussion clinic aims to fill a gap in rehabilitation care by providing patients with access to clinical and allied health services.
Based at Caulfield Hospital in Melbourne, the Alfred Health Concussion Clinic has a team of neurologists, physiotherapists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and clinical psychologists who help patients recover up to six months after their injury.
Previously, staff had struggled to refer the public patients at The Alfred and Sandringham Hospital EDs to the appropriate follow-up care.
Speech pathology manager Kate Lawlor, who established the business case for the clinic, said Alfred Health had up to 680 concussion patients each year – more than 10 per week – who were at increased risk of ongoing impacts without intervention.
“We are really excited to launch this clinic, having seen so many people come through emergency but not having anywhere to send them post-discharge. We know that early intervention is key for concussion sufferers to prevent their symptoms from becoming chronic,” she said in a statement.
Patients in the community aged 16 and over with ongoing effects from concussion will be able to access the clinic, including those who have been involved in falls, accidents, assaults, family violence and head injuries through community sports.
While concussion clinics exist in Australia, many are under-resourced, have long waiting lists, cater only for children and are concentrated in the private system.
Emma Maguire, the clinic’s allied health lead and senior occupational therapist, told the ABC: “We’re addressing a need that has existed for a long time [and] giving people the opportunity to access support when they otherwise might not have known about it or been able to afford it.
”We know the earlier we can intervene and give people concussion education … return-to-work plans — getting them back on the treadmill and improving their exercise tolerance — the better their outcomes will be.”
Professor Terence O’Brien, program director at Alfred Brain, said previously there was a perception that concussion didn’t require high-level specialist input. However, community and medical concerns about its neurological effects were increasing.
“Having a dedicated, multidisciplinary public health clinic will allow Victorians who have suffered a concussion to benefit from expert assessment and management advice,” he said.
The service also provides telehealth options for patients across the state.
The Alfred Health Concussion Clinic will also partner with the Department of Neuroscience at Monash University to enable further research on concussion biomarkers and provide best-practise treatment and diagnostic outcomes.