The Effect of Changes in the U.S. Health Care System on Rehabilitation Research: The Results of a Survey of Rehabilitation Health Professionals

To obtain empirical data on the impact of changes in the health care system on rehabilitation research, physicians, psychologists, nurses, physical therapists, and occupational therapists involved in such research were surveyed to determine: 1) how the changes had affected their research productivity; 2) whether their scholarly activities (e.g., publications) had been affected; and 3) whether working in an academic vs non-academic institution made a difference. There were 438 usable responses (38% response rate) to the survey, which was sent to members of national organizations. Although the results somewhat supported suggestions that changes in the system had had a dampening effect on research, they were ambiguous, failing to clearly demonstrate a negative impact of managed care. More rigorous study is needed to enable firm conclusions and the formulation of actions to address factors that may influence rehabilitation research.