title: Postacute rehabilitation research and policy recommendations.
abstract: This article summarizes the research and health policy recommendations developed by participants at the symposium "State-of-the-Science on Post-Acute Rehabilitation: Setting a Research Agenda and Developing an Evidence Base for Practice and Public Policy," held in February 2007. A diverse group of participants represented federal government agencies, private insurers, professional organizations, providers of rehabilitation services, patients and their advocates, and health researchers. During roundtable discussions and theme-specific break-out sessions, participants were asked to consider 5 major topics regarding postacute rehabilitation care: (1) the extent of our knowledge, (2) the limitations of our knowledge, (3) the barriers that limit research, (4) research priorities to reduce these obstacles and assemble needed evidence, and (5) the major policy implications. Several key themes emerged: the need for improved measures, particularly of case-mix factors and treatment ingredients; the need for a more uniform and coherent system of postacute rehabilitation care to facilitate gathering of common data; the need to attend to underutilization as well as overutilization of rehabilitation services; the need for cooperation among payers, providers, and researchers to advance a rehabilitation effectiveness research agenda; and the desire to develop payment policies that are based on research evidence.
authors.affiliation: HealthSouth, Birmingham, AL, USA.
authors.forename: Dexanne B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Clohan
authors.forename: Elizabeth M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Durkin
authors.forename: Joy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hammel
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Whyte
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dijkers
authors.forename: Bruce M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Gans
authors.forename: Daniel E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Graves
authors.forename: Allen W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Heinemann
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Worsowicz
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005544:Forecasting; D006291:Health Policy / Q000639:trends*; D006292:Health Priorities / Q000639:trends; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000639:trends; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000639:trends; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D012046:Rehabilitation / Q000639:trends*; D012107:Research Design; D019467:Subacute Care / Q000639:trends*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014481:United States