To meet growing patient expectations, CKHS offers its patients the critical component of programming necessary to return them to their previous family and community roles. Through today’s lifesaving medical and surgical care, many more people are surviving, frequently deconditioned or with some loss of function. 

The health system’s inpatient rehab units offer patients the skills, knowledge and technology to help them regain their independence. The units frequently request patient input to maintain close ties with those they are treating. What do these patients have to say about this added dimension of services?

Nearly 95 percent of patients at Crozer-Keystone Health System’s three inpatient rehabilitation units say they met their functional goals with the help of CKHS employees – and 94 percent would recommend the facilities to others – according to recent data submitted to the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).   Founded in 1966, CARF is an international, independent, nonprofit accreditor of human service providers in the areas of rehabilitation, employment, child and family, and aging services. Its mission is to promote the quality, value and optimal outcomes of services that center on enhancing the lives of persons served.

The health system’s three inpatient rehabilitation facilities – located at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, Taylor Hospital and Delaware County Memorial Hospital – survey each patient after his or her discharge to collect data related to customer satisfaction, clinical functional outcomes and clinical efficiency.

Patients are asked if they felt they met their functional goals and whether or not they would recommend the hospital to others with the same diagnosis. The results of the surveys are broken down by individual site and are used by staff to monitor our performance and continually improve the outcomes of our patients. 

• At Delaware County Memorial Hospital, 93.6 percent of patients felt they met their functional goals; 95.1 percent would recommend the facility to others. 
• At Crozer-Chester Medical Center, 93.3 percent of patient felt they met their functional goals; 90.3 percent would recommend the facility to others. 
• At Taylor Hospital, 95.3 percent of patients felt they met their functional goals; 95.1 percent would recommend the facility to others.

Jane Dorval, M.D., recently appointed chief of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Crozer, says that she was drawn to Crozer because of the opportunity to integrate quality functional outcomes with the existing excellent medical outcomes of the current programs. As a member of the CARF Board of Trustees and its chair in 2002, she is in a unique position to recognize Crozer’s strengths and to build on them.

Paul Van Thuyne, Director of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation for the inpatient unit at Crozer-Chester Medical Center, says. 

“The results of the survey are very gratifying. Just by watching our staff interact with patients, and by watching the patients throughout their stays, you can see that our employees are doing a great job. The survey bears that out – our patients recognize that they are progressing in their rehabilitation processes thanks to the hard work of our staff.”

Carol Seiverd, director of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Unit at Delaware County Memorial Hospital, agrees.

“We work very hard to get the best possible outcomes for our patients, and it makes us feel good when our employees’ hard work is recognized,” Seiverd says. “We are especially pleased about our patient satisfaction ratings. The high numbers we receive in that category speaks very highly of our nursing, therapy and physician staff.”

CKHS rehabilitation units specialize in the process of restoring function for a person who has been disabled as a result of disease, disorder or injury. They aim to help each patient achieve his or her highest level of function, independence and quality of life possible.

Among the areas covered by CKHS rehabilitation programs are self-care skills and activities of daily living (such as feeding, grooming and bathing); physical care (swallowing and nutritional needs, medication and skin care); mobility skills (walking, transferring to a bed or chair, bracing when needed, and self-propelling a wheelchair); exercises to promote lung function and endurance; and communication skills (speech, writing and alternative methods of communication). The rehab programs also address cognitive, coping, and vocational skills.

The rehabilitation units measure clinical outcomes in a variety of functional areas that represent the bulk of their patient population’s functional needs, as well as information regarding their condition once they are discharged. The functional outcomes are measured using a tool known as Functional Independence Measure (FIM), which is based on a scale ranging from 0 to 119. Data is collected on admission, discharge, and 3 months past discharge to measure the amount of functional improvement made and sustained by each patient. Clinical outcomes data are then compared to national benchmarks calculated by the American Medical Rehab Providers Association.

As is its goal, Crozer-Keystone meets or exceeds these benchmarks, as illustrated in the following tables:

Crozer-Keystone also meets or exceeds benchmarks in disposition outcomes, exceeding the national benchmark for patient discharge (to home or community setting) by 20 percent, and in length of stay, discharging its patients, on average, a full day earlier than the national average.

“We are very pleased with the results of the survey,” says Kristen Creighton, director of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Unit at Taylor Hospital. “Our staff should be commended for providing quality services to patients on the rehab units. It is very important that we benchmark our quality standards against other facilities – it allows us to evaluate our services and improve in whatever areas we can.”

 “Organizations such as CKHS, interested in demonstrating to others their high standards for care, often seek a formal review by a recognized expert such as CARF to validate their success,” Dorval says. “Crozer-Keystone’s leadership understands the importance of this commitment.”

For more information about inpatient rehabilitation programs at Crozer-Keystone, call 1-800-CK-HEALTH (1-800-254-3258).