The Spinecare Foundation

The SpineCare Foundation came into being as The Children’s Spinal Research Foundation in 1981 to source funds in NSW to specifically support research into diseases and disorders of the spine in children.

The Foundation took an innovative approach to supporting research on a contractual basis, funding established researchers to pursue a particular objective or to answer a specific question.

In the mid 1980s there was an alarming increase in the number of acute spinal cord injuries in children and adolescents from football and motor vehicle accidents. It was also discovered that the NSW public hospital system did not have the resources and personnel to manage the long-term rehabilitation of injured patients and their families. On the initiative of a group of medical professionals, funding was gained to establish a team of therapists, including a nurse, physiotherapist, occupational therapist and social worker. The team of therapists visited children with spinal injury in their homes after they had been released from hospital.

In 1996 the SpineCare Village was opened on land leased from The Royal Rehabilitation Centre in Ryde. This state-of-the-art residential facility was built specifically for wheelchair users. Unfortunately at the end of the 1990s a major change in Federal and State funding for rehabilitation changed and the residential model was unable to continue.

In 2002 the outreach service was recognised by the NSW Government and recurrent funding was gained for the team. The funding proposal to Government was made in conjunction with The Northcott Society. The original therapy orientated team, combined with the ancillary resources of Northcott, including wheelchair maintenance, seating clinics, provision of equipment, orthotics, and Computer Assistive Technology Services, saw the team evolve to become the NSW Paediatric Spinal Outreach Service (PSOS). The service is now offered throughout NSW and the ACT. In 2002 the SpineCare Foundation merged with Northcott of which it is now a Division.
SpineCare Foundation’s research and education programs are supported by