Pressure injuries are one of the most debilitating secondary complications for individuals with SCI with an estimated 95% of adults with SCI experiencing at least one pressure injury in their lifetime. Pressure injuries also represent one of the costliest preventable medical errors – in BC, the annual direct healthcare costs exceed $49 million, for a population of 6,000 individuals with traumatic SCI. In light of these staggering statistics, RHI is initiating a five-year process to prevent community-acquired pressure injuries (CAPIs) for British Columbians living with a SCI.
To learn more from key stakeholders within the province, RHI is organizing events in Kelowna and Victoria. Each city will host two events (supported by the BICP): a Pressure Injury Health Café and a Pressure Injury Visioning Roundtable.
Health Cafés
Each Café consists of brief presentations on research, care and the SCI lived experience and small-group discussions in a casual and conversational setting.
These are free events, but registration is required.
Register for the Kelowna Health Cafe! Register for the Victoria Health Cafe!
Visioning Roundtables
Each Roundtable, which follows the Cafés, are focused on capturing regional perspectives on pressure injury research, care, services and consumers' lived experiences in the province.
The Roundtable events are by invite only, please contact Penny Clarke Richardson for more information.
In a collaborative environment that welcomes diverse and frank conversation across disciplines and affected communities, we hope to initiate a strategy that will dramatically reduce the human impact and financial costs of pressure injuries.
Meeting Summary
Thank you to everyone who participated and made these meetings a huge success. We are so grateful to the individuals who attended -- consumers (people with SCI, their family and caregivers), healthcare leaders, care providers, researchers and community advocates -- for their time, thoughtful input and ideas for change.
We are pleased to share a summary of these meetings in the BC Pressure Injury Prevention Initiative Meeting Summary, prepared by the meeting facilitators, Strachan Tomlinson Inc.
Comments and feedback about the report or next steps are welcome – please contact us at .
The meetings in Kelowna and Victoria were the first phase in a longer-term initiative to reduce the occurrence of community-acquired pressure injuries in BC. We will continue to consult with stakeholders across the province as we continue this journey.
The Rick Hansen Institute is a BC-based not-for-profit organization that drives innovation in spinal cord injury research and care. We work to accelerate the translation of discoveries and best practices into improved treatments for people with SCI. The Institute is grateful to the Rick Hansen Foundation, a leader in accessibility and inclusion, for supporting these events through the Blusson Integrated Cures Partnership, a collaborative endeavour that supports ICORD and the Rick Hansen Institute's shared goal to accelerate the translation and discovery of SCI cures.