Specialized Rehabilitation at a Long-term Acute Care Hospital Can Improve Outcomes

Timely transition to a specialty long-term acute care hospital (LTACH) allows critically ill patients to receive continued acute care and early rehabilitation in one location, both improving patient outcomes and shortening episodes of care.

The Importance of Early Rehabilitation

Studies have found many benefits of early rehabilitation in an acute care setting, including reductions in time on ventilator, length of stay, and readmissions, as well as improved functional outcomes.^1-4

Benefits of Rehabilitation at Kindred Hospitals

Kindred specialty hospitals provide physician-led acute care and rehabilitation to medically complex patients after a stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) or med-surg unit. Some key benefits of rehabilitation at a Kindred specialty hospital include:

• access to therapy while still receiving ICU-level treatment;
• in-house service, reducing the need for scheduling or transportation; and
• personalized rehabilitation plans which may include physical, occupational, speech, or respiratory therapy.

Kindred’s Move Early Program

Kindred Hospitals’ Move Early program incorporates movement into patients’ care plans as soon as is safe, even for those on mechanical ventilation.  

The Move Early program includes: 

• a mobility assessment completed by an interdisciplinary care team upon admission;
• patient placement into 1 of 3 “zones” of mobility; and
• continual evaluation on a daily or even hourly basis for mobility potential. 

Outcomes of Kindred’s Specialized Rehabilitation 

Kindred’s specialized rehabilitation for medically complex patients has achieved the following outcomes: 

• 89% of all Kindred patients and 86% of patients on ventilators can reach a high level of mobility, as defined by the Johns Hopkins High Level of Mobility Scale;⁵ and
• 90% of Kindred Hospitals have average readmission rates that are statistically equivalent to or better than the national LTACH average, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.⁶

To learn more about how Kindred can improve outcomes for critically ill patients, visit kindredmanagedcare.com

References:

1. Simpson R, Robinson L. Rehabilitation after critical illness in people with COVID-19 infection. Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2022;99(6):470-474. doi:10.1097/PHM.0000000000001443
2. Zhao F, Whang S, Lin H. The effect of early pulmonary rehabilitation on the treatment of ICU chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with severe respiratory failure. Eur Respir J. 2018;52(suppl 62). doi:10.1183/13993003.congress-2018.PA2335
3. Kumar A, Roy I, Falvey J, et al. Effect of variation in early rehabilitation on hospital readmission after hip fracture. Phys Ther. 2023;103(3):pzac170. doi:10.1093/ptj/pzac170
4. Kjærgaard J, Juhl CB, Lange P, Wilcke T. Adherence to early pulmonary rehabilitation after COPD exacerbation and risk of hospital readmission: a secondary analysis of the COPD-EXA-REHAB study. BMJ Open Respir Res. 2020;7:e000582. doi:10.1136/bmjresp-2020-000582
5. Kindred Hospitals internal data
6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Long-Term Care Hospital Quality Reporting Program data. Quarter 3, 2019, through Quarter 4, 2019. Quarter 3, 2020, through Quarter 2, 2021.