Spine of the matter

Speaking on the software,Dr H S Chhabra,Chief of Spine Service and Medical Director,ISIC,who also represents the education committee (ISCoS),said,“In October 2010,an ASCoN conference,combined with ISCoS and Spinal Cord Society Annual Scientific meetings,took place in Delhi,hosted by ISCI. During that time,there were experts from across the world who had come for the talks. Soon,we started working on creating an e-tool because there is lack of sufficient information on spinal cord injury and,at present,there is no such tool available for comprehensive management. Also,it’s not just the doctors who are involved in the treatment of spinal cord injury patients. Also involved is the entire team,comprising nurses,social workers,occupational therapists,peer counsellors and psychologists,and it will be very useful for them to have material to refer to. Even the patients can read it and get a better perspective on the issue.”

Various committees,comprising experts from across the world,are overseeing the implementation of this software. Some of the experts involved in the work are Maggie and Stephen Muldoon of Livability and ASCoN,and Lisa Harvey of the Rehabilitation Studies Unit,University of Sydney. In addition to the committees,various sub-committees are also being formed for topics in each module – it will have different modules to deal with basic as well as comprehensive management of spinal cord injury.

The modules will cover aspects such as prevention of injury,clinical assessment of patients,pre-hospital and acute care of injury management,physiotherapy,psychosocial management of the patient and family,sexuality and fertility related issues,bowel care and management,occupational therapy,etc.

Shivjeet Singh Raghav,peer counsellor and patient education coordinator at ISIC,said,“In the absence of comprehensive knowledge on handling spinal cord injuries,there are chances of improper management of injured patients. This tool will be of great help,and aid better understanding. Also,people will get to know the importance of counselling,and the role of a peer counsellor in ensuring post-injury rehabilitation and community integration. More than the physical trauma,it is the psychological trauma that patients are unable to face.”

Singh is working on matters relating to bowel and bladder movements post-injury and various other aspects such as the duties and qualities of a good peer counsellor.

The content,to be in the form of slides with voice-overs,will include pictures,diagrams and quizzes. The Education and Scientific Committee will give its

final approval for

the content,and an editorial committee will check for any overlaps in the information. It is slated to be launched in 2012 during the International Spinal Cord Society’s 51st meeting in London.