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March 4, 2008
Good Shepherd Hosts Monthly Brain Injury Support Group
March Is Brain Injury Awareness Month in the U.S.

Allentown, PA—Each year, more than 1.5 million Americans suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Of those individuals, approximately 70,000 to 90,000 experience significant physical, intellectual, emotional, behavioral, social and vocational impairments. If you are suffering from the lingering effects of a TBI, the Lehigh Valley Brain Injury Support Group can ensure that you do not have to face your challenges alone.

The Lehigh Valley Brain Injury Support Group meets on the third Thursday of every month on the main level of the Good Shepherd Health & Technology Center, 850 S. Fifth Street, Allentown. The two-hour meetings begin at 7 p.m.

Meetings are aimed at informing individuals who have had brain injuries and their families about new developments in rehabilitation and care. The group's goal is to enhance quality of life for participants through education and socialization.

Next meeting: On March 20, 2008, John Dibiagio, who suffered a severe brain injury several years ago, will discuss his amazing recovery. When DiBiaggio entered Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Hospital-Allentown, he could not walk or communicate. Today, he is a motivational speaker and a model for individuals with brain injuries to emulate.

There is no charge to attend a session. Both brain injury patients and their families are encouraged to attend. For more information, please contact Bonnie Kuhns, secretary of the support group, at 610-776-3393.

March is Brain Injury Awareness Month in the United States. Using state-of-the-art rehabilitation technology and expert hands-on care, Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network provides inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, as well as long-term acute care services, at sites throughout the greater Lehigh Valley. For more information on Good Shepherd's services for individuals who have suffered traumatic brain injuries, please call 1-888-44-REHAB (73422) or visit www.GoodShepherdRehab.org.

Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network, based in Allentown, Pennsylvania, is a nationally recognized rehabilitation leader, offering a continuum of care for people with physical and cognitive disabilities and specializing in assistive and rehabilitation technology. More than 36,000 people come to Good Shepherd each year for specialized programs in stroke, orthopedics, brain injury, spinal cord injury, pediatrics, amputation and more. Good Shepherd provides rehabilitation services in 7 eastern Pennsylvania counties. Good Shepherd operates 14 outpatient sites, 4 inpatient sites, a long-term acute care hospital, 2 long-term care homes for people with severe disabilities, an independent living facility, a Work Services division that provides employment training and job placement and a lifestyle products store called Rehability. Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a partnership of Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, will provide post-acute care in the Philadelphia region beginning July 2008. Good Shepherd was founded in 1908 when The Rev. John and Estella Raker invited a disabled orphan named Viola into their Allentown, Pennsylvania, home. Good Shepherd is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. For more information, visit www.goodshepherdrehab.org.