Accommodating Employees With Traumatic Brain Injuries

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) occurs when a sudden trauma to the head causes damage to the brain. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), there are approximately 1.5 million TBI incidents reported each year.

TBI can be as simple as a minor blow to the head or a concussion, or it can be as serious as a fracture to the skull. Trauma to the head can also cause the brain to bleed or bruise, with no outward appearance of injury at all.

Motor vehicle accidents are the most common cause of TBI; other causes are falls, violence, sports-related incidents, and child abuse. The milder types of TBI can manifest themselves in the form of dizziness and headaches, and more serious injuries to the brain may include symptoms of vomiting, convulsions, slurred speech, loss of coordination, and numbness in the extremities.

People who have suffered a TBI often continue to work, and now there are many ways employees with TBI can be accommodated in the workplace. The Job Accommodation Network, which is a service of the U.S. Department of Labor, has composed a fact sheet entitled, “Employees with Brain Injuries,” describing a variety of ways employees with TBI can be accommodated in the workplace.

Better lighting, vision aids for the computers, and large print materials are just some examples of how TBI sufferers with vision problems can be accommodated. Reducing the number of distractions and the amount of clutter in their work area can aid in concentration, and tape recording meetings can certainly help with memory.

If you or a loved one has suffered a brain injury in Houston or anywhere in Texas that has affected your ability to work, please contact the experienced Brain Injury Attorneys at Kennedy Hodges, L.L.P.

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