Research in the Acute Rehabilitation Setting: a Bridge Too Far?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The goal of this paper is to critically examine the challenges to clinical practice in acute neurorehabilitation settings to provide evidence-based recommendations for conducting research on neurologic recovery.

RECENT FINDINGS

Recent changes in health care have dramatically challenged post-acute care by reducing the length of stay and increasing transitions in care with resulting loss of continuity of care and follow-up. These challenges hinder research and undermine progress in neurorehabilitation. Based on recent evidence, a hub and spoke model is proposed to bridge and facilitate continuity of care from acute to subacute to community settings to meet these challenges head on and facilitate research on mechanisms of functional recovery from neurologic conditions.