Headlight Case Study

Introduction to Headlight

A new bespoke head trauma triage service. Headlight is a remote head trauma triage service which gives claims handlers and lawyers a detailed assessment to accurately triage and provide the best treatment programme for the best possible clinical outcomes.

How we got Norman back to school

Norman (not the client’s real name) is a man in his early thirties who works full-time as a secondary school teacher in a large city. On October 9th 2020, Norman was involved in a road traffic collision while cycling on his way to work. He was taken to hospital where he was found to have sustained concussion. In addition, he suffered an anterior compression of his T7 vertebrae, a rib fracture, sprains to his knee and ankle, and various cuts and bruises. After receiving treatment for his physical injuries, Norman returned to work as a teacher but faced ongoing difficulties in both work and home life.

The problem:

Although Norman felt that he had made a significant recovery, it was clear in his Reach Headlight assessments, that he remained affected psychologically by the trauma of the accident. He showed signs of cognitive fatigue, possible executive skills deficits, occasional word-finding difficulties and sleep
disturbance. Norman’s partner also contributed to this assessment, indicating that Norman didn’t recognise all his current symptoms. Her main concern was that he would be unable psychologically to process the trauma of the accident or cope with increasing life demands or sustain a work-life balance.
Norman had difficulty making decisions, was tearful at times, and was sleeping much longer.

The solution:

Norman participated in Reach’s fortnightly virtual video treatment sessions, enabling him to trial strategies and gather data for informed sessions.
The sessions included:

• General head trauma education to understand psychological changes and effects from a concussion.
• Fatigue education and management.
• Thinking and executive skills education.
• Sleep hygiene and advice and strategy training.
• How to goal set, manage demand, and plan to return to previous exercise and leisure pursuits.

The outcome:

Using outcome measures Reach were able to clearly identify and measure progress. Norman is reassured to know his symptoms are normal. He is aware of the reasons for his fatigue and manages activity to avoid a ‘boom/bust’ cycle. He better manages the school day, using opportunities to rest and manage expectations of ‘out of hours’ activities. His tolerance levels are much improved and no longer impact on his relationship. His thinking and executive skills have improved. He can manage organisational strategies to manage work demands. He has resumed normal social activities.

Concluding comments:

In his final session, Norman reported:
Collaborative working is key to this success, and Reach thinks outside of the box to ensure that rehabilitation is timely, appropriate, sustainable and client-centred for each individual because not every brain injury is the same and one approach does not fit all.
Leading TBI Case Manager