Tech Gadgets Can Help in Rehab of Maritime Workers with Brain Injury

In our maritime law practice, we pride ourselves on using the latest technologies, gadgetry and tools to win our clients’ cases.  It turns out that these toys can do more than just speed up research, help brainstorming and facilitate instant communication.  They can also help maritime workers who have suffered a brain injury, cope with their memory loss.

According to the results of the study, portable touch screen gadgets that are so popular now, can help a patient with a brain injury overcome the debilitating effects of the injury.  These gadgets can help the patient overcome memory loss, which is one of the biggest concerns after a brain injury.  According to researchers at the Royal Rehabilitation Center in Sydney, Australia, patients with a brain injury have been using these touch screen devices to remember to take their medications on time, for remembering appointments and also to remember names and faces.

The research team began by giving brain injury patients personal digital assistants in order to prompt memory.  They found that patients who used these PDAs had far lower memory failure than those who did not have access to this technology.  Caregivers reported far lower frequencies of forgetting.  The study was conducted between 2006 and 2009, and involved a total of 42 people who suffered brain injury.  The subjects suffered from a variety of brain injury symptoms, ranging from moderate memory problems to severe memory loss.

Even more interesting to maritime attorneys, the benefits of using these PDAs to boost memory seem to be even greater in young males with an average age of 35.

Researchers haven’t been able to determine whether the use of the PDAs actually boosts memory, or just helps people remember better.  What they do agree on is that these devices can improve the quality of life of the person, help him become independent and, reduce the amount of care that he needs.