American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine

The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) is a professional organization dedicated to serving individuals with disabling conditions by promoting rehabilitation research and facilitating information dissemination and the transfer of technology. Founded in 1923, the Congress values rehabilitation research that promotes health, independence, productivity, and quality of life for people with disabling conditions. The ACRM is committed to promoting research that is relevant to consumers; educating providers to deliver best practices; and supporting advocacy efforts that ensure adequate public funding for the Congress’ research endeavors. The mission of the ACRM is to promote the art, science, and practice of rehabilitation care for people with disabilities. This mission challenges the ACRM membership to be responsive to the rapidly changing environment of health care and the increasing diversity of rehabilitation service delivered by health care professionals from all disciplines and venues within the continuum of rehabilitation care. The Congress is dedicated to addressing the crucial issues of outcomes, efficacy of treatment, managed care, best practices, and reimbursement. The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine works to fulfill its mission, vision, and objectives by seeking the involvement of rehabilitation professionals, including clinicians, senior level service managers, administrators, educators, and researchers; calling upon the leaders in rehabilitation to identify current best practices and best providers at all levels of care; and disseminating such information to the field at ACRM’s regional and national meetings, through directed position papers, and in its journal, “Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.” The ACRM’s activities include focusing on the need for developing innovative and cost-effective trans disciplinary models of collaborative care and management of rehabilitation across all levels; taking positions on public policy and legislative issues that advocate for individuals with disabilities and providers of rehabilitation services; encouraging research efforts that are designed to examine and identify clinical technology and treatment paradigms that offer the greatest clinical effectiveness; and initiating dialogue with payers and regulators to communicate the collaborative care models that produce positive rehabilitation outcomes. In addition, the Congress is committed to becoming the primary resource for the community of rehabilitation research by establishing an ACRM electronic resource center for the community of rehabilitation research, influencing development of rehabilitation research funding priorities and organization at the federal level, and increasing the prestige of medical rehabilitation research. The ACRM also sponsors a multidisciplinary national conference on rehabilitation medicine that provides members with the opportunity to network and exchange information with industry leaders and peers. The conference provides courses on outcomes research and case management models; point-counterpoint discussions, workshops, and lectures; scientific paper and poster presentations; and accredited continuing education courses. In addition to its peer-reviewed journal, the ACRM provides additional professional publications including “Rehabilitation Outlook,” a quarterly newsletter for members that presents articles written from the perspective of providers, consumers, regulators, and legislators on innovative practices, outcomes measurement, public policy, and managed care issues. The newsletter’s regular column “Washington Perspective” gives an insider’s view of legislative and other federal action affecting the provision of rehabilitation services.