Working in an Outpatient Rehabilitation Facility

What’s it like to work in an outpatient rehabilitation facility?

Working at an outpatient rehabilitation facility means interacting and engaging with patients and other employees. Here are some of the things you can expect:

Consistent Schedules

Unlike some clinical environments, working in an outpatient rehabilitation facility promises fixed working hours, typically daytime hours between Monday and Friday.

Interacting With Patients from Diverse Backgrounds

Working in an outpatient rehabilitation facility allows you to interact with patients and employees from diverse backgrounds. You also get to treat patients with different treatment needs every day. This means that every day presents an exciting and novel challenge to solve.

Patients Want to Get Better

As an employee working in an outpatient rehabilitation facility, you can expect to form professional relationships with patients who genuinely desire to improve their condition, be free of pain, and get back to their routine.

Educational Opportunities

Working in an outpatient rehabilitation facility lets you learn new things every time you interact with a new patient. You can expect to learn novel ways to treat patients when you collaborate with nurses, therapists, and case managers. These centers also offer employees continuing education on treatment methods, new research, and clinical documentation.

An outpatient rehabilitation center differs from an inpatient rehabilitation facility because it does not require patients to remain in the facility throughout the treatment period. Outpatient rehabilitation teams work with patients and develop a tailored recovery plan that balances on-site and in-home progress.

Who works at an outpatient rehabilitation center?

Nurses

The responsibilities of outpatient rehabilitation nurses include:

• Educating and assisting patients in coping with and managing chronic diseases and injuries.
• Assisting patients in resuming their everyday lives following an injury.
• Preparing patients and family members for decision-making obligations.
• Acting as an informational resource for clinical staff and patients.
• Teaching particular rehabilitation nursing approaches to help patients develop requisite self-care skills.
• Coordinating nursing activities and collaborating with rehabilitation team members to achieve overall goals.

Case Managers

The responsibilities of case managers in outpatient facilities include:

• Reviewing, developing, and implementing care plans for clients recovering from injuries.
• Advocating for procedures that match a patient’s specific needs.
• Offering education for navigating medical decisions.
• Scheduling medical appointments for/with patients.
• Communicating with patients and their families about the patient’s health and recovery.
• Liaising with insurance companies to promote affordable, quality care for patients.

Physical Therapists

The responsibilities of physical therapists in outpatient facilities include:

• Identifying and diagnosing movement problems.
• Creating a personalized treatment plan that matches every patient’s goals, needs, and challenges.
• Empowering every patient

Occupational Therapists

The responsibilities of occupational therapists in outpatient rehabilitation facilities include:

• Assessing an individual’s performance skills.
• Developing a feasible treatment plan aimed at bolstering identified performance skills.

Speech-Language Pathologists

The responsibilities of SLPs and speech therapists in outpatient centers include:

• Helping patients overcome speaking, language development, and thinking challenges.
• Evaluating a patient’s communication and cognitive abilities.
• Establishing milestones to assess the patient’s progress and recovery during treatment.

What kinds of patients will I work with?

As an outpatient rehabilitation facility employee, you will work with patients with different conditions. Some of the conditions may include include:

• Articulation disorders
• Brain injuries
• Multiple sclerosis
• Sports injuries
• Swallowing disorders
• Cerebral Palsy

What education or skills do I need to work in an outpatient setting?

You need an ADN or a BSN degree to become a rehabilitation nurse. Passing the required exams allows you to apply for an RN license in your state.

Earning a master’s degree pertinent to your role as a nurse practitioner enables you to become an advanced practice nurse. You can also enroll for post-graduate degrees in rehabilitation sciences.

As a rehabilitation nurse, you can boost your compensation and employability by getting the CRRN credential. The distinction requires you to pass an examination and have two years of experience as a rehabilitation nurse. You need an unrestricted RN license and between one and two years of rehabilitation nursing experience to apply for the examination.

Apply for a position at Brooks Rehabilitation

Brooks Rehabilitation is the perfect choice if you want to work in an outpatient rehabilitation facility.

As a medical care provider at Brooks, you can expect to learn new things daily by interacting with patients and other rehabilitation team members. We rely on up-to-date treatments to achieve the best outcomes for our patients. You can also anticipate working with patients from diverse backgrounds.

Apply to work at Brooks Rehabilitation today!