Jan Lavrijsen, physician-researcher in Primary and Community Care at Radboudumc, received a royal honor on Friday, 09 October. During a symposium marking the tenth anniversary of EENnacoma, he was appointed Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau. The decoration was presented by Mark Slinkman, Mayor of Berg en Dal.
The symposium also marked Lavrijsen's retirement after a long career dedicated to elderly care medicine, particularly to people with prolonged disorders of consciousness (PDoC) and severe acquired brain injury (ABI).
His commitment began in the 1980s, when he started working as a physician in a nursing home. At the time, the Stinissen case drew attention to a woman who had spent years in a nursing home without showing signs of consciousness. Caring for this vulnerable patient group would become a central theme throughout his career.
A pioneer in care for people with severe brain injury
Lavrijsen joined Radboudumc in 1995. He contributed extensively to elderly care medicine through medical training, education, research, and improvements in quality of care. In 2005, he obtained his PhD with research into patients in a vegetative state in Dutch nursing homes. He subsequently continued to develop scientific research and collaboration among healthcare professionals caring for people with severe brain injury.
These efforts eventually led to a nationwide approach connecting hospital care, rehabilitation, and long-term care. Internationally, this integrated approach is now known as 'The Dutch Model'.
From research to better care
Lavrijsen was also one of the founders of EENnacoma, the Dutch expertise network for severe acquired brain injury following coma. Since 2016, the network has focused on developing and sharing knowledge about severe acquired brain injury.
He also played a key role in establishing the national care network for people with prolonged disorders of consciousness (PDoC) and its associated PDoC Knowledge Center, based at Radboudumc. These initiatives were part of a policy program by
Read our interview from last year with Jan Lavrijsen and Willemijn van Erp: Navigating the unknown: decision-making and specialist care for patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness.
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