Blusson Spinal Cord Centre – Vancouver

“My experience with health care and having a spinal cord injury (SCI), goes back four decades. Finding a doctor or specialist familiar with SCI was next to impossible and many health care professionals literally guessed at “how to fix” what was wrong.

When I was first injured, they told my family that my life expectancy was my mid fourties. I have long passed that expiry date.

Thanks to the Blusson Spinal Cord Centre in Vancouver BC, there is now a centre of excellence geared towards people like myself and others living with similar disabilities. Before Blusson, there was little to no research being conducted for a cure. A cure means different things for different people. For me, quality of life, maintaining my independence and spending time with friends and family are my priority and the research conducted at Blusson contributes to all of the goals. An important aspect of my quality of life is being able to go to the same places that my family and friends can go. Not having to be left behind or go through onerous efforts to be included enhances the quality of my experiences.

That is why I find the Blusson Centre a such a positive place where not only myself but others who have more significant disabilities can be free to participate in all activities-from urodynamics to the gym. There are patient lifts, a universal washroom with a wheel in shower, adapted gym equipment, an accessible receptionist as you enter the building and even elongated bar controls for the elevator which is extremely rare.” (Booklet Positive Lived Experiences of Quality in the Built Environment 2023, p.121).

Google map link: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Blusson+Spinal+Cord+Centre/@49.2621093,-123.1223514,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m6!3m5!1s0x548673c2e547db53:0xc371e4b07a951948!8m2!3d49.2621093!4d-123.1223514!16s%2Fg%2F11c3k31crf?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI0MDkxOC4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D