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Advancing Learning in Neurorehabilitation (ALIGN)
Department of Physical Therapy, University of Alberta

Background
The ALIGN project (Advancing Learning in Neurorehabilitation) is a partnership between the University of Alberta and Alberta Health Services. The goal of the project is to improve how rehabilitation programs measure progress for adults recovering from sudden-onset brain injury (e.g. stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI)) and spinal cord injury (SCI) across Alberta.

After a neurological injury, rehabilitation focuses on helping people improve everyday activities, independence, and participation in life. To do this well, rehabilitation teams use outcomes (things that matter to patients, such as walking, communication, pain, or daily activities) and outcome measures (tests used to track progress in these areas). However, outcome measures are currently used inconsistently across rehabilitation settings and often do not fully reflect what matters most to patients and families.

ALIGN brings together people with lived experience (patients), family caregivers, clinicians, and researchers to co-design a patient-centred and clinically feasible set of outcomes and outcome measures that can be used across rehabilitation settings in Alberta. The goal is to ensure that rehabilitation care is guided by what matters most to patients, while also fitting realistically into clinical practice.

This work is important because standardized, patient-centred outcome measurement can:
- Improve communication between patients and care teams
- Support more personalized rehabilitation care
- Help rehabilitation programs learn from real-world data and improve services over time

This project will help people living with stroke, TBI, or SCI, their families, and rehabilitation providers by ensuring that patient priorities are at the centre of rehabilitation services and future system planning.

Roles and Responsibilities
We are looking for for Adults or Caregivers of adults with a SCI or sudden onset brain injury (like a stroke, or TBI), with lived experience of neuro-rehabilitation services at a hospital in Alberta to join a Patient and Clinician Advisory Council for the ALIGN project.

What Patients and caregivers will do?
Patients and caregivers will:
- Share your experiences in an online group discussion
- Help identify which outcomes matter most to patients and families
- Review and discuss outcome measures for clarity, relevance, and ease of use
- Decide which tests best capture these outcomes

People with communication or cognitive disabilities are welcome; we will do everything we can to support you, and you may choose to have a family member or friend attend with you to support your participation.

Time Commitment
We anticipate to start in March 2026 for 18 months. The online meetings will be once monthly for 2 hours. 

Compensation/Reimbursement
Participants will be offered compensation for their time over the 18-month term according to AbSPORU guidelines.
Patients and caregivers will be offered orientation and training to understand the project goals, outcomes, and outcome measures. Supports and accommodations will be available to support meaningful participation (e.g., technology/Zoom support, interpretation or translation services, and other individualized supports).

For more information or to express interest
Standard survey: https://ualbertauw.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_a68bXsu4UVmuBMi
Aphasia-friendly survey: https://ualbertauw.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9HMmMvUVmCumKyO  
Contact Name: Erin McCabe
Email: emccabe@ualberta.ca
Phone/Text  Numbers: 780-492-4605