You CAN Ask That
Spinal Injuries Unit

Co-designed by researchers, people with spinal cord injury, and rehabilitation healthcare staff to help you lead your own care.

About this resource

This resource was co-designed by researchers, people with spinal cord injury, and rehabilitation healthcare staff to help you ask your healthcare team the questions that matter most to you about your spinal cord injury.

Your healthcare team will share information and answer your questions as best they can, but they are led by what you want to know and when you are ready to know it. It is important to let your team know which topics matter to you now, and which ones you may not feel ready to discuss yet.

While you are in hospital, your team will provide information and expertise to support your care and decision making. Some of this information may feel overwhelming, or come sooner than you are ready for. Please talk with your team about what feels okay to discuss, and what you would prefer to revisit later.

You can ask a member of your healthcare team, a family member, or a friend to help you use this resource.

How to use it
Go to the Question Builder tab and find the phase that matches where you are in your rehabilitation, or the phase you are about to start.
Tap any question to choose how to save it: Urgent (ask the next time you talk to someone), Save for later, or Interested in. Use the section chips to move between topics without scrolling.
Go to the My Questions tab to see your saved questions in their lists. When your team answers one, tap Question answered on that question to move it into the Answered list, where you can add notes about the response. Notes are saved automatically so you can come back and review them anytime.
Fill in the My Info tab so your team knows how you prefer to receive information.
View and print your My Questions list to bring to appointments or share with your team.

πŸš€ Not sure where to start?

Here are five questions you can ask your team right now. Tap any of them to add it to your Quick Questions list β€” tap again to remove.

Your rehabilitation journey

Phase 1 β€” Arrival and orientation
Getting settled, understanding where you are and who's who. Learning about your injury and starting therapy.
Phase 2 β€” Active rehabilitation
Building skills and confidence for daily life. Learning about equipment, goals, and what recovery can look like.
Phase 3 β€” Preparing to leave
Planning for discharge. Organising supports, funding, home modifications, and what happens next.
Phase 4 β€” After you leave
Ongoing therapies, follow-up appointments, community supports, and returning to work, study, and life.

Meet your healthcare team

Question Builder

Select a phase, then tap across the sections. Tap a question to choose how to save it. Mark it as answered and add notes when your team responds.

Urgent β€” ask next time
Save for later
Interested in
Answered
πŸ₯ Phase 1: Arrival and orientation
Daily life and environment
Support and connection
Understanding my rights and care
What goes here? Use the boxes below to add your own questions and notes for this phase β€” anything that is not in the lists above. What you type is saved automatically and shows up in the My Questions tab, with questions and notes kept in separate lists.
βš™οΈ Phase 2: Active rehabilitation
Understanding my injury
Equipment and trials
Social and leisure activities
Rehabilitation and goals
Personal life and relationships
What goes here? Use the boxes below to add your own questions and notes for this phase β€” anything that is not in the lists above. What you type is saved automatically and shows up in the My Questions tab, with questions and notes kept in separate lists.
🏠 Phase 3: Preparing to leave
Discharge and transition
Funding and support
Returning to life
Other questions and problem solving
What goes here? Use the boxes below to add your own questions and notes for this phase β€” anything that is not in the lists above. What you type is saved automatically and shows up in the My Questions tab, with questions and notes kept in separate lists.
🌱 Phase 4: After you leave
Follow-up and ongoing care
Community and daily life
Work, study and future goals
What goes here? Use the boxes below to add your own questions and notes for this phase β€” anything that is not in the lists above. What you type is saved automatically and shows up in the My Questions tab, with questions and notes kept in separate lists.

My Information, My Way

Tell your healthcare team how you like to receive information. Fill this in early so they can communicate in a way that works for you.

1. How I want information right now

Let your team know how much and what types of information you want.

2. How I prefer to receive information

Tell us what works best for you, so you can understand and remember information.

3. Pace, timing and support

Sometimes too much information at once is overwhelming. Here is how to make it manageable for me.

4. Learning about hard stuff

Sometimes your team will need to share something hard to hear. Let us know how you might want to receive that information.

5. I usually have the most energy for hard information

My Questions

Your saved questions, sorted into Urgent, Save for later, Interested in, and Answered. Notes are saved automatically β€” open this list anytime to review or update them. You can also print this to share with your healthcare team before appointments.