Thank you.

Honourable members and guests, I am here today to speak not only as the CEO and founder of the Constable Gerald Breese Centre for Traumatic Life Losses or as a clinical counsellor, but first and foremost as a family member who has personally lived with the devastating impact of brain injury.

In 1990, my husband, Constable Gerald Breese, sustained a severe traumatic brain injury in a police motorcycle accident while on duty with the RCMP. This left him with significant personality changes and an inability to manage his emotions. His battle, like so many others, was not just against the injury but also against a health care system that was ill-prepared to support him or our young family.

The hospital couldn’t manage his care or his behaviour and, after three weeks, with no rehab facility available, I took him home. I left my job, cared for our daughters and became his primary caregiver. The overwhelming shift in roles and responsibilities took a severe toll on all of us, especially him, and five months later, he tragically died of a catastrophic heart attack brought on by the intense and relentless stress of his recovery.

Sadly, our story is not unique. Thirty-four years later, families across Canada continue to face the same struggles. Brain injury survivors, if they get to the hospital, are often discharged with little to no follow-up care, leaving families to navigate an overwhelming, fragmented system while facing mental health challenges and increased risks of addiction, homelessness and criminality.

Today research shows that brain injuries affect more than just young men or athletes. Hundreds of thousands of women suffer brain injuries from intimate partner violence. Many Canadian veterans may be underdiagnosed, while indigenous people experience a disproportionate impact from brain injury, often facing unique challenges in accessing care and support. Seniors and children are also affected. Brain injury does not discriminate; it impacts people of all ages, backgrounds and communities. It can happen to anyone, anywhere, any time.

While our health care system has made progress in saving lives, we have not done enough to address the lifelong impact of brain injury or to ensure quality of life for survivors. They lose their sense of self, their connection to family and community, and their chance at a meaningful recovery. If we continue to fail them, we will continue to see rising rates of mental health crises, substance abuse, homelessness and criminal justice involvement. Brain injury not only lives in the forefront of these crises; it also lingers in the aftermath. The cost of inaction far outweighs the investment in proper care.

Two years ago, I was widowed for the second time. During my second husband's seven-week battle with cancer, I saw first-hand what a well-structured, coordinated care model could look like. We didn't have to seek out help, because every professional and resource was deployed to us through a cancer care model. This is the kind of model we need for brain injury survivors, but to achieve it, we need a framework.

Our organization recently released the Canadian charter of rights for people with brain injury. It recognizes their right to appropriate, dignified care and assistance in navigating the health care system, but a charter alone is not enough. It must be supported by a national strategy.

When we know that the incidence and prevalence of brain injury in Canada surpasses the number of cases of spinal cord injuries, HIV-AIDS, multiple sclerosis and breast cancer combined, it is perplexing that despite these crushing figures, brain injury remains the orphan of our health care system, left far behind while other conditions receive more attention and resources.

This strategy is the north star we have longed for. It will shine a light on what is working as much as it will shine a light on what is not working. It will provide the road map we need to coordinate care, train health care providers and ensure that services are accessible in every jurisdiction. We can learn from one another, problem-solve together and ultimately improve outcomes for individuals and strengthen the families and communities impacted in Canada.

We cannot afford to wait any longer. Brain injury is not an individual crisis; it is a national one.

I personally want to thank my MP, Alistair MacGregor, for standing shoulder to shoulder with me since 2018 to bring this forward today. This is a historic moment for the brain injury community.

Thank you.