Philly-area Rehab Centers

October 22, 2014 6:38 AM

My friend's son (8yo) was in a serious accident last weekend and sustained injury to the right side of his brain stem, resulting in extremely limited mobility on his left side. He's in the trauma unit at CHOP, but they will be moving him to an inpatient rehab facility in the next few days and the parents are looking for a comparison of two possible facilities.

One option is to stay at CHOP and the other is to go to Weisman, which is closer to their home. We are trying to get the parents into Ronald McDonald House near CHOP if he stays there, but it would obviously be easier for the family if he were closer to home (they also have a daughter and he works in NJ). However, they want him to receive the absolute best care.

Does anyone have any specific details or comparisons about these two facilities, beyond what is available on their websites? They are specifically looking for their rehab approach, length of day, how strenuous (more is better), as well as any personal experiences, especially with children with brain injuries.

posted by jshort to Health & Fitness (4 answers total)

Sorry, I can't comment on the specifics requested. I will say, though, that the CHOP Ronald McDonald house is basically right on Penn's campus. I think that's a good thing (I've been living and/or working here for 10+ years); there's a ton going on that's open to the public, and the middle of campus (a block north or so) is a really nice oasis in the middle of the city. It's a vibrant area, lots of undergrads around. It'll be a very different environment from Weisman, so that should probably factor in.
posted by supercres at 7:14 AM on October 22, 2014

I don't have specific advice about these facilities. A friend had a life-threatening event a while back and she called every single healthcare professional she knew (GP, chiropractor, dentist, really anybody remotely related to the industry) to find out where they would go if they were looking for care for themselves. She ended up finding really top quality care that way.
posted by vignettist at 8:29 AM on October 22, 2014

I've never heard of Weisman, but CHOP is great. Moss rehab in center city is also very good. I don't have personal experience with either, but neurologists and neuropsychologists I've trained/worked with tend to refer neuro rehab patients to Moss. I'll also say that, in general, city hospitals are more reliable than suburban ones. I know that's a pretty sweeping generalization, but in this case I think it's fair to say that CHOP provides top of the line care that isn't as common in suburban hospitals/health care facilities.
posted by Mrs.Spiffy at 3:36 PM on October 22, 2014

The Philadelphia Center for Independent Living aka Liberty Resources is a non-profit agency run by people with disabilities, and they definitely will know who are good people to further network with.

The Philadelphia Brain Injury Support Group (Facebook page) connects you to an org where at least half the members have been through rehab; they might provide useful advice.
posted by Jesse the K at 8:06 PM on October 22, 2014