Improving Care and Outcomes with Best-Practices Clinical Tools
Praxis exists to lead global collaboration in spinal cord injury research, innovation and care. We translate knowledge to bridge health evidence with real-world delivery. The word praxis means the practical application of a theory – moving knowledge into action. We measure our success through impact, how Praxis makes a difference to the SCI community.
When clinicians follow best practices, people with SCI retain more physical functionality, emotional wellbeing, and autonomy; this is critical because retaining function means that people face fewer obstacles to independence and debilitating secondary health complications. In turn they are successful in returning to family and the community and achieving goals such as independence and walking. The Can-SCIP Coach App provides relevant clinical guidelines tailored to the person’s injury, sex, and phase of care, and brings best practices in SCI care to the clinician’s fingertips.
Can-SCIP aggregates recent research in SCI diagnosis, treatment, and care into an accessible Clinical Practice Guideline. Praxis partner, SCIRE gathers and provides synthesized evidence for the Can-SCIP guidelines through systematic reviews of the database and additions are carried out to verify and update the information as necessary and ensure best practices for SCI management. Priority setting includes oversight from six people with lived experience of SCI (PLEX) on the Can-SCIP expert panel, including Praxis’ John Chernesky.
In the bustle of the emergency room and acute care, clinicians can deliver support tailored to needs of the patient in front of them that will have most impact on future health and wellbeing.
“The information will be of great importance for health care professionals taking care of people with SCI, as well as individuals with SCI, relatives and stakeholders.”
– (External Reviewer Can-SCIP Guideline) Dr. Ingebjørg Irgens
What is SCIRE?
The Spinal Cord Injury Research Evidence Project (SCIRE) is an international collaboration that provides systematic reviews of SCI research for health professionals. SCIRE, based in Vancouver BC, maintains the Can-SCIP guidelines, verifying and updating information to ensure best practices for SCI management.
SCIRE provides two web platforms, SCIRE Community and SCIRE Professional, which aggregate current best practices and research for management of SCI. SCIRE Professional, supported by Praxis, enables researchers and health professionals to guide their practice based on current best evidence. Companion site, SCIRE Community is an online resource for people living with SCI, and their family members, friends, or caregivers. The platform contains current SCI evidence and resources written in everyday, accessible language.
Work is ongoing to disseminate and implement the Can-SCIP app across Canada.
Read More Impact Stories
Success means impact; Praxis impacts the lives of people living with spinal cord injury and the SCI community. Read to learn more about Praxis and our work supporting innovation, best practices and accelerating theory into practice.
AO Spine & Praxis Acute Guidelines
The AO Spine & Praxis Acute SCI Guidelines make sure that best practices in care are available widely, to standardize SCI care across B.C., Canada, and internationally. Developed in part from Praxis-supported and B.C.-based research, the guidelines present best practices at the clinician’s fingertips, and will be included in the Canadian Spinal Cord Injury Practice Guideline (Can-SCIP).
The guidelines, developed as part of the AO Spine Knowledge Forum, use input from both experts and people with lived experience to define new evidence-based treatment approaches, and make them accessible to the global spine surgeon community. The initiative is a resource that offers clinical guidelines in three areas:
The timing of surgical decompression to alleviate swelling around the spinal cord that can make the initial injury much worse following SCI, hemodynamic management of the patient in the acute phase to ensure good fluid and blood flow to the compromised region, management of a SCI which can occur as a complication of surgery.
Each of these aims to
minimize further damage beyond the original injury and thus retain as much physical function as possible. Praxis is continuing to work with AO Spine, under the leadership of Dr. Brian Kwon and Dr. Michael Fehlings, who are both long term collaborators with the Institute, on activities to increase awareness and uptake of the guidelines by spine surgeons worldwide to inform optimal acute clinical management.
SCIRE Professional
Supported by Praxis, the Spinal Cord Injury Research Evidence (SCIRE) is a free online resource to inform health professionals and people with SCI of best rehabilitation practices. SCIRE provides two web platforms, SCIRE Community and SCIRE Professional, which aggregate current best practices and research evidence for management of SCI. SCIRE Professional, supported by Praxis, is targeted for researchers and health professionals while the companion site, SCIRE Community, is an online resource for people living with SCI, and their family members, friends, or caregivers. The platform contains current SCI evidence and resources including educational videos about living with SCI in everyday, accessible language.