JRSM > Volume 97, Number 10 > Pp. 503-504

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Neurorehabilitation

Tarek A-Z K Gaber   Michael U Eshiett

Leigh Infirmary, Greater Manchester WN7 1HS, UK

The definitions and care pathways proposed by Professor Pickard and colleagues (August 2004 JRSM¹) are clearly useful and we applaud their efforts. May we recommend our model for neurorehabilitation services in Greater Manchester as a practical method to establish an organized and equitable head injury service within the context of a comprehensive neurorehabilitation structure.

Greater Manchester, with a population of 2.5 million, has a regional neuroscience unit based at Hope Hospital, Salford. The need for neurorehabilitation services within neuroscience was addressed by establishing an acute rehabilitation unit (ARU) at Hope Hospital to admit people directly from the neurosurgical and acute neurology wards for acute-phase rehabilitation at a time when they may still be medically unstable. Once patients are neurologically stable, they can be transferred to one of four intermediate rehabilitation units (IRUs) located at Wigan, Stockport and Rochdale and in central Manchester. The ARU and IRUs provide interdisciplinary, equitable, and cost-effective rehabilitation services for people with head injury and other disabling neurological disorders. All the units function as a service network regarding issues such as clinical governance, outcome measures and lobbying for resources. Despite the persistence of inequalities in access to some aspects of community rehabilitation and in transfer waiting times, we feel that the model helped greatly in provision for Greater Manchester residents irrespective of postcode.

REFERENCES

1. Pickard JD, Seeley HM, Kirker S, et al. Mapping rehabilitation resources for head injury. J R Soc Med2004; 97:384 –9[Abstract/Free Full Text]

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This Article Send a Quick Comment Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Quick Comments are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Gaber, T. A-Z K Articles by Eshiett, M. U Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Social Bookmarking                      What's this?