The Toronto Star Published on Friday January 27, 2012
Barbara Turnbull Life Reporter

https://www.thestar.com/article/1121840–spinal-cord-injuries-cost-health-care-3-billion-annually

Canadians vastly underestimate the human and financial cost of spinal cord injury, according to new statistics from the Rick Hansen Institute.

In a survey conducted for RHI by Angus Reid, Canadians were asked to estimate annual costs associated with spinal cord injuries, the unemployment rate and for their opinions on the value of health-care research and best practices.

While the true annual cost for the 86,000 Canadians impacted by paralysis is $3 billion, those answering the online survey guessed the cost to be just $100 million.

“One of the things the public doesn’t realize is that there is more to spinal cord injury and the impact of it,” says Bill Barrable, chief executive officer of RHI. “It’s not just paralysis, there are secondary complications that follow from that, that have many of the same characteristics as chronic disease.”

Pressure sores, urinary tract infections and pain are common — and expensive — problems.

“In the case of pressure sores, it’s the number one preventable medical error in our health-care system,” Barrable says, noting that pressure sores cost the country $400 million annually.

The Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted the online survey among 1,206 randomly selected Canadian adults in November 2011.

Among the poll’s findings:

• Of those surveyed, 87 per cent guessed the cost of spinal cord injuries on society and health care to be $100 million annually.

• 7 per cent could identify the approximate number of Canadians paralyzed by a spinal cord injury (averaged at 1,000 to 1,500 each year).

• 52 per cent underestimate the impact of chronic unemployment, which is estimated at more than 60 per cent among those with spinal cord injury and how that contributes to the overall cost.

• 89 per cent of Canadians support research into multiple diseases and medical conditions.

• 88 per cent agree that Canada should promote best practices to reduce health-care costs.

• 83 per cent believe the knowledge gained through scientific research is improving health care.

• The number of Canadians living with spinal cord injury is expected to spike to 121,000 by 2030.

Prevention of spinal cord injuries through strict rules in hockey has saved millions, says Dr. Charles Tator, a Toronto neurosurgeon and president of Thinkfirst Canada, a non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention of brain and spinal cord injuries. “Now we need to apply the same injury prevention efforts to snowmobiles, ATVs and motor vehicle crashes. There are far too many of these injuries in our country, and they are preventable,” he says.

“If we can show how the costs can be mitigated with spinal cord injury, these strategies can be employed in other areas as well,” he says.