Event Topic:
Join Prof Mei Krishnasamy, Professor of Nursing (Cancer) at the University of Melbourne, and a panel of guest speakers including a neurologist, a senior occupational therapist, and a driving assessor occupational therapist to find out more about navigating some of the challenges of returning to work and/or driving following a brain tumour diagnosis. This is a Q&A webinar, held on 29th February 2024, with a mix of frequently asked questions based on the speakers’ experience, and questions submitted by the webinar participants.
About the speakers:
- Dr Ron Freilich is a Neurologist and Neuro-Oncologist. He has been working at Cabrini Hospital and Monash Medical Centre since completing a Neuro-Oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in 1995.
- Lauren Nichols is currently a senior occupational therapist in neurosciences and rehabilitation at St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne. Lauren has worked extensively in neurosurgery across her career, supporting individuals with new brain tumour diagnoses to return to daily everyday life, including work and driving.
- Leanne Wilson is an Occupational Therapist and Driver Assessor with 16 years experience working in both the public and private sectors. Each person is very unique and it’s an OT’s role to determine if there is a way of obtaining/retaining a licence despite the condition.
Please note: these webinars are for education purposes only and should not be taken as individual medical advice. Consult with your healthcare team to find out what approach is best for you.
Please note: The speakers for today’s webinar were all Victorian based. Driving rules and licence conditions are similar, but vary state-to-state. A lot of what they say will still be relevant no matter what part of Australia you live in, but if you live in another state or territory, please check with your medical team, and your state’s equivalent of VicRoads (the Department managing driving licences etc) as they will be able to refer you to services and advice more specific to your location. You can also search for ‘driving’ on the Brain Tumours Online website (use the magnifying glass in the top right of the screen) to see if there are any resources or websites in the Learn pillar, or read personal stories by other people affected by a brain tumour that mention driving.