After sustaining an injury in a car accident, regardless of how severe, there are many factors that prevent people making a full recovery or that slow their recovery down. Recovery is made more complex and can be delayed by a range of ‘secondary’ psychosocial issues such as persistent pain, depression or fear of pain and re-injury. This can make recovery unpredictable and often costly for the injured person, their families, their employers, the insurer and society. Early interventions such as health coaching or self-management training have been found to be beneficial in preventing these issues.
In collaboration with Monash University Accident Research Centre, the University of Sydney and the University of Queensland, a ‘Fast-track recovery’ application is being developed that draws on research into the barriers that may hinder people’s recovery. It aims to help people better manage their own condition and empower those who are more likely to take longer to recover. It will engage, educate and enable the injured client by identifying personal strengths that may help them recover, and also by raising awareness of current issues that may be acting as barriers to recovery.
The development of the application was funded and will be used by the Motor Accident Authority (MAA) in NSW. It is hoped that the application will facilitate recovery and minimise the risk of prolonged disability for those who have sustained non-life-threatening motor vehicle accident injuries.
The application is currently under-going trials to test its effectiveness.