Spinal to Sport: The pioneering work of Sir Ludwig Guttmann (360G-Wellcome-206182_Z_17_Z)

This project covers all aspects of work at Stoke Mandeville Spinal Injuries Unit - from the impact of Sir Ludwig Guttmann's ideas on the rehabilitation of paraplegics to the development of national and international games for the disabled, and their enormous expansion from humble beginnings to the Paralympic Games of today. The different records included in this project offer a detailed insight into the development of treatments for patients with spinal injuries, their care and rehabilitation. As NSIC patients tend to be looked after for life, their patient case files provide a longitudinal study of people living with spinal injuries. The growth of disabled sports was rapid and it created a range of bodies. Stoke Mandeville was at the centre of this whirlpool and the records show how different rules and regulations brought about the elite competition of today. The records have been moved several times and are in disarray, with some damage to some records. To enable these rich resorces to be made available to researchers, sorting, cataloguing and conservation is essential. Due to the size and storage of the collections, it is necessary for CBS to find external grant funding to enable us to carry out the work.