Burn Rehabilitation Backgrounder
St. John's Rehab is the only hospital in Ontario solely dedicated to specialized rehabilitation. As the site of Canada's first and Ontario's only dedicated burn rehabilitation program, we are the national leader in delivering inpatient and outpatient treatment.
- As a provincial provider, patients are referred to our program from hospitals and physicians across Ontario.
- As a teaching site of the University of Toronto, we excel in teaching and researching burn rehabilitation care.
- The specialized Back on Track Program serves clients who sustain burns in motor vehicle and work-related accidents. We are a specialty provider of services for clients of the Workplace Safety Insurance Board (WSIB).
- Once discharged, patients can benefit from a seamless continuum of care by being referred to our outpatient rehabilitation program.
- Our referral program with physicians in the community benefits patients by providing them with an uninterrupted continuum of care to reach their rehabilitation goals.
- The individually customized program consists of assessment, treatment and support focused on the whole person – body, mind and spirit.
- Our highly skilled and committed multidisciplinary rehab team includes physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses, speech-language pathologists, physicians, dietitians, social workers, psychologists and pastoral care.
- Patients are also provided with complex wound care, pain management, emotional counselling, and patient and family education.
- The rehabilitation team develops realistic goals and timelines with each patient and keeps in close contact with the patient and his or her family. This helps achieve maximum recovery, independence and quality of life.
- The program minimizes the effects of scar tissue build-up, mobility limitations and psychological difficulties.
- Support groups at the hospital help patients with psychological and social rehabilitation.
- Bi-weekly burn clinics are held at the hospital and involve specialists from the Ross Tilley Burn Centre at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.
- Patients can enjoy the hospital's 25 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens and pathways – a key element in their spiritual and emotional recovery.
Canadian burn facts
- The Ontario Workplace Safety Insurance Board reported that 1.6 per cent or 1,411 of lost time claims were a result of burn injuries (2005).
- In 2001, the Canadian Institute for Health Information reported:
- Burn injuries result in over 1,000 hospitalizations per year and account for over 10,800 hospital days.
- 70 per cent of all burn injury patients were male.
- The leading cause of burn injuries requiring hospitalization were incidents caused by a hot substance or object, caustic or corrosive material, or steam.
- The second leading cause was the ignition of highly flammable material, such as benzene or gasoline.
St. John's Rehab burn program patients (April 2006 – March 2007)
- Total inpatient beds: 6
- Inpatients admitted: 23
- Outpatient visits: 13,000
- Typical length of stay: varies according to the complexity of the injury
- Average age of patients: 52 years
- Patients aged 55 or older: 39.1 per cent
- Gender of patients: 75 per cent male, 25 per cent female