On the 27 February 2020 Stewarts co-hosted The Journey into Rehabilitation Conference, with the London Prosthetic Clinic and Ascot Rehab. The London Prosthetic Centre (LPC) and Stewarts ran a similar seminar to this over a little over year ago to a much smaller audience. It was a great success so much so we decided to do it again and open it up on a larger scale.

The focus of the conference was on the immediate medical treatment, care and rehabilitation facing clients, and the aim of the afternoon was to run an informative and client focused event where we get their perspective on their own rehabilitation journey.

Anna Wiseman opened the conference with a short introduction and to welcome the guests. This was followed by a Q&A session with her client, Vicky Balch, who was injured in the Alton Towers rollercoaster accident in June 2015, and her Case Manager Kate Gibbons, from Emma Way Associates.

Vicky’s case settled at the end of last year, 4.5 years post-accident. Vicky gave an interesting and informative insight into her own rehabilitation journey and her experience along the way. Vicky showed an inspiring clip from a BBC documentary about a trip she took to Vietnam with a group of six other people with disabilities. The clip showed when she walked the Ho Chi Minh trail reaching the Hang Chuot or the ‘Rat Cave’ and drew a round of applause in appreciation of her achievement from the guests. A link to the clip can be found here.

Vicky Balch and Anna Wiseman at the Rehabilitation

The conference continued with Dr Vijay Kolli, Consultant in Amputee and Complex Rehabilitation who works both at Queen Mary’s Hospital Roehampton and at Ascot Rehab speaking about a patient’s journey in the immediate aftermath of injury. The benefit of a patient having a multidisciplinary approach to the treatment from the outset was clearly explained. This was followed by a presentation from Peter Hull, Lead Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgeon at Cambridge University Major Trauma Centre. His presentation on the at times difficult decision by both surgeon and patient, of amputation vs reconstruction provided for a very informative and interactive discussion amongst the guests. His description of performing an emergency amputation 100ft above ground level at Tilbury Docks was certainly something to be admired!

This encapsulated the tone for the afternoon and what followed was great interaction between speakers and guests providing a relaxed and informal atmosphere. Abdo Haidar, lead Consultant Prosthetist at LPC presented with five of his patients who had kindly come to speak about their prosthetic needs. Abdo’s patients were all at different stages of own journeys which provided a real breadth of client experience.

The last speaker of the day spoke about Targeted Muscle Reinnervation (TMR) and other surgical options following injury which prompted another enlightening discussion amongst the guests. TMR is an exciting new surgical procedure that reassigns nerves which once controlled the limb that is no longer there. It is now becoming a promising new treatment to deal with the pain and discomfort which an amputee often experiences post-surgery.

The afternoon ended with Maha Ali from Ascot Rehab summing up the message of the afternoon; there is a clear tangible benefit to early and immediate rehabilitation after injury and the importance for all of us to work together, as a multi-disciplinary team, to ensure the best for our clients who are, and should remain, at the very heart of the process.

Anna Wiseman commented:

“Feedback from those who attended was extremely positive, with one barrister advising that the interaction and debate between the medical professionals in the room made the afternoon extremely enjoyable and informative and was a welcome format to be adopted on future legal medical conferences.”

The conference was attended by about 40 guests and the attendees included barristers, medical professionals, consultants, treatment providers and case managers as well as clients and patients of Stewarts, LPC and Ascot Rehab.

London Prosthetic Centre in Kingston clinically manages over 900 amputee clients both with upper and lower limb amputations. Click here to view their page.

Ascot Rehab is based in Bagshot and is a Neurorehabilitation hospital offering both inpatient and outpatient care in the comfort of client’s homes. Click here to view their page.

Life beyond injury

We have teamed up with other clients who have suffered catastrophic injuries to tell their stories of Life Beyond Injury. Please visit the Life Beyond Injury webpages here.

We hope that by sharing these stories, newly injured people can see that with the right support they too can overcome adversity to lead full and active lives.

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