The Intersection of Domestic Violence and TBI

March 15, 2018, Kitchener, Ontario

Posted by: Robert Deutschmann, Personal Injury Lawyer

When we think about concussions and how people get them, we often think of sports or car accidents. Most people don’t consider domestic violence as a leading cause of concussion in Canada. When most of us think about domestic violence we think about bruises, black eyes, or broken bones. We rarely associate the two things. There is a push in Canada to begin making the association between them.

Some researchers are focussing on this problem though, and on the fact that abused women with concussions may continue to be hit increasing their brain damage over time. The Ontario Brain Institue featured a live forum on Thursday (International Women’s Day) with Harvard Medical School’s Dr. Eve Valera. Dr. Valera uses advanced imaging techniques to examine the TBI women sustain in abusive relationships.

Intimate partner violence and concussion are closely linked. Globally 1 in 3 women report physical or sexual violence from a partner. In the America the number is closer to 1 in 4 women. It is rampant problem. According to Ms. Valera’s interview on TVO in 100 women sampled with TBI in shelters and not in shelters 75% had sustained at least on TBI from a partner. 50% reported repeated brain injuries. This is very concerning as we have no real numbers or treatments and we cannot begin to make linkages to ongoing problems like the development of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in these women. As many do not readily seek care and are not forthcoming about the extent of their injuries we have no real idea of the number of women suffering.

Ms. Valera notes that often women who are being struck in the head or knocked unconscious are also being strangled during the assault. The compounding damage of oxygen deprivation and TBI is also a concern and may play into the reasons that women stay in long term abusive relationships. The women may in fact be losing their ability to make reasoned decisions due to the abuse.

Brain Injury Canada has made a special collection of materials available that consider the intersection of domestic violence and TBI.

There is a great deal of research underway now to determine how the continued abuse damages brains, and how the sexual differences in brains (man vs. woman) may slow the recovery from brain damage. Medical personanel and social workers need to change some of the questions they are asking as well. As Dr.. Valera says in her TVO interview:

“What I’ve done in my research — basically, I say, “After anything your partner did to you, did you ever lose consciousness? Did you ever feel really dizzy or disoriented or confused? Did you ever have some loss of memory around what happened?” Once they say yes to that, you say, “Okay, what happened?” Then you can ask, “How long were you unconscious? Or how long did the memory loss last? Or how long were you dizzy? How long did you have the headaches? Did you see stars or spots?” And find out how many times something like that has happened.

Once you do that, you may change your approach to how you work with the women. You’re probably not going to say, “Okay, here’s a list for things for you to do. Go to the courthouse, and get the order of protection. Once you do that, go over to the police station, and make sure you get a copy of all the reports. Once you do that, I want you to go home, and you need to make a safety plan…”  But make sure everything is written down. Have them repeat things back to you. Make sure that they understand what you’re trying to tell them. And try to encourage them to get the rest that they need if they can. Now that can be difficult, because these women are often in very difficult situations with kids and whatnot. But see if they can give the brain the break it needs, as is done, for example, in the sports world or wherever else you’re talking about concussions.”

About Deutschmann Law

Deutschmann Law serves South-Western Ontario with offices in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Woodstock, Brantford, Stratford and Ayr. The law practice of Robert Deutschmann focuses almost exclusively in personal injury and disability insurance matters. For more information, please visit www.deutschmannlaw.com or call us at 1-519-742-7774.

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