Uses of the National Rehabilitation Reporting System: perspectives of geriatric rehabilitation clinicians.

Background: The National Rehabilitation Reporting System (NRS) is a minimum data set for inpatient rehabilitation units. The system was designed to support administrative decision making from the facility to the national level.

Purpose: To conduct a pilot study to explore current and potential clinician uses of NRS data, particularly for hip-fractured clients.

Methods: Focus groups with rehabilitation teams from two urban academic geriatric rehabilitation units in Ontario.

Findings: Few current uses were identified; barriers to use included timeliness of data reports and perceived lack of sensitivity to clinically significant changes in functional status. Strategies for resolving these barriers were identified, including customization of data reports.

Implications: Clinicians will need to work collaboratively with managers, information technology specialists, and software vendors to explore opportunities to maximize potential usefulness of NRS data.