The guidelines to chronic spinal cord injury: management of patients in acute hospital settings, number 9 in the Concise Guidance to Good Practice series were published in February 2008 by the Royal College of Physicians. These guidelines were developed by an interdisciplinary group including Dr Angela Gall, a physiatrist, Debbie Horne, an occupational therapist, Professor Paul Kennedy, a psychologist, Professor Lynne Turner-Stokes, the Director of a Regional Rehabilitation Unit and Mrs Dot Tussler, a physiotherapist, and have been endorsed by the British Spinal Cord Injury Association.

These guidelines provide an excellent overview of the important consequences of spinal injury for general practitioners who may run into these patients. They emphasize the need for practitioners to listen to the person and their family about the patient's needs and also to consult spinal cord injury specialists for assistance as needed. They also point out the necessity for an accessible environment for persons with SCIs so as to prevent unnecessary complications.

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