Driving is quite a complex activity. You need to be able to :
- concentrate well
- react quickly
- make quick decisions
- plan ahead
- remember road rules
- have good visual skills
- physically operate the car
These skills can be affected by a brain injury.
What Do You Need to Do If You Have Had a Brain Injury and Want to Drive Again?
You have to inform the Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) that you have had an injury or illness or epilepsy which may affect your ability to drive. If you do not inform the RTA or don’t follow their recommendations and continue to drive, you are putting yourself and other traffic participants at risk. In the case of an accident you may find that your insurance does not cover you, because your fitness to drive has not been assessed.
The RTA will most likely request information from your doctor to determine whether you are medically fit to drive. Your doctor or the RTA may want you to undergo an occupational therapy driving assessment. Occupational therapists who conduct driving assessments are specially trained to assess your vision, physical skills and cognitive skills while you drive. The assessment takes up to 3 hours and includes a one hour drive in a car with the occupational therapist and a driving instructor. The focus of the assessment is not on cancelling your licence but on finding out what difficulties you are experiencing while driving and how those difficulties may be overcome.
Difficulties With Driving Can Include:
- feeling less confident when driving
- people telling you they feel unsafe driving with you
- tiring quickly when driving
- finding it difficult to manage busy traffic situations
- inability to react as quickly in an emergency as you did before your brain injury
- experiencing problems positioning the car correctly on the road
- sometimes not seeing pedestrians or other cars
- having difficulty turning the steering wheel with both hands
- having difficulty operating the brake or accelerator
Recommendations by the Occupational Therapist Following the Assessment May Include:
- teaching you driving techniques to compensate for your problems
- teaching you to use car modifications, such as spinner knobs, panoramic mirrors, left foot accelerators, power steering etc. There is a large range of car modifications on the market and many can be suited specifically to the needs of the driver.
What About Driving a Truck or a Motor Cycle?
If you are holding a truck or motorcycle licence you will need to be assessed for each individual licence class you are holding. This is because the driving demands are quite different for different types of vehicles. For example, a person with balance problems may be able to drive a car, but is likely to experience problems riding a motor cycle.
Can I Lose My Licence?
In some cases the occupational therapist may recommend that a person should not drive and the RTA may cancel their licence. This happens only after the occupational therapist is certain that the person is unable to learn ways of compensating for their problems.
Who Pays For My Driving Assessment?
If you have an insurance claim, your insurance is likely to pay for the assessment. If you don’t have an insurance claim, you may have to pay a fee for the assessment. A driving assessment can also be provided as part of your rehabilitation programme with the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Programme or Commonwealth Rehabilitation Service (CRS).
If you think you need a driving assessment or if you would like to find out more information, you can contact the Occupational Therapy department at the Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program in your area. They may have an occupational therapist who conducts driving assessments. If not, they will be able to tell you about the driving assessment service nearest to you.
* Source : Brain Injury Association of NSW
