Spinal cord injury in the military: Employment Issues
It is well known that sustaining a spinal cord injury is life changing. However, when we speak with service personnel and veterans who have suffered spinal injury, it has often struck us that the rehab journey for those in service is very different.
Gaggan Mawi in our Military Claims Team and Rhiannon Daniel in our Spinal Injury team therefore started the conversation in a series of webinars about some of the important issues we come across, alongside our colleagues at the Spinal Injuries Association, experts in psychiatry and employment, and veterans who have suffered SCI.
Gary Craggs talks to us about the Defence Recovery Capability which operates separately to the rehabilitation process, the discharge process, vocational rehabilitation prior to discharge, support with employment from the military which is available post discharge, and some practical considerations for SCI personnel/veterans.
Malcolm served in the RAF for 30 years as an air traffic controller. He was also an elite triathlete, competing in GB and world championships. He suffered a complete spinal injury at T5/T6 as a result of a road traffic accident. Malcolm talks to us about his lived experience following his injury including the support he received from the military when considering employment following his medical discharge from the RAF.