Rehabilitating Lives in the UK is a process of assessment, treatment and support designed to improve wellbeing, independence and quality of life. Anyone may need it at some point in their lives – for example following an accident, surgery, long term illness or injury (for example cancer), meningitis or neurological problems (such as multiple sclerosis).
A lot of people are used to thinking of rehabilitation as physiotherapy sessions or exercise programmes that they can follow at home. In reality, specialist rehabilitation is far more complex and requires the right facilities and equipment to give someone back their lives after a serious injury or illness.
Benchmarking Excellence: Unveiling the Standards of Inpatient Rehabilitation in the UK
Many of the services that provide rehabilitation are small and locally-based and can be very expensive. This makes them vulnerable to cuts in the same way as local hospitals and health and social care services. As a result, it is very difficult for people to access these services if they need them.
Prisons have a long history of using rehabilitation techniques to help reduce reoffending. However, the current emphasis in prisons is on re-shaping offenders into the sort of person who won’t commit crimes again.
Community rehabilitation is an essential part of a person’s recovery from illness or injury, and improves their wellbeing, independence and quality of life. But too many people can’t access it.