Complete Guide to Brain Injury Rehabilitation: Rehabilitation, Costs, & Your Legal Rights

Brain injuries are one of the most common injuries we see in Ontario and also one of the most complex to treat. In an instant, a head injury can change your life forever. 

According to Head Injury Rehabilitation Ontario, a new person is injured with a TBI, or traumatic brain injury every 3.5 minutes, with over 45,000 new moderate to severe cases each year. The annual incidence of brain injuries is greater than that of spinal cord injuries, HIV/AIDS, MS, and breast cancer combined.

With brain injuries incredibly common as a result of a motorcycle, bike, or car accident, slip and fall, workplace accident, and more, it’s crucial to understand the complexities of treatments, TBI rehab, and your legal rights around loss compensation. 

What is the timeline for brain injury rehabilitation?

The brain is such a complex organ that no two injuries are truly the same. No two rehabilitation treatment plans or experiences are identical, either, so the timeline varies person by person.

How much money can you get from a brain injury?

It all depends on your case. Over the last 60 years, we’ve walked hundreds of clients through the rehabilitation, accident benefits, and compensation processes, and we’d love to share our advice so you can navigate the complex landscape and secure the best settlement as you recover. 

Read more about the signs of a brain injury, relevant therapies, costs, and your legal rights to secure brain injury lawsuit settlements.

Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms & Signs

Some people know immediately after an accident that they’ve sustained a TBI, but often, people discount symptoms and forego medical attention. Unfortunately, when a brain injury slips under the radar, it can be catastrophic not only for your health but for the success of any legal claims later. 

Watch for these signs and symptoms of a brain injury after an accident:

• Fatigue

• Loss of consciousness

• Nausea, vomiting, and dizziness

• Balance problems

• Confusion and slow information processing

• Emotional and behavioral issues, including irritability or depression

• Ringing ears

• Trouble sleeping

• Problems with speech

• A bad taste in the mouth or a change in the ability to smell

• Convulsions or seizures

What are the long-term effects of a brain injury?

Even after immediate symptoms subside, you can still be left with cognitive effects like memory issues or personality changes, physical effects like long-term fatigue, and behavioral effects like depression or anxiety. While some of these injuries can affect your life forever, swift treatment and a great therapy routine can help reduce symptoms as much as possible and get you back on track. 

The Best Brain Injury Therapies For a Strong Recovery

Though brain injuries are invisible, they have very real physical and mental outcomes that majorly impact life. With a multi-pronged approach to therapy, you set yourself up for the best recovery possible. 

Your treatments could include any of the following:

• Physical Therapy. Brain injuries can cause loss of motion and other physical issues that can be regained and rebuilt through physical therapy. Therapists will design an exercise plan to help manage pain and restore mobility, balance, and coordination.

• Physical Medicine. Working hand-in-hand with physical therapists, doctors can diagnose musculoskeletal or neurological conditions and use medications or injections to help manage pain and recovery.

• Psychiatric Treatment. Mental health is often significantly affected by a brain injury, but psychiatrists can diagnose and treat any emotional or psychological challenges you deal with through medication, therapy, or both. 

• Psychological Support. Psychiatrists largely deal with the medicine behind mental health, while psychologies provide therapy to help you sort through emotional challenges, develop healthier coping mechanisms, and improve your mental well-being. If you’re facing cognition challenges, therapists can also help retrain your brain to improve function, memory, critical thinking, and more.

• Occupational Therapy. Occupational therapists can help you regain any independence lost as a result of your brain injury. These therapists can help you learn how to perform basic daily living activities like cleaning, eating, and more, as well as assess and modify your environment so you’re set up with any assistive tools to help. 

• Speech Therapy. Speech-language pathologists can help you regain lost or affected abilities to speak, understand speech, and swallow.

Rehabilitation and treatment can happen across different clinics and locations, including outpatient rehab, inpatient rehab, home-based treatments, day programs, independent living centers, and more. 

How long do TBI patients stay in rehab?

Depending on the injury, most patients move through their rehabilitation program over a few weeks to a few years. 

The Cost of Brain Injury Treatment

How much does brain injury rehabilitation cost?

With such a range of treatments available, costs vary widely by case. While the average medical cost in the first year after an accident is $32,132, you may pay substantially less or more than this, depending on the severity of your injury and the type of treatment necessary. 

One study estimates that the lifetime cost of a brain injury treatment falls between $85,000 and $3 million. 

Types of Brain Injury Treatment Costs 

Direct costs encompass everything directly spent on your brain injury treatment, including therapy sessions, medical devices, medication, and all other paid treatments. They’re typically easy to understand and calculate.

On the other hand…

Indirect costs are a little harder to understand and calculate because they aren’t directly billed to patients or insurance. These indirect costs include transportation to appointments, lost wages from missing work, home modifications, pain and suffering, and reduced quality of life. However, these costs are just as real and add up significantly in the days, months, and years after the injury. 

Some healthcare costs are covered by insurance, while OHIP manages others. Often, there’s a massive gap remaining between coverage and real costs, so exploring every avenue available for compensation can mean the difference between financial distress and security. 

Legal Rights After a Brain Injury

A brain injury has severe physical, mental, and emotional impacts on our lives. If you’re dealing with short-term and long-term consequences, consult with brain injury lawyers to learn your rights and secure a professional who can advocate for you. TBI lawyers take that “fight” off your plate so you can focus 100% of your energy on recovery and secure the best settlement possible. 

The factors that affect your head injury claim include:

• The strength of your supporting evidence

• The nature of your accident and the party at fault

• The severity of the injury and associated costs

• Your ability to work moving forward

Under Ontario law, you’re entitled to recover pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages or direct and indirect costs after an injury. 

What is the average settlement for a traumatic brain injury in Canada?

The average mild TBI settlements sit between $5000 to $50,000, though head injury lawsuit payouts could vary based on the severity of the repercussions and costs. 

The Morris Law Group—Personal Injury Lawyers Hamilton

The last thing you want to worry about as you recover from a serious brain injury is your financial security, but concussion settlement value is a real concern. At The Morris Law Group, we have 60+ years of experience under our belts advocating for victims like you. When the average settlement for traumatic brain injury isn’t enough, we fight for your right to more. 

If you’ve experienced a brain injury, our Hamilton injury lawyers are ready to counsel you on your next best steps. We help you seek rehabilitation treatments, fair compensation, receive accident benefits, and navigate the complicated insurance and legal systems. Request a free consultation or call us at 905-526-8080 to learn more.