As an organization that has served BC’s spinal cord injury (SCI) community for nearly 70 years, we know that our members are our best teachers. Your lived experience helps shape every thing we do.
At SCI BC, we envision a world where all British Columbians with SCI and related physical disabilities have the support and knowledge they need to live well and be active participants in their communities.
Our community is incredibly diverse. Some members are newly injured and navigating rehab. Others have lived with a disability their whole life or are adapting to new challenges as they age. Some live in Metro Vancouver with access to a large network
of services, while others live in rural communities where resources can be harder to find. Some are looking for adventure, others for information, friendship, or simply a safe space to talk with someone who understands. No two journeys are the same.
That’s why SCI BC offers a wide range of peer support services. Whether you connect through monthly peer meetups, health coaching, events in the community, adaptive recreation activities, peer mentorship, or our growing online community, we want our Peer Program to be for everyone. In the past year alone, we had 9,704 direct service contacts with peers, including 329 in person peer meetups and events and 387 online peer meetups and activities.
As we look to the future, we want our programs to be guided by more than just attendance numbers. We want to understand what matters most to you. That’s what inspired our first Feedback February in 2019, and why we resurrected it as an annual event this past winter, when we invited SCI BC peers to share their experiences through focus groups and a province-wide survey.
Feedback Focus Groups
A series of eight focus groups were facilitated by Dr. Rob Shaw, who is SCI BC’s Provincial Peer Coordinator Program Manager and SCI Canada’s National Peer Support Program Lead. He is also a recently retired wheelchair tennis star and former Postdoctoral Fellow with UBC Okanagan’s Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis and McGill University’s Dr. Shane Sweet.
To ensure we heard from a wide range of voices, Shaw hosted online focus groups for SCI BC peers in each of BC’s Health Authorities (Interior, Island, Fraser, Northern, and Vancouver Coastal), as well as groups specifically for ambulatory peers and peers under 30 years old. Participants received an honorarium in recognition of the two hours they spent sharing experiences, discussing challenges, and brainstorming ideas for the future of SCI BC’s Peer Program.
In total, 41 members participated, including 17 men and 24 women, with an average age of 41 years old. Their feedback revealed six key themes that will help guide the future of peer support programming at SCI BC. Here’s what we heard and, more importantly, what we’re doing about it.
Theme 1: Transitioning from “Sit-and-Talk” to “Something-to-Do Together”
Members told us they prefer activity-based events, experiential outings, and low-pressure environments where conversation happens naturally. One member shared, “At the pottery making event, you’re all around a table, all commiserating and smashing and smushing the pottery stuff but you’re also talking at the same time and looking around at what others are doing you know… So yeah, having fun while you’re doing something.”
While peer meetups and coffee groups remain a valued part of SCI BC’s Peer Program, we’re continuing to expand opportunities with experience-based events that encourage members to get out into the community, try something new, and connect with others in fun and meaningful ways.
To find out what’s happening in your area, visit our events calendar or contact your local Peer Coordinator. In the past couple of years, we’ve introduced new activities, such as pickleball, art nights, and archery, while planning more activities people tell us they enjoy, such as camping, live music, adaptive mountain biking, and fishing. We’re always open to your ideas, so please reach out if there are events or activities you’d like to see added to the events calendar!
Theme 2: Reduce Timing and Location Barriers
Members reminded us that accessibility is an ongoing process and that not all events are equally easy to access. “I’ve heard feedback from other people in chairs that the parking wasn’t the best and that there are a lot of hills getting up and down to the event. So, like I heard that wasn’t the most ideal location,” one member shared.
Another member said, “Whenever I want to participate it’s always in the middle of the day when I can’t attend. So, it’s the timing and I think to my self why do they organize these events when we are at work.”
Those who work, attend school, care for children, or juggle other responsibilities may be excluded from daytime-weekday events and miss chances to participate. In response, we’ve encouraged our Peer Coordinators to offer more evening events, with recent offerings including pub nights, paint nights, game nights, theatre outings, and pickleball.
We’re also committed to holding events in welcoming and accessible spaces. That’s why we continue to conduct site visits for new venues, helping us identify and address accessibility considerations before events so members can participate with confidence.
Theme 3: Build Systems for Connection Between Events
In addition, members told us they would like more ways to stay in touch between events. As one member explained, “I have Discord channels, I have Signal Channels, I have WhatsApp, I’m kind of like, I use all the apps. But like SCI BC doesn’t really have a location where you can just chat with people (outside of events).”
This feedback was especially important for members who face barriers to attending in-person events because of location, transportation, work schedules, or health needs. While our current virtual offerings are limited, we’re actively exploring new ways
to strengthen our online presence and create meaningful online spaces where members can connect and support one another.
Theme 4: Improve Event Communication and Reminders
In a world full of notifications and competing demands for attention, keeping track of events isn’t always easy. One member told us, “What I struggle with is because there is a lot of events, sometimes I forget what events are happening.” Another shared, “I get overwhelmed sometimes when I get the same email from SCI BC about a certain service that isn’t happening in my area so maybe we have to narrow emails down more to like where we live if possible.”
We never want you to miss a chance to partake. We’ve added an “Add to Calendar” feature to our event calendar, so you can add an event to your Outlook, Apple, or Google calendar with just a few clicks.
In the last issue of The Spin (A New Way to Get the Message, The Spin Summer 2026), we shared that we are introducing text updates. This new service will send reminders about upcoming peer events in your region, as well as important updates such as schedule changes, location details, and unexpected cancellations.
Theme 5: Minimize Dependence on Peer Coordinators
Members also highlighted the important role Peer Coordinators play in creating safe, welcoming, inclusive, and meaningful experiences. Nearly three-quarters of SCI BC’s staff and volunteer peer mentors live with SCI or another disability, which means they often face the same health and accessibility challenges as our members.
“I think it’s hard for the staff themselves because there’s not enough volunteers. They do their best, but it’s always all on their shoulders,” said one member, echoing concerns about what happens when Peer Coordinators step back or move on.
Another member added, “These coordinators are as busy as can be. And right now, there’s a lot of communication by email from all over the region, and I was talking to one of them the other day and if they go away for a day, they come back to 100 emails. I’ve gotten emails from one coordinator at three in the morning until they figured out that they can set the time to send them at eight. The point being is it’d be nice if these coordinators could get some help.”
In the focus groups, many members expressed a desire for groups or clubs led by SCI BC members or volunteer peer mentors, and we agree! We’re always looking for peers who want to help organize and deliver events in their local communities, whether you have experience planning events or simply want to help bring people together. If you, or someone you know, is interested in helping expand peer support in your area, we’d love to hear from you.
Theme 6: Create Opportunities for Member Sub-Groups with Unique Needs
Our community is made up of people with a wide range of functional abilities, ages, backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences. Some ambulatory members (who can walk some or all of time, with or without mobility aids) reported feeling like outsiders:
“Sometimes I will admit that if I go to a general SCI BC peer event, I will go in my chair just so I feel like less of an outsider. But when I go to the incomplete [SCI] events, I feel like I can stand up and walk and people aren’t going to make the assumption that just because I look pretty regular when I walk that I’m not exhausted or sore or like all of the things that come with that.”
Members told us that a sense of belonging grows when they are understood not only in their experience of SCI, but also in their other identities and circumstances. We will continue to explore ways to expand our programming for ambulatory members beyond our current online Ambulatory SCI Group. And know that you’re always welcome at SCI BC events, regardless of how much support you need or don’t need on any given day.
Younger members also spoke about the importance of connecting with peers in a similar stage of life, with one member stating, “Basically until right now, I have never met somebody who was under the age of 30 who also had a spinal cord injury. So, this is kind of like an amazing moment for me because it was always kind of like people in their 50s or 40s.”
This summer, we added a second Whistler Adaptive Adrenaline Weekend for peers under 30, which was a great success. We’re using the momentum of this event to launch an evening online peer meetup for young adult peers. As our membership continues to grow and evolve, we remain committed to creating opportunities that reflect the diverse needs of our community.
Feedback Survey
The focus groups helped us understand members’ experiences and identify areas for improvement. To complement those conversations, we also surveyed members to measure the impact of our services and track peer support outcomes over time.
Last year (Measuring the Magic of Peer Support, The Spin Summer 2025), we introduced the SCI Peer Support Community-University Partnership, a group of researchers, the provincial SCI organizations that make up the SCI Canada network (including SCI BC), and Ability New Brunswick that aim to better understand, promote, and optimize SCI peer support programs and services.
Over the past five years, the Partnership worked with Dr. Shane Sweet’s team at McGill University to develop the SCI Peer Support Evaluation Tool, which measures 20 outcomes identified as most important in SCI peer support.
Outcomes | Definitions |
Understanding/Feeling Understood | Sharing with someone who “hears me” and “gets what I am saying” |
(Reduced) Isolation | Feeling (less) lonely |
Normalization | Having the knowledge that others have had similar experiences |
Community Engagement | Integration and participation in the community |
SCI Knowledge | Having new information and an understanding of living with spinal cord injury |
Rehab Transition Skills | Learning tips and tricks for transitioning out of rehab (e.g., finding/adapting housing, finding/adapting, transportation, etc.) |
Health Skills | Learning tips and tricks for maintaining your health (e.g., managing muscle spasms, skin care, etc.) |
Self-care Skills | Learning tips and tricks for self-care (e.g., dressing/undressing, bowel/bladder care, personal grooming, etc.) |
Independence | One’s self-sufficiency |
Belief in Oneself | One’s belief in their capacity to achieve things in the future |
Confidence | Feeling self-assured about one’s own qualities/capabilities |
Dignity | A sense of worth in oneself |
Resilience | The capacity to recover from difficult situations |
Coping | Having strategies to minimize or tolerate stress |
Positive Attitude | A positive way of thinking or feeling about life |
Perseverance | One’s ability to do something despite facing difficulties |
Hope | One’s expectations that good things will happen |
Mental Health | Having positive feelings about one’s psychological state |
Happiness | Feeling pleasure and contentment with life |
Quality of Life/Well-being | One’s standard of health, comfort, happiness, and overall wellness |
The feedback survey, which included the SCI Peer Support Evaluation Tool, received responses from 188 SCI BC members. Respondents represented a broad range of ages, locations, injury types, and mobility levels, with the majority having traumatic SCI, in complete injuries, and using a manual or power wheelchair as their primary mode of mobility.
On average, those that responded to the survey had been involved with SCI BC for an average of 11.5 years. In-person group-based peer support sessions (25.8%) and community events and drop-ins (24.7%) were the most common peer support activities they participated in, followed by online peer support (16.5%), recreational peer group activities (16.1%), in-person one-on-one peer mentoring (7.8%), and peer health coaching (4.9%). 11.3% of respondents participated in hospital, rehab, or other inpatient settings, with the remainder participating in community or outpatient settings.
Overall, four out of five respondents reported being “very satisfied” or “satisfied” with SCI BC’s Peer Support Program. Of the 20 outcomes measured, reduced isolation, quality of life, and feeling understood received the highest ratings. An incredible 92% of respondents reported feeling “less alone” or “a lot less alone” after participating in SCI BC’s Peer Program. 77% said their quality of life was “somewhat
better” or “better”.
Peer support also strengthened community connections, with 53% reporting increased engagement in community programs, events, and activities.
The survey also pointed to opportunities for growth. Health skills, rehab transition skills, and self-care skills received the lowest ratings, highlighting areas where additional programs and support could make a difference.
Looking Ahead
The focus groups and survey reinforced the powerful impact of peer support. Members shared thoughtful ideas about how we can strengthen these connections even further. As we look ahead, our focus is not simply on offering more programs, but on ensuring we provide the right programs, in the right places, at the right times, and in ways that help peers feel supported and included.
Feedback February was about much more than collecting data; it was about listening. The insights shared by our members will help us strengthen programs, address gaps, and measure the outcomes that matter most to our community. The survey findings will also contribute to a growing body of evidence from Canadian SCI organizations demonstrating the value of peer support and help support future advocacy, funding, and program development.
More importantly, this feedback reminds us that the future of SCI BC’s Peer Program should be shaped by the people who use it. We are grateful to everyone who took the time to participate and share their voice. We’ll continue using the SCI Peer Support Evaluation Tool as part of our annual feedback process, and we look forward to hearing from you again next February.
