A $350,000 investment by the Province will help the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD) research centre expand programming and create new rehabilitation strategies to benefit those with spinal cord injuries.

“As someone who lives with a spinal cord injury, I appreciate the work that the researchers at ICORD do to support British Columbians living with this type of injury,” said Stephanie Cadieux, Children and Family Development Minister on behalf of Health Minister Terry Lake. “This new funding will build on existing work, improve accessibility and support continued research into new rehabilitation strategies.”

ICORD is a world-leading health research centre focused on spinal cord injury. The centre has more than 300 researchers working to develop strategies that will help people adapt to and recover from spinal cord injuries. It is located at Vancouver General Hospital in the Blusson Spinal Cord Centre, and is supported by UBC faculty of medicine and Vancouver Coastal Health Research.

The funding will go towards ICORD’s Physical Activity Research Centre (PARC), a community-based, integrated fitness and research facility. It is specifically designed and operated for people with spinal cord injuries and equipped with fully-accessible, state-of-the-art exercise equipment.

"With this funding, we can now make the gym more accessible by extending our hours into the evening and weekends, and opening up the research to people with non-traumatic spinal cord injuries and other illnesses or diseases affecting the spinal cord. The funding will also allow us to build on research results to create and evaluate strategies to enhance participation in exercise and physical activity in the SCI community," said ICORD researcher Dr. Tania Lam.

The Blusson Spinal Cord Centre was opened in 2008 and is the world’s largest, most advanced and most comprehensive facility devoted to spinal cord injury research and patient care. In addition to ICORD, the centre is home to Vancouver Hospital's Brenda and David McLean Integrated Spine Clinic, which provides one-stop outpatient care for people with spinal cord injuries or diseases of the spine. The Rick Hansen Institute is also located in the centre.

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Media Contacts:

Kristy Anderson
Media Relations Manager
Ministry of Health
250 952-1887 (media line)

Cheryl Niamath
ICORD Communications + Administrative Manager
604 675-8844