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Choosing a Rehabilitation Program

Home > Illnesses and Disabilities Home > Health Care > Choosing a Rehabilitation Program

A rehabilitation program can be in a:

• hospital dedicated to just rehabilitation
• a rehabilitation unit in a regular hospital
• outpatient clinic that is either part of a hospital or a separate business
• nursing home

Depending on your needs, you may also be able to get rehabilitation services at home.

When choosing a rehabilitation program, it is a good idea to try to find out about the quality of the program that you are considering. One way to do this is to check to see if the program is accredited. Accreditation is like a "seal of approval" given to hospitals and other health care facilities. Accredited programs meet high standards of excellence in service and quality. Two accrediting groups that look at how well rehabilitation programs perform are:

• Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). To see if a rehabilitation program is accredited by JCAHO or to find an accredited program in your area, go to the JCAHO web site and click on the link "The Joint Commission Quality Check."
• Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). To find CARF-accredited rehabilitation programs for your condition in a particular state, visit the CARF web site and click on the link "Search for a Provider."

Another way to judge the quality of a rehabilitation program is to contact the program and ask questions, including:

• Does the program provide rehabilitation services for a wide range of conditions (such as brain injury, multiple sclerosis, and hip replacement)? Or does it offer expert care for only one condition (such as spinal cord injury)? You may want to choose a program that specializes in the care that you need. If one is not available in your area, you might want to consider going to another area or state for rehabilitation.
• Does the program ask patients to fill out a satisfaction survey and to rate their care? If so, what are the results?
• What percentage of patients are able to return to their own homes after rehabilitation rather than to nursing homes? People who are able to return home are functioning well enough on their own to not need assistance with daily living.

Additional Resources

Publications

1.   Choosing a High-Quality Medical Rehabilitation Program: An NRH Field Guide for People with Disabilities (Copyright © NRH) - This guide provides information to help consumers make decisions about choosing a medical rehabilitation program. It outlines decision-making steps and covers topics including health insurance plans and how to evaluate the quality of rehabilitation programs.

   http://www.bu.edu/hdr/products/choosing/choosing.pdf

2. How to Choose a Rehabilitation Program (Copyright © RIC) - This fact sheet provides questions and answers for choosing a rehabilitation program that best suits your needs.

   http://www.ric.org/guide/how_to_choose_a_rehabilitation_program.aspx

3. How to Choose Services for You and Your Loved Ones: A Guide from CARF (Copyright © CARF) - This publication contains information about choosing the right service provider for you or your loved one. It also links to information that can help you search for service providers in your area.

   http://www.carf.org/consumer.aspx?Content=Content/ConsumerServices/cs02en.html&ID=2...

Organizations

1. Joint Commission
2. National Rehabilitation Information Center, NIDRR, ED
3. Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago

= Indicates Federal Resources

Content last updated May 15, 2008.