Journal of neurotrauma
-
Journal of neurotrauma · Oct 2017
Impact of Therapy on Recovery during Rehabilitation in Patients with Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.
Evidence-based planning of rehabilitation interventions is important to improving cost efficiency while maintaining patient and system outcomes. This article aims to explore the relationship between rehabilitation therapy, functional outcome, bed utilization, and care costs after traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI). A retrospective review of 262 persons with tSCI admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation facility from 2005-2012 was conducted. ⋯ Hypothetically increasing therapy intensity by 50% and 100% resulted in average motor FIM efficiency gain ranging between 0.04-0.07 and 0.1-0.17, respectively, across injury groups. The hypothetical changes resulted in reductions in the average LOS and bed utilization rate, translating to cost savings of $20,000 and $50,000 (2011 CAD) for the +50% and +100% scenarios, respectively. The results highlight the importance of monitoring functional change throughout rehabilitation after tSCI and the need for customized therapeutic strategies.
-
Journal of neurotrauma · Oct 2017
Geomapping of Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury in Canada and Factors Related to Triage Pattern.
Current research indicates that more than half of patients with traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI) experience delays in transfer and receive surgery >24 h post-injury. The objectives of this study were to determine the geographic distribution of tSCI in Canada relative to specialized treatment facilities, to assess clinical and logistical factors at play for indirect admissions to those facilities, and to explore differences in current time to admission and simulated scenarios in an attempt to assess the potential impact of changes to triage protocols. This study included data from 876 patients with tSCI enrolled in the prospectively collected acute Rick Hansen Spinal Cord Injury Registry (RHSCIR) between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2013 for whom there were data on the location of their injury. ⋯ Considering the injuries occurring within 40 km of a RHSCIR acute facility (n = 323), 249 patients (77%) were directly and 74 (23%) were indirectly admitted. In the multivariate regression analysis, only older age and longer road distance remained significantly associated with being indirectly admitted to a RHSCIR facility. Compared with the current status, the median time to admission decreased by 20% (3.5 h) in the 100% direct admission scenario, and increased by 102% (8.9 h) in the 100% indirect admission scenario.
-
Journal of neurotrauma · Oct 2017
Comparative StudyRural and Urban Living in Persons with Spinal Cord Injury and Comparing Environmental Barriers, Their Health and Quality of Life Outcomes.
There is worldwide geographic variation in the epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI). The aim of this study was to determine whether environmental barriers, health status, and quality-of-life outcomes differ between patients with tSCI living in rural or urban settings, and whether patients move from rural to urban settings after tSCI. A cohort review of the Rick Hansen SCI Registry (RHSCIR) was undertaken from 2004 to 2012 for one province in Canada. ⋯ No significant differences were found in other outcomes. Results suggest that although the patient outcomes are similar, some patients move from rural to urban settings after tSCI. Future efforts should target screening mental health problems early, especially in urban settings.
-
Journal of neurotrauma · Oct 2017
Optimizing Clinical Decision Making in Acute Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating event causing lifelong disability that results in a significant decrease in quality of life and immense cost to the health care system, individuals and their families. Providing specialized and timely care can improve recovery and reduce costs, but to make this a reality requires understanding of the current care delivery processes and the care journey. The objective of this focus issue is to examine the current state of health care delivery and discover opportunities to improve access and timing to specialized care for individuals with tSCI. ⋯ The issue concludes with an article describing the national knowledge translation efforts of using the evidence from the articles published here to inform practice and policy change. Overall, this focus issue will be an excellent reference to guide and optimize evidence informed decision-making in the care of those with tSCI. The evidence can be transferred to care in non-traumatic SCI and other conditions that benefit from timely access to specialized care such as stroke and traumatic brain injury.
-
Journal of neurotrauma · Oct 2017
Using Evidence to Inform Practice and Policy to Enhance the Quality of Care for Persons with Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury.
In today's economic climate, there is a need to demonstrate a return on investment for healthcare spending and for clinical practice and policy to be informed by evidence. Navigating this process is difficult for decision-makers, clinicians, and researchers alike. This article will describe how a knowledge translation framework and an evidence-based policy-making process were integrated to clarify the problem, frame options, and plan implementation, to impact clinical practice and policy in the area of traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI). ⋯ The workshop participants prioritized two indicators important from the clinician and patient perspective-timely admission to rehabilitation and meaningful community participation. The ACT simulation model for tSCI care will be used to promote the uptake of identified indicators and provide a predictive link between interventions on potential outcomes. The standardized collection of outcome-oriented indicators will help to evaluate the access and timing of care and to define the ideal system of care after SCI.