Differences that matter

(Inpatient rehabilitation hospital vs nursing home)

Do you know some of the key differences in requirements at Encompass Health hospitals versus the average nursing home?

Encompass Health hospital requirements include:

• Frequent visits by a rehabilitation physician
• Interdisciplinary, collaborative team approach
• Specialty nursing training
• Leading-edge rehabilitation expertise
• Weekly team conference
• Exceptionally trained therapists
• State-of-the-art therapy gyms and rehabilitation technology 

Do you know the difference in required physician visits?

Medicare patients in our hospitals must be seen in person by rehabilitation physicians at least three times per week.  By contrast, Medicare patients in some nursing homes may not see a physician more than once a week or in some instances even longer.

Do you know the difference in required therapy time?

Rehabilitation hospitals require a minimum of three hours a day of physical therapy, occupational therapy, and/or speech therapy at least five days per week. At nursing homes, there is no minimum.

Do you know the difference in required nursing oversight?

While registered nurse oversight and availability is required 24 hours a day at rehabilitation hospitals, the requirement at nursing homes is only a minimum of eight consecutive hours per day.

Do you know the difference in required nursing hours per patient?

Rehabilitation hospitals require between five and seven and a half nursing hours per patient per day, while the standard for nursing homes is usually between two and a half and four hours.

Do you know the difference in patient measurement tools?

We know rehabilitation

• Our rehabilitation hospitals comply with local, state and federal regulations, as well as the accreditation standards of The Joint Commission.

• 102 of our hospitals hold one or more disease specific certifications from The Joint Commission’s Disease-Specific Care Certification Program.

• Some of our hospitals have elected to become accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).

• Our BEACON system collects data from all our hospitals on a real-time basis for predictive analyses to inform better care.

• Our clinical information system ACE IT allows for the seamless exchange of patient information with all major acute electronic medical records systems.

• Our TeamWorks initiative is a multi-disciplinary nationwide effort to identify and share best practices.

• We are the leading owner and operator for inpatient rehabilitation in terms of patients treated and discharged, revenues and number of hospitals.

• We have made pioneering agreements to collaborate with acute care hospitals on delivering care that produces greater value and superior outcomes for both patients and communities