Use of outcomes information in acute inpatient rehabilitation.

Objective: To describe the ways in which rehabilitation outcomes information is used in the acute inpatient rehabilitation industry and the industry's views on the topic of public disclosure of rehabilitation outcomes information.

Design: A mixed-methods approach, featuring data from 39 informational telephone interviews with rehabilitation industry stakeholders followed by a survey of 95 randomly sampled acute inpatient rehabilitation provider organizations.

Results: Both the informational interviews and survey findings revealed that there is currently little stakeholder demand for functional outcomes information.

Adverse health behaviors and chronic conditions in working-age women with disabilities.

This retrospective, cross-sectional, multiple cohort study of women with disabilities addresses two health-related areas in a nationally representative sample of women living in the community. Using data from the 1997-1998 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), health risk behaviors and chronic conditions were examined for women with mild, moderate, and severe functional limitations, and their responses were compared to those of women who reported no limitations. Women with severe limitations evidenced the highest risk for heavy cigarette smoking.