At Murdostoun Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre in North Lanarkshire, the team are always striving to improve the quality of care they provide to their patients. Last week, they had the unique opportunity to attend a Brain Empathy training session conducted by the Nursing and Therapy team from the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Services at Astley Ainsley Hospital in Edinburgh.
The Brain Empathy training is designed to offer an understanding of the challenges faced by people living with brain injuries. This innovative program allows our staff to experience first-hand the difficulties our patients encounter every day, helping to create a deeper sense of empathy and enhancing the support we provide to both patients and their families.
The two-hour session was a blend of interactive activities simulating various aspects of brain injury, such as aphasia, apraxia, pain and altered sensation, cognitive overload, reduced mobility, and impaired vision. Participants, including support workers, nursing, medical, and therapy teams, engaged in these simulations and then reflected on their experiences and their implications for clinical practice.
The training even caught the attention of the residents, who observed as staff navigated tasks with mobility and visual limitations.
The feedback from the team was overwhelmingly positive.
Rae Learie, Assistant Psychologist, said: “The interactive and immersive nature of the training provided first-hand insight into some of the difficulties the people we support may be facing. It has given me new ideas for simple yet effective methods and accommodations to ensure a more engaging and comfortable experience for patients. An enjoyable and beneficial training all round.”
Chinaka Agnes Iwunze, Staff Nurse, reflected on the challenges faced by patients:
“The training was lovely, and I was able to put myself in the shoes of the patients we work with. I could feel the pain of having my hand in a bucket of ice and how distracting it was to the task I was asked to do. I found it difficult to ignore the distractions of noise and activity around me in other tasks. This experience made me realise that we can sometimes overlook the difficulties our patients endure. I think every staff member should do this training!”
Christine McIver, Physiotherapist, emphasised the training’s effectiveness:
“The Brain Empathy training was very informative. It demonstrated some of the difficulties that someone with a brain injury or stroke might face, in a fun and interactive way. While the sessions were enjoyable, they also made us think deeply about the daily challenges and frustrations our patients contend with — not just for 15 minutes!”
Inspired by the success of this session, Murdostoun are hoping to extend similar training opportunities to more team members. The goal is to continuously improve the empathy and understanding within our teams, ensuring we provide the highest level of care.
We believe that by walking in our patients’ shoes, even for a short while, we can better support their journey to recovery. We are committed to ongoing learning and development, always with the aim of enhancing the quality of care we provide.
For more information about Murdostoun Brain Injury Rehabilitation Centre, please visit their webpage.