Long Term Care Needs and Service Utilisation of Individuals Catastrophically Injured in Motor Vehicles in NSW

This paper presents an update on the status of a thesis examining long term care needs and service utilisation patterns of individual whom sustain a moderate to severe injury in a motor vehicle accident in NSW. A sample of 126 individuals, from four cohorts at 2, 5, 10 and 15+ years post traumatic brain or spinal cord injury have participated in a semi-structured interview during which demographic, clinical, service utilisation and life events data were collected using 10 separate instruments. Preliminary demographic results are consistent with the profile of incidence data reported previously in terms of gender, age and level of overall function. A detailed analysis will be undertaken in the near future to model the relationship between a range of variables including levels of disability, formal and informal care requirements, service utilisation patterns, met and unmet needs. The objective of the thesis is to add to the body of knowledge in a way that can contribute to current national policy developments.