World Spinal Cord Injury Day (SCI Day) was established by the International Spinal Cord Association (ISCoS) in 2016.

Celebrated every year on 5 September, the day serves as a reminder of the various day-to-day challenges faced by people with spinal cord injuries and raises awareness of ISCoS’s commitment to the prevention and better care of spinal cord injuries. As highlighted in this article by Nichola Fosler and Gurkirn Matto, SCI Day also highlights the physical challenges posed by a spinal cord injury and outlines their impact beyond physical mobility.

SCI Day 2025

The chair of the ISCoS, Professor Belgin Erhan, announced the slogan for this year’s SCI day as “Fall Prevention, Spinal Cord Protection”. This year’s aim is to raise awareness of one of the largest causes of spinal cord injuries worldwide, falls. Something as common as a fall can change a person’s life; it can happen to anyone, at any age and at any time. However, with adequate knowledge and insight, the risk and rates of falling-related spinal injuries can be reduced.

We can all think of a time when we’ve taken a nasty fall and got away with some minor bumps and scrapes, but what if we were not so lucky? An American study showed that out of 6,408 individuals with traumatic spinal cord injuries (SCIs) between 2005 and 2014, 29% of them acquired their injuries from falling. In recognition of this, the focus of SCI Day this year is to educate and raise awareness about falls and to advocate for safer designs in homes, workplaces and public spaces. For those living with SCI, the day highlights the critical importance of preventing secondary injuries caused by falls to maintain their independence and well-being.

How can we prevent falling?

There is no realistic way to prevent every fall in the world. However, steps can be taken to mitigate the risk of falling. Stewarts’ Personal Injury department handles hundreds of fall-related spinal cord injury cases, and one thing has become brutally clear – if more robust safety precautions were implemented, the vast majority of employment-related injuries could be prevented.

It cannot be said that people and companies do not put safety measures in place to prevent falls. However, simply putting a “wet floor” sign down and expecting no incidents to occur is not the most effective solution.

So, how can employers mitigate against the risk of falling or make the consequences of a fall less serious? Take roofers as an example. They work at heights, often on sloped surfaces, without being secured to anything. This is a prime scenario in which a fall can occur. One thing employers can do is ensure there is netting around their construction sites to catch falling roofers.

This was seen in a recent case in which Stewarts’ Personal Injury team represented a roofer. In that case it was found that if a net had been present at the time of the accident, the client would most likely not have sustained a spinal injury, saving them from a life of paralysis. You can read more about that case here.

Indeed, guidance from the Health and Safety Executive recommends safety nets and soft-landing systems to be used as leading edge protection to mitigate the consequences and distance should a fall occur. Whilst they are not a substitute for the use of fall prevention measures, they can be used in conjunction with them if the risk of a fall cannot be eliminated.

There is no fixed height limit for working at height. However, the Work at Height Regulations 2005 mandate that employers must ensure all work at height is properly planned, organised and risk-assessed. But is this adequate? Having such regulations is one thing, but without proper education about the dangers and consequences of falls, they are unlikely to be as effective as they could be.

Final thoughts

Unfortunately, falls cannot be prevented completely. For example, children fall off jungle gyms all the time, but should we stop them from having fun and exploring the world? No. However, we could prevent serious injury, especially in workplaces, if employers invested the time and money into implementing more robust safety precautions.

Thankfully, SCI Day is raising awareness about the risks of falls and how to reduce them, as well as their impact on people with spinal cord injuries.

One way Stewarts is raising awareness and doing its part for Spinal Cord Injury awareness is by participating in the London to Paris 2025 cycle ride on behalf of the Back Up Trust. Learn more and support our team here.