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The Shirley Ryan AbilityLab (formerly Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago) has once again been recognized as the national leader in physical medicine and rehabilitation, consecutively topping the U.S. News & World Report list for the past 27 years. It is the only hospital of its kind to hold this distinction.
The independent news organization, which analyzes data for nearly 5,000 medical centers nationwide in 25 specialties, procedures and conditions, declared the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab to be the best hospital in its field as it has every year since 1991.
“Inspired by our patients, we have led the evolution of physical medicine and rehabilitation for more than a quarter century, pursuing innovation and breakthroughs with relentless determination,” said Joanne C. Smith, M.D., president and CEO of the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. “Now, with the recent opening of our state-of-the-art facility, we are poised to set new global standards that will change the process for scientific discovery and the way healthcare is delivered with the goal of better recoveries — and even cures — for our patients. It’s a great honor to be recognized by physicians and U.S. News & World Report yet again.”
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One patient benefiting from the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab’s integrated approach to care is Cole Thomas. Last September, Cole issued a plea via a video on Facebook. Following a car accident, he was told he would never walk again, a fate the young father couldn’t accept. The video went viral and was viewed 16 million times. It led Cole to the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab and recently, following months of intensive therapy, he walked out of the facility on his own.
The ranking comes on the heels of the March opening of the $550 million, 1.2-million-square-foot Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. The facility is the first-ever “translational” research hospital in which clinicians, scientists, innovators and technologists work together in the same space, 24/7, surrounding patients, discovering new approaches and applying (or “translating”) research real time. Applied research focuses particularly in the areas of neuroscience, bionic medicine, musculoskeletal medicine and technology transfer.
About the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
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The Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, formerly the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC), is the global leader in physical medicine and rehabilitation for adults and children with the most severe, complex conditions — from traumatic brain and spinal cord injury to stroke, amputation and cancer-related impairment. The Shirley Ryan AbilityLab expands and accelerates leadership in the field that began at RIC in 1953 — its care and research designated the “No. 1 Rehabilitation Hospital in America” by U.S. News & World Report every year since 1991. Upon opening in March 2017, the $550 million, 1.2-million-square-foot Shirley Ryan AbilityLab became the first-ever “translational” research hospital in which clinicians, scientists, innovators and technologists work together in the same space, surrounding patients, discovering new approaches and applying (or “translating”) research real time. Applied research focuses particularly in the areas of neuroscience, bionic medicine, musculoskeletal medicine and technology transfer. This unique model enables patients to have 24/7 access to the brightest minds, the latest research and the best opportunity for recovery. For more information, go to www.sralab.org.
