Son's brain injury spurs mom to action

Karen Macbeth watches as her son Cheyne Johnston interacts with one of his professional caregivers. Johnston who now lives with his mother suffered a traumatic brain injury last year in a off road motorcycle accident.

CARLSBAD, Calif. A year ago, Cheyne Johnston was a fun-loving, athletic business owner with a dream life. But on April 27, the 35-year-old father of two suffered a traumatic brain injury in a motorcycle accident that dramatically changed his life and those of everyone around him.

Tonight with the help of a famous musical friend Johnstons family will launch a foundation aimed at helping others navigate the mostly uncharted waters of TBI caregiving and recovery.

Johnstons mom, Karen Macbeth, said she has learned a lot about TBI care in the year since the accident that left her son unable to speak clearly, walk without support or control his emotions. Through the foundation, she hopes to make the learning curve easier for those unfortunate enough to follow in her footsteps.

Its been a long, hard road and Im still just finding my way every day, said Macbeth, who turns 58 today. This charity will be there for other families to help address the gaps we discovered in care for those with traumatic brain injuries.

Karen Macbeth checks on her son Cheyne Johnston for what he would like for lunch. Johnston who now lives with his mother suffered a traumatic brain injury last year in a off road motorcycle accident. Nelvin C. Cepeda

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jackson Browne, who is a friend of the Macbeth family, will present a benefit concert tonight, April 9, with local singer/songwriters Jack Tempchin and Joel Rafael at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido. The Macbeths hopes the nearly sold-out concert will raise at least $200,000 to help with their sons medical bills and to create the Cheyne C. Johnston Foundation for Traumatic Brain Injury Recovery & Education.

The foundation will eventually have a website with lists of resources for specialized TBI caregivers and centers, as well as caregiving webinars taught by experts in the field, including new board members Christine Weaver, former clinical director for Learning Services brain injury rehab centers, and Tracy Teregis, a 30-year cognitive coach for the brain-injured.

The nonprofit will also provide grants to needy families of TBI patients as well as scholarships to medical students who want to specialize in TBI care, a field that Weaver said suffers from a lack of trained caregivers. Weaver has worked with brain-injured patients for 24 years and said she didnt feel she was truly well-trained in their care for the first five to eight years.

Brain injury is multidimensional, she said. It affects cognition, perception, physical abilities and it affects people psychologically. Most health care workers are trained in basic anatomy and symptoms of brain injury but theyre not always trained to understand how what they do can impact the patients self-esteem, behavior and progress.

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Son's brain injury spurs mom to action