• Research

More Hospital Rehabilitation May Not Mean You’re Home Sooner

By Suzanne Leigh

A physical therapist works with an elderly man.

To help patients recover more quickly, hospitals may provide physical and occupational therapy – especially for older adults to help them preserve or regain function. How much therapy is best, though, isn’t clear.

A new study by Anil Makam, MD, MAS, of UC San Francisco, and Danh Nguyen, MD, of University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, suggests it might only be the beginning of a longer journey.

What They Discovered

  • Patients who received hospital rehabilitation were more likely to be sent to post-acute care, like a skilled nursing facility or inpatient rehabilitation center.
  • A small minority of patients receiving more than 14 hours of therapy each week were likelier to return home.


Why it Matters

Rehabilitation mitigates functional decline, and previous studies have shown that greater frequency correlates with home discharge. However, this study suggests that only a small group that had intensive therapy of at least 14 hours weekly had a greater likelihood of home discharge.

Need to Know

Rehabilitation is critical for many older inpatients. Common hospital complications include mobility loss and falls, pressure sores, depression, cognitive decline and delirium.

Funding: National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute; National Institute on Aging.

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