When the participant is presented in the results, fictive names have been used to protect the participants anonymity.The participants were former SCI patients at a large rehabilitation hospital in Southeast Norway. This study forms part of a large qualitative study of resilience in families after severe injuries, including persons with SCI and acquired brain injuries and their close relatives. The participants were invited to participate through mailed written information and informed about the interviewers’ professional background, and work place within the hospital, as well as roles in the study.
Participants over 18 years of age who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and who had been injured for a minimum of 1.5 years were included. Participants were excluded if they were medically unstable, had major psychiatric disorders or had extensive on-going substance abuse. An invitation to participate was sent to 59 former patients, where 13 persons with SCI responded positively. Four of the participants preferred to participate in a focus group interview, and two withdrew, providing seven individual interviews, with all participants being male. The age range was 35–75 years and 2–32 years since injury; six were married or cohabitants, and one was divorced. Four of the participants had adult children and three had grandchildren. The remaining three had younger children. Three persons were permanent wheelchair users, and one was a partial wheelchair user, being able to walk for short distances. The other three participants were able to walk with some difficulty, but did not use any walking aids.
Participants over 18 years of age who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and who had been injured for a minimum of 1.5 years were included. Participants were excluded if they were medically unstable, had major psychiatric disorders or had extensive on-going substance abuse. An invitation to participate was sent to 59 former patients, where 13 persons with SCI responded positively. Four of the participants preferred to participate in a focus group interview, and two withdrew, providing seven individual interviews, with all participants being male. The age range was 35–75 years and 2–32 years since injury; six were married or cohabitants, and one was divorced. Four of the participants had adult children and three had grandchildren. The remaining three had younger children. Three persons were permanent wheelchair users, and one was a partial wheelchair user, being able to walk for short distances. The other three participants were able to walk with some difficulty, but did not use any walking aids.
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