2011 will mark the first time that Rick Hansen Institute (RHI) and the Government of Saskatchewan will be collaborating to advance SCI research in the province.  By reinvesting in Rick Hansen’s vision after 25 years, the Government of Saskatchewan has taken a leadership role in supporting this national and international initiative as we celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Rick Hansen’s Man in Motion World Tour this year.

There is a wealth of neuroscience expertise in Saskatchewan. The Government of Saskatchewan recently chose to fund multiple sclerosis “liberation therapy” clinical trials, and is the first and only province in Canada to do so. RHI is very excited to have an opportunity to collaborate with researchers in a province that is clearly becoming a significant player in neurological research and healthcare.

Read the announcement on the Government of Saskatchewan website.

Power of Partnerships

The Government of Saskatchewan and our partners have played a leading role in supporting spinal cord injury (SCI) research and community services in the province by providing critical investments and services. This support has distinguished Canada as a leader in medical research, treatment and care for people living with SCI.

140 days: Median length of hospital stay and rehabilitation for individuals with SCI. Required care is highly specialized and hugely complex.

$100 million: Estimated annual amount that spinal cord injuries cost the Government of Saskatchewan in health care and support costs. As the population ages and more spinal cord injuries occur from falls, these costs will increase dramatically.

1,297 residents: Estimated number of Saskatchewan residents living with traumatic spinal cord injuries, with more than 50 new injuries occurring every year.

Tangible Progress

The Rick Hansen Institute connects scientists, researchers, surgeons and health care practitioners to acquire and translate research findings into practical solutions.

The Saskatchewan Government investment is supporting:

• 4 recently announced research grants at the University of Saskatchewan, administered by the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation:
  • Health care services and needs in SCI after Acute Care, with Rick Hansen Spinal Cord Injury Registry Principal Investigator (PI) Dr. Gary Linassi.
  • Acute Intermittent Hypoxia as a Treatment for Cervical SCI’s.  PI is Dr. Gillian Muir.
  • Bio-Fabrication of Living-Cell Scaffolds for SCI Repair.  PI is Dr. Daniel Chen.
  • Regulation of the Capacity for Regenerative Axon Growth in the Central Nervous System. PI is Dr. David Schreyer.
• Community support services including adaptive sports and accessible playgrounds, client support services including a First Nations outreach program, through CPA Saskatchewan; and the Clayton Gerein Legacy fund.

• 31 Canadian facilities and three global sites engaged in knowledge transfer.
• A nation-wide clinical research and data collection infrastructure, led by RHI, has been implemented in every major Canadian medical facility treating traumatic SCIs. Two sites are operating at Saskatoon City Hospital (rehabilitation) and at Royal University Hospital (acute care).
• Access to Care and Timing project – development of a simulation model to describe processes of care from the time of injury until discharge into the community, involves 27 acute and rehabilitation SCI centres across Canada, including sites in Saskatoon.  This will help to optimize the efficiency and effectiveness of SCI care in Saskatchewan.
• Rehabilitation Environmental Scan project – Saskatoon City Hospital is participating creating an atlas of pan-Canadian SCI rehabilitation service delivery to provide a baseline of current care delivery in Canadian rehabilitation centres.

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