Approximately 40,000 Canadians are currently living with a spinal cord injury. Spinal cord injury occurs when trauma or disease damages the spinal cord and interrupts the exchange of messages between the brain and the body. This interruption can result in partial or complete paralysis. About 1,000 Canadians acquire new spinal cord injuries or diseases each year. Rehabilitation is essential to regaining function, mobility, independence and quality of life.

Toronto Rehab’s Spinal Cord Rehabilitation Program is the longest-running rehab program in North America for people with traumatic spinal cord injuries and non-traumatic diseases of the spinal cord. It is also Canada’s largest inpatient program of this nature. Toronto Rehab has an unparalleled wealth of experience helping patients with spinal cord injuries to rebuild their skills and lives.

Individuals are referred to the Spinal Cord Rehab Program from acute care hospitals across Ontario, Canada and around the world, and from the community. A doctor's referral is necessary for admission. Some patients come to Toronto Rehab for its outpatient specialty services after completing their initial rehabilitation elsewhere. We are pleased to provide important information for referring professionals about making referrals.

The program provides a full continuum of care including inpatient and outpatient services, therapeutic day services and follow-up clinics. The program has been designed to allow patients to enter at any point along the care continuum and to transition smoothly between services based on individual need.

Download the Spinal Cord Rehab Program brochure.

A variety of specialized services that address many issues related to spinal cord injury are available and fully accessible on-site, including:

• an assistive technologies clinic
• a seating clinic
• a skin and wound clinic
• a bone densitometry lab
• a gynecology clinic
• a urology clinic

Because every spinal cord injury is unique depending on the level and completeness of injury, treatment is individualized to meet each patient’s needs and goals. An interprofessional team consisting of health care practitioners from more than a dozen different disciplines delivers rehab treatment. Family members are involved in the patient’s therapy whenever possible. Patient and family education are an essential component of the rehabilitation process at Toronto Rehab.

Toronto Rehab is committed to helping patients transition successfully from the hospital to the community. To achieve this, Toronto Rehab works in partnership with families and community care organizations to ensure the necessary supports are in place outside of the hospital to help patients maintain the gains they make during rehabilitation and continue improving on their own. Some individuals continue therapy with Toronto Rehab on an outpatient basis following their discharge from the hospital.

The Canadian Paraplegic Association of Ontario is co-located at Lyndhurst Centre with Toronto Rehab’s Spinal Cord Rehab Program. CPA Ontario offers peer support services and an employment resource centre.

All of Toronto Rehab’s patient care is informed by a robust, world-class research program. Rapid translation of research advances to the clinical setting benefits patients by providing access to the most cutting-edge therapies, methods and equipment.