[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 4658]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       BRAIN INJURY AWARENESS DAY

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, today is Brain Injury 
Awareness Day, and I welcome those who are in Washington today to share 
their stories.
  This is near and dear to my heart. I spent nearly 30 years in 
healthcare rehabilitation services, and this was one of my areas of 
practice and expertise. I served as a board member for the Brain Injury 
Association of Pennsylvania, and I helped form a brain injury support 
group for the patients and their families that I served.
  The theme for this year's campaign is ``Not Alone.'' This is a 
platform for educating the general public about the incidence of brain 
injury, and the needs of people with brain injuries and their families. 
The campaign also works to destigmatize the injury, empower those who 
have survived, and promote the many types of support that are 
available.
  The need to raise awareness is great: more than 3.5 million children 
and adults sustain an acquired brain injury each year, but the 
incidence is unknown.
  Mr. Speaker, everyone recovers at a different pace, but the support 
the patient receives can actually let them know that they are not alone 
in this fight.

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