In India most of these injuries are due to road traffic accidents or falls from height. In our country, in the recent years, there has been tremendous improvement in trauma care. As a part of the XIth five year plan the central government has started the ‘Project for Trauma Care on National Highways’ to provide immediate and effective management of victims.
The government has also established ‘Trauma care centres’ for tertiary level care of such victims. Disaster management has also been a major step taken up by the government. All these initiatives in our country have led to higher survival rates and higher level of functioning in the spinal cord injured. It has also been observed that young males in the earning age group are commonly affected. These persons can have long lives, even with the disability, if taken proper care. These lives can be meaningful, fulfilling & useful for the individual and the society but that essentially requires our support.
In an attempt to address the issue as a whole, National Institute for the Orthopaedically Handicapped, Kolkata, organised the “National Conference on Rehabilitation of People with Spinal Cord Injury.” This interdisciplinary conference is an effort to bring together all the specialists involved in the process including Doctors, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, P&O professionals, Social workers, Psychologists, Nurses and different Institutions & NGOs working in this area.
This is the first time such a conference is being organised in the country with all the stakeholders in the process coming together. It has repeatedly been said that ‘Rehabilitation is a TEAMWORK.’ This conference is an effort to provide a platform to all the team members to come together and also provide an excellent opportunity of interaction & networking with the best professionals and those interested in SCI Rehabilitation.
Present on the occasion were Shri Awanish K. Awasthi, Joint Secretary, Department of Disability Affairs, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. Maj. Gen. Ian Cardozo, Chairman, Rehabilitation Council of India and other senior official of the Department of Disability Affairs, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.
