September is Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month!
worldsciday.org states that ‘Spinal Cord Injury Day’ is acknowledged on 5th September every year with the intention of increasing awareness amongst the general public.
It is presumed that the awareness would facilitate an inclusive life for persons with disability and ensure greater chances of success of prevention programs.
It is further mentioned that “Spinal cord injury (SCI) and the resultant paralysis has devastating physical, mental, social, sexual and vocational consequences for the injured. In addition, the injury increases the economic burden on the person who sustains an SCI and potentially his or her entire support network.”
The International Spinal Cord Society has communicated the Theme for SCI Awareness 2022 as
SCI in Conflicts & Disasters: Prepare and Prevent
“Conditions such as war, natural disasters, climate change, poverty, hunger, drought and pandemic adversely affect all life on earth. Spinal cord injured individuals and other individuals with chronic health problems could be more affected by these conflicts than the healthy population.”
As a Social Work Practice in Acute, Rehabilitation and Sub Acute Facilities, Dube & Pottas Inc renders services to Spinal Cord Injured patients on a daily basis.
The Role of the Social Worker with Spinal Cord Injury Patients includes the following:
Social Work services during inpatient Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) rehabilitation serve a variety of patient and family needs throughout the Hospital stay.
- The Social Worker forms part of the Multidisciplinary Team and facilitates communication between the patient / family and the rehabilitation team.
- Social Workers identify the needs of the patients and families by conducting a Psycho Social Assessment on admission and reassess these needs throughout the rehabilitation process.
- Grief and Bereavement Counselling as well as other Counselling services are provided to the patient and family in order to deal with the loss associated with the injury.
- A family meeting will be arranged by the Social Worker who will then be responsible to coordinate this meeting. A family meeting is attended by the Multi Disciplinary Team, patient and family members. During this meeting the patient and family receives feedback about the assessments performed, the diagnosis and expected progress gets discussed.
- The Social Worker provides education on the injury and rehabilitation process throughout the hospital stay.
- A home visit will also be required for the Social Worker and the Occupational Therapist to assess the patient’s home environment to check its suitability, if it matches the patient’s needs post-hospital admission.
- Financial and social assistance is also provided. Application for a SASSA Disability grant or if the injury was sustained on duty assistance is provided with the COID/WCA/RMA Claim Process. The Social Worker also liaises with the employer of the patient.
- Resources are provided to the patient and family in order to assist with the reintegration in the community environment. This service ensures sustainability as the patient will not only receive the necessary services while in hospital, but also post discharge.
The ultimate goal is to prepare the patient and family for a safe and effective discharge by maximising knowledge and identifying and addressing physical, economic, and emotional barriers to optimal community discharge.
Read more on Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation: https://www.sasca.org.za/
