Brain Injury Matters has managed many projects. All these projects have aimed to:
- Â improve the understanding of what ABI is and its impacts.
- provide supports to people with ABI.
ENGAGE-LINK-EMPOWER - Peer Support Groups, Pathways and Skill Building for People with Acquired Brain Injury
Commencing in October 2020 and concluding in June 2022, the project seeks to build connections between people with an ABI to address isolation and build skills and confidence.
The key project activities are to:
- develop new face-to-face/digital peer support groups (PSG) in Victoria
- provide personal development and digital training to build the skills and confidence, and social media/digital capabilities of people with ABI
- build the project management and digital capability of BIM
- inform and support people with recently diagnosed ABI to use BIM’s ABI Wise App
- consolidate and expand links with Victorian ABI rehabilitation centres and hospitals to improve engagement and establish pathways to support people transitioning to the community
This NDIS project has three staff with ABI, with specific staff support.
For further information, please email: 
The Victorian ABI Support Network
The Victorian ABI Support Network was a 12-month (July 2019-September 2020) NDIS funded project being run by BIM, United Brains and By Accident. It aimed to decrease social isolation and improve health and wellbeing due to people with ABI having more control in their lives through better information, more social relationships, growth, and development (learning, employment), and empowerment through contributing to issues facing the ABI community. The project employed two people with an ABI.
The project had both organisational and individual capacity building activities. The individual capacity building activities aimed to build confidence, skills, and knowledge of people with ABI, and put them in touch with peer support groups, if they are not linked already. Organisational capacity building activities focussed on strengthening BIM, United Brains, and peer support groups to improve their effectiveness and sustainability, through training and resources. The project evaluation, both quantitative and qualitative, showed improvements in the confidence and skills of people with a brain injury who participated in the program.
The ABI Wise App Project
In 2018 and 2019, BIM led a project to build the world’s first App about brain injury, made by people with brain injury. It was successfully launched in March 2019, and it has been well received across the world. It is now available to download for free for all mobile phones and devices. You can read more about our ABI Wise App, here.Â
The Lodden Mallee Project
In July 2018- June 2019, Brain Injury Matters ran a project in the Loddon Mallee region called ‘Social Media, The Broader Picture’. This was with the support of Bendigo Health and DHHS ILC funding. This project connected with many ABI peer groups and service providers throughout the Loddon Mallee region, and provided social media training. The experience of ABI is often very isolating, and living in rural areas can increase such isolation. This project aimed to support and build capacity of people with ABI to lead independent lives, as well as contribute to communities and support networks in the region.
