A quality improvement initiative to develop an interprofessional peripheral nerve transfer clinic for individuals with traumatic cervical spinal cord injury.

Abstract

Purpose: Loss of upper extremity (UE) function impacts almost every aspect of daily life and upper limb recovery is reported to be a major priority of individuals living with tetraplegia. Surgical peripheral nerve transfer (PNT) offers the potential to restore volitional control of elbow, wrist and hand function of individuals with C5-C8 tetraplegia AIS A-C. Unfortunately, while there is growing evidence supporting the role of PNT in spinal cord injury (SCI) rehabilitation, there are currently no internationally-recognized consensus-derived best practices for provision of PNT following spinal cord injury (SCI) and few programs have focused on interdisciplinary collaboration during patient selection, surgical decision making, management of medical comorbidities and postoperative rehabilitation. This quality improvement initiative aimed to establish a novel, interdisciplinary PNT program with the goal of optimizing UE recovery and function in individuals with tetraplegia in Canada.

Materials and methods: An interprofessional team assembled to complete a detailed exploration of care segments, organizing and sequencing care delivery.

Results and conclusions: As a result of this initiative, a care map of planned interprofessional services, their optimal timing across the continuum of care, and clinical functional and community integration outcomes were developed. Data collection and program evaluation are ongoing, and further work to mitigate barriers and develop educational materials around PNT surgery are intended to improve medical decision making and best practice implementation.