
Spinal cord injury in the military: Rehabilitation
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.
Lady-Marie was a physical training instructor in the British Army and mother to a six-month-old daughter when she was injured in a domestic violence incident, sustaining a C5 complete spinal cord injury.
Kevin served in the RAF from the age of 18. He was injured three weeks before the end of his second tour of duty to Afghanistan as a result of an IED explosion, causing him to suffer a complete spinal cord injury at level T6 and multiple fractures.
Lady-Marie and Kevin talk Rhiannon and Gaggan through their respective rehabilitation journeys and their experiences with finding accommodation and equipment suitable to their needs. They also discuss their transition to civilian life, and the support they received from the military and other charities/organisations with adaptations, equipment, and obtaining financial support/compensation for their injuries.