How the Model SCI System Manages Its DisseminationPlan

by Lesley M. Hudson, M.A., Co-Director, Georgia Regional SCI Care System, Shepherd Center, Atlanta, Georgia, and MSCIS Dissemination Committee Chair

The 1995-2000 cycle of the Model SCI System Program soon comes to an end, and the 2000-2005 cycle will be gearing up. Project Directors of the 18 funded sites meet biannually in Washington to touch base with NIDRR staff, get updates on new agency initiatives, and make system decisions on important issues. Since the goal of the system is to replicate the core requirements of the model care delivery system in each location, it is imperative that the directors of the projects stay in close touch with each other.

One of the committees working within this directors’ group is the Dissemination Committee. Chaired by Lesley M. Hudson, M.A., the committee is charged with monitoring all current dissemination efforts for the system, and for creating new and innovative ways to get the word out to the field. In an age of burgeoning technological advancements, the committee has embraced several opportunities to extend the reach of the system worldwide.

Here are several of the ongoing efforts in dissemination that are currently in place, or will be online before the end of this calendar year:

1. MSCIS Web site: The NCDDR has created a Web site for the Model SCI System (MSCIS). It contains significant information about the system, with hot links to the individual Web sites of the 18 current members. The address is: http://www.ncddr.org/rpp/hf/hfdw/mscis/
2. Bibliography: A current bibliography of all refereed publications by staff of the model SCI system facilities is in the final stages of preparation for inclusion in a new Web site. It will be searchable and contains all articles, chapters, books, and other peer reviewed publications that have been written by individuals who have been, or are now part of the Model SCI System. For more information on this bibliography, contact Mary Call, R.N. at the Philadelphia model SCI system at (215) 955-6579.
3. Compendium: A compendium of all educational resources and oral presentations by staff of the model SCI system facilities has been managed by staff at The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR) in Houston for over a decade. It is available for purchase in its entirety, and is also searchable via the internet. Contact Jan LeBlanc at (713) 797-5940 for more information.
4. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation: In November of 1999, a special issue of the Archives was published, written completely by staff of the Model SCI System. Volume 80, No. 11, entitled: "Spinal Cord Injury, Current Research Outcomes from the Model Spinal Cord Injury Care Systems" features 22 articles on epidemiology, medical complications, managed care, and psychosocial issues. All information is sourced in the database for the system, housed at the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center (NSCISC) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Published monthly by W.B. Saunders Company, single issues of the Archives are available for $24.00 by writing the publisher at 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, FL 32887-4800. The contents are indexed in: Index Medicus/MEDLINE; Excerpta Medica/EMBASE; Current Contents/Clinical Medicine; Science Citation Index; Citation Alert; BIOSIS; and CINAHL.

The current thinking among the group is that the MSCIS Web site will be a good resource for patients. The principal collaboration among the Model SCI System participants is the compendium of educational resources that is compiled at TIRR, and much of that is geared toward patient and family education.

For the Model SCI System, sharing the information that has been amassed since its inception in 1971 to improve the knowledge in the field is a key goal. In the next cycle, the dissemination efforts listed here are expected to be expanded, and additional formats will be brought online in the effort to provide the current, most comprehensive research and clinical experience available to the practitioners who treat individuals with spinal cord injury.

Top