Patient Safety in Rehabilitation Medicine, An Issue of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics

As the number of individuals undergoing rehabilitation medicine in a variety of rehabilitation settings increases, more and more patient safety concerns are being raised. Regulatory and accreditation organizations are scrutinizing the safety of patients in both hospital and rehabilitation settings and the general public and payors are demanding that patient safety is at the top of the agenda for institutions providing care. As leaders in the practice of rehabilitation medicine, physiatrists need to be educated on this important topic. The goal of this issue is to provide the reader with a foundation on the topic of patient safety as it applies to the practice of rehabilitation medicine as well as a set of tools that can be used to improve the safety of rehabilitation patients.