An expert in brain injuries has been outlining to Bermuda doctors ways in which they can help improve patient care.

More than 30 Bermudians have benefitted from specialist treatment at Boston?s Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital over the last 12 months.

Road accidents are one of the biggest causes of brain injuries, although a bang to the head and strokes can also lead to debilitating brain trauma.

It is felt that an island the size of Bermuda is unlikely to be able to justify the cost of having specialist facilities and medical staff to deal solely with rehabilitating brain injured patients.

This week medical insurance companies along with physicians at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital heard directly from Spaulding?s medical director of brain injury treatment Dr. David Burke about improvements in health and recovery patients can enjoy when they are given the opportunity to be seen by experts.

He gave them an insight into the latest developments in brain trauma treatment and research to encourage insurance firms to appreciate the value of allowing patients to have access to specialised treatment ? often not available in Bermuda.

Dr. Burke, during a two-day visit, spoke with medical professionals about some of the things they can do to care for brain trauma patients even though the Island does not have access to the range of cutting-edge technologies available at a hospital like Spaulding.

At the Boston hospital an innovative method of helping patients to regain their confidence and sense of balance and co-ordination is to have them go out on the adjacent Charles River in kayaks, rowing and sailing boats.

?For some patients who have difficulty walking, they get out on the water and feel whole again. I?ve had some people say that when they have done that they have felt independent for the first time since their accident,? he said.

Another way of increasing the mobility and independence of brain trauma patients at the hospital is using GPS tracking equipment to determine where a patient is within the hospital and offer reminders about where they need to go at a certain time of day for an appointment and then give instructions, such as directions, to assist them to get where they need to be.

This is of particular use as brain trauma patients often lose their short-term memory.

Although Bermuda is unlikely to ever be able to justify having qualified brain surgeons and brain injury trauma experts on call at the KEMH, Dr. Burke does see things Bermuda can do to help itself.

He said hospital staff can be trained in ways of lessening the pressure on a patient?s brain in the immediate aftermath of a brain trauma incident.

?There is a lot that the staff can learn to prevent brain tissue from dying, and they can learn by short bursts of information or telemedicine,? said Dr. Burke.