Rehabilitation
The term rehabilitation, which comes from the Latin word rehabilitatio, describes the process of recovery and reintegration of patients into everyday life after an illness or accident. The process includes a variety of measures aimed at working through physical and mental activity restrictions and compensating for the consequences thereof.
Medical rehabilitation follows on from curative therapies. A distinction is made between inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation. In inpatient rehab, patients experience permanent care, as they also temporarily reside in the facility where they receive their therapy. Outpatient rehab refers to treatment where patients go to a rehab center/clinic only for the duration of the treatment. If patients are not able to visit the facility, the clinic staff can arrange home visits if necessary. This is referred to as mobile rehabilitation. Inpatient rehabilitation is initially set at a maximum of 3 weeks, while the outpatient method is limited to 20 days of treatment. Extensions can be requested for both options.
The costs of rehabilitation are only covered if they are approved in advance by different cost units. Payers include German pension insurance, statutory health insurance funds and substitute health insurance funds. Furthermore, private health insurance funds and employers’ liability insurance associations can be requested. Accident insurance companies and social welfare offices can also be used as cost units. Nevertheless, co-payments are possible, which the patient must bear.
