In late October I had the opportunity to attend the 5th
National Spinal Cord Injury Conference: Translating Neural Engineering and
Novel Therapies. My interest in attending this conference comes from a position
of a consumer and as a support to others with spinal cord injuries and it is
from that perspective in this article originates, however it is not where it
ends.
Attending this conference challenged my expectations of
content and thought by providing an appropriate mix of the medical versus real
life experience and/or real-life management. This mix acknowledges that people
living with spinal cord injury will continue to experience life and the
emphasis is to improve quality of life far beyond just onset of their injuries
but holistically looking at the management of life after injury, from
discussions of diet, involvement in physical activity and the treatment of
pressure ulcers to a discussion of how important informal networks are for
people with disabilities and lastly an understanding of the progression of research pathways in
spinal cord injury research. The challenge to my expectations was good because
the challenge open my mind to new possibilities and reach the goal I set for
myself.
The goal, gain
knowledge so I could better support those around me, was accomplished. But
there was so much more. In the community it is sometimes difficult to see
impact because it becomes a little like not seeing forest for the trees.
Attending this conference allowed me to see the impact. The greatest impact to
my knowledgebase was an understanding of the research pathway for spinal cord
injury as explained by Dr. Brian Kwon and the introduction to research
materials such as SCI-U and spinalcordessentials.ca.
Beyond the discussions and resources I must acknowledge the
fabulous experience I had meeting people and connecting personally, making the
whole experience an enjoyable one. Lastly I would like to thank CPA Ontario and
conference organizers for supporting consumer participation and attendance.
