Questions to Ask Before Choosing an Inpatient Rehab or Long-Term Acute Care Hospital
A practical question list for families comparing inpatient rehabilitation facilities and long-term care hospitals, with places to check the answers.
Within a few days of a major illness or injury, families often have to choose a facility. These questions will help you compare options on the same terms. Write down the answers and compare them side by side.
Before you call: check the basics
- Find the facility in this directory and note its CMS certification number, ownership and bed count.
- Look it up on Medicare Care Compare for the quality measures the facility reports.
- Check that it takes the patient's insurance or Medicare Advantage plan.
About the program
- How many hours of therapy per day, and what types?
- Is the patient seen by a rehabilitation physician, and how often?
- What equipment and expertise does the program have for this condition, such as stroke, spinal cord injury or amputation?
- How are goals set, and how often are they reviewed with the family?
About staffing and medical care
- What nurse staffing is there at night and on weekends?
- What happens if the patient's medical condition changes? Is a physician on site, and can the facility handle that?
- Does therapy continue on weekends?
About family involvement
- Can family attend therapy sessions and learn how to help?
- How will you receive updates, and who is the main contact?
- Are there visiting limits?
About discharge
- How is the discharge date decided, and who tells the family?
- Where do patients usually go after this program: home, home with home health, outpatient therapy or a skilled nursing facility?
- What help does the facility give to arrange equipment and home changes?
About money
- Will the facility confirm Medicare or plan coverage before admission?
- What would the patient owe, such as deductibles and coinsurance? Medicare explains these on its inpatient rehabilitation care page.
- What happens when coverage ends?
What to look for if you visit
Look at the therapy gym during a session. Notice whether patients are working with therapists one-on-one or in small groups, whether staff speak to patients with respect, and whether the unit seems calm and clean. Ask to talk with a family member of a patient, if the facility can arrange it. Your own impressions matter.
Complaints
If you have concerns about care, speak first with the nurse manager and the patient advocate. You can also contact your state's health department, which licenses and inspects hospitals, or Medicare. In an emergency, call 911.
This directory lists CMS certification data and does not rate or recommend facilities. A listing is not a quality measure; it shows the facility is certified by Medicare.
Questions about safety and quality
- What does the facility do to prevent falls, pressure injuries and infections?
- How does the facility handle a medical emergency, and which hospital does it use?
- How does it check that medications are right when a patient arrives?
- How does it train and support staff, and how many have worked there more than a year?
Questions about the patient's own goals
Rehabilitation works best when it aims at something the patient cares about: walking to the mailbox, dressing without help, returning to work or a hobby. Before you choose a facility, write down two or three goals in the patient's own words and ask each facility how it would plan for them. Ask how the therapists adjust the program if the patient is tired, in pain or discouraged, and how the patient's own preferences are included in decisions. A facility that listens to these goals and answers in specifics is showing you how it plans care.
Comparing your notes
After you have talked with each facility, put the answers in a table with one column per facility. Mark the items that matter most to the patient, such as location for family visits, experience with the condition, therapy hours and coverage. Ask the discharge planner or the patient's physician to review the table with you. The right choice is the one that fits the patient's needs, goals and insurance, and that is a judgment for the patient, the family and the care team to make together.
General information only, current as of the date above. The information on Inpatient Rehab & LTCH Index is not medical advice and does not replace a doctor, nurse, discharge planner or other qualified professional. Do not use it to make decisions about diagnosis or treatment. If you have a medical emergency, call 911. Rules and programs change; check the official sources linked in this guide.