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Personal Interviews About Life With Paralysis
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Q&A: How did you deal with the transition from hospital to home?

Returning Home After a Spinal Cord Injury
Personal Experiences with Paralysis

After a spinal cord injury, 87.4% of individuals are discharged from hospitals to a private home, 6.7% are discharged to nursing home. It is an important step in the recovery process and is thoroughly planned before discharge.

In preparation for return, a therapist will often visit a patient’s home to take measurements and make recommendations for a successful transition. These may include installing a wheelchair ramp, creating accessible shelves in the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom,  and widening doors to accommodate wheelchairs.

Once the patient returns home, activities of daily living such as bathing and dressing, which were learned in rehabilitation are then applied at home.  Many find it takes time to adjust and create new routines. Many felt unprepared to return home and isolated by inaccessible accommodations.

We asked 100 men and women living with spinal cord injury about their transitions from hospital to home. Below are the best answers.

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