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Laura Nicholls, lead speech and language therapist at The Bridge Neurological Care Centre in Middlesbrough, reflects on the rehabilitative journey of her patient Angela on regaining some normality following a lengthy admission in intensive care.

Firstly there’s a couple of things you need to know about Angela before I can tell you about her journey. She isn’t usually one to let another person speak for her but I have been given full permission to share with you all the ups and downs of her rehabilitative journey. Angela has acquired the very fitting nickname ‘The Duchess’. This comes from her previous occupation as a community matron, her fine eye for detail, her drive for perfection and her tendency towards bossiness.

Rehabilitation journeys are increasingly being guided by the rhythmic interventions of music therapists but challenges in opening up access remain; as Chroma's Daniel Thomas explains.

Daniel Thomas, managing director of art therapies provider Chroma, developed an interest in music at a young age. However, he’s concerned that young people today aren’t exposed to enough music education, and that this will have a knock- on effect on music therapy, which can help a range of people, including those with a brain injury. “There have been massive cutbacks, a killing off of music in schools,” Thomas says, “Which has had a huge effect over many years as that side of school life has been systematically eked away and cut back.

By Merryn Dowson, assistant psychologist and part of the team behind rehab goal-setting platform Goal Manager

A stitch in time saves nine. Rome wasn’t built in a day. The best things take time. We are all too aware that some of the most important parts of our lives have been crafted, carved and developed over months and years. Consider your education, for example: you may well have been to primary school, secondary school and then sixth form college. Perhaps you went on to do an undergraduate degree.

After a life-changing injury, such as acquired brain injury, it can be tempting for the injured person and their loved ones to want to ensure that they get as much of the best quality rehabilitation that the state can provide or that money can buy, writes Irwin Mitchell's David Withers.

This is because it is generally accepted that the greatest recovery is made in the first few years, particularly in the case of acquired brain injury. When an individual sustains a traumatic brain injury, there are a range of disciplines that may need to be involved including, but not limited to: physiotherapy; occupational therapy; neuropsychology; neuro-psychiatry; neurology; neuro-surgery; dietician / nutritionist; speech and language therapy; personal trainer; counsellor; and support workers. The injured person’s passion for rehabilitation is absolutely vital. If and when that goes, it can be very difficult to regain that motivation. Mind-set in rehabilitation is critical.

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Wiltshire Farm Foods has launched a groundbreaking range of shaped dishes, as part of its new level 5 Minced Meals.

The visually enhanced range provides more choice and variety than ever for Wiltshire Farm Foods customers whilst being developed in line with the IDDSI framework and comprising the same safe texture for those recommended a level 5 diet by a healthcare professional. The development team at Wiltshire Farm Foods wanted to visually enhance the dishes which form part of its level 5 range, whilst simultaneously providing its customers with more variety and choice. The innovation lies in the shaping of the protein component in each of these dishes, something which has traditionally been a feature of the company’s award-winning ranges.

Pioneering concussion research has revealed a dire, unknown effect of even mild brain injuries.

Even mild concussions cause severe and long-lasting impairments in the brain's ability to clean itself of toxins, and this may seed it for Alzheimer's disease, dementia and other neurodegenerative problems, new research from the University of Virginia School of Medicine suggests. The discovery offers important insights into traumatic brain injury (TBI), a poorly understood condition that has become a major public concern, particularly in sports and for the military.