Prisma Health Roger C. Peace Rehabilitation Hospital will launch initiative at Unity Park to expand community access to adaptive sports and wellness
July 28, 2023
Prisma Health’s Roger C. Peace Rehabilitation (RCP) Hospital is working with community partners to create an initiative in downtown Greenville at Unity Park that will be focused on expanding community access to adaptive wellness and sports opportunities.
The location, which is anticipated to open in Fall 2024, will begin with adaptive yoga classes and adaptive bicycle rentals at reduced or no cost depending on need.
Adaptive sports are sports that are modified to allow people with physical or intellectual disabilities or chronic health conditions to take part. Almost every sport, and many other athletic recreational activities, has an adaptive counterpart.
“Roger C. Peace Rehabilitation Hospital has been providing adaptive sports for the Upstate and its community members for more than 20 years and is excited to expand our programing outside the traditional hospital setting,” said Elizabeth DuBose, associate administrator at RCP. “We want to provide more access to health and wellness opportunities to people of all abilities as part of Prisma Health’s commitment to wellness. We strongly believe that anyone should be able to access the opportunities that Unity Park, the Prisma Health Swamp Rabbit Trail, and other venues can create. We want people to know that there are ways to stay healthy and well even after injury or illness, and RCP has the expertise to inspire people to live life to the fullest.”
“Our goal is to provide more access – whether through equipment, expertise or the activities themselves. If you have trouble staying active and healthy because you need adaptations, come see us – we can help you figure it out,” said DuBose.
Located at 159 Wellborn Street, the 9,000-square-foot space – just off the Prisma Health Swamp Rabbit Trail and already under construction – will include educational space, physical therapy services, post-rehabilitation areas, bike storage and wellness programs through Prisma Health’s Center for Integrative Oncology and Survivorship and its Center for Cancer Prevention and Wellness. An RCP team member will be based at the new facility to help community members upfit adaptive sports equipment to their unique needs and provide training as needed.
The new space will also serve as an access point to the RCP Upstate Community Abilities (UCAN) program, which hosts adaptive-sports clinics throughout the Upstate. Clinics range from wheelchair basketball to golfing, kayaking, pickleball and skiing, providing at least 2,000 adaptive accessible experiences to disabled community members and their family members each year.
Part of its funding comes from a $750,000 grant through NOTUS Sports and Greenville Health Authority (GHA), as well as additional funding from businesses and donors. The grant was awarded to NOTUS Sports by GHA with RCP as the sub-awardee. NOTUS Sports, a non-profit corporation which helped bring a paracycling world cup and paracycling championship to Greenville, strives to create accessible and inclusive fitness and wellness programs for everyone without economic, physical or social barriers. Currently, no Upstate community business rents adaptive sports equipment, which limits the opportunity for people to affordably try a wide range of adaptive sports.
“Everyone in the community should have equal access to wellness opportunities,” said Stan Healy, president of NOTUS Sports. “NOTUS Sports understands this and wants to make a difference. We are proud to partner with Prisma Health Roger C. Peace to bring this vision to life.”
Said GHA chairman Rev. Stacey Mills, “The Greenville Health Authority is happy to be a part of this monumental and groundbreaking opportunity to extend health and wellness beyond the walls of our institutions into the community. This effort truly parallels our hopes to see as many barriers to healthcare eliminated as possible.”
Said Greenville Mayor Knox White, “Prisma Health is a valued partner in the West Greenville and Southernside neighborhoods, and at Unity Park,” said Mayor Knox White. “The Prisma Health Welcome Center offers family restrooms, meeting and educational facilities and a private mother’s room for feeding infants. The Roger C. Peace initiative on Welborn Street will further improve community access to adaptive wellness and sports opportunities.”
Prisma Health Roger C. Peace Rehabilitation Hospital recently celebrated its 50th year of providing comprehensive inpatient and outpatient programs for people with spinal cord injury, brain injury, stroke, amputation, multiple trauma, cancer and other neurological conditions. Since first opening its doors in 1972, RCP has transformed rehabilitative care for South Carolinians. With its 15 Commission for Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) programs, inpatient rehab services, specialized outpatient programs and community outreach, RCP provides a holistic comprehensive center of care.
About Prisma Health
Prisma Health is a private nonprofit health company and the largest healthcare organization in South Carolina. The company has 29,500 team members, 18 acute and specialty hospitals, 2,947 beds, 300 outpatient sites, and more than 5,100 employed and independent clinicians across its clinically integrated inVio Health Network. Along with this innovative network, Prisma Health serves almost 1.5 million unique patients annually in its 21-county market area that covers 50% of South Carolina. Prisma Health’s goal is to improve the health of all South Carolinians by enhancing clinical quality, the patient experience and access to affordable care, as well as conducting clinical research and training the next generation of medical professionals. Learn more at PrismaHealth.org.
