Rehabilitation Response in Pandemics

The World Health Organization declared a pandemic due to the serious health risk posed by coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The number of infected cases is on the rise globally with escalating human, economic, and societal costs. Survivors of COVID-19 may experience a range of clinical, functional, and psychological impairments, resulting in disabilities. Many are amenable to rehabilitation intervention. The current focus of COVID-19 management is on public health measures and acute management. As patients transfer to subacute care or discharged to the community, rehabilitation services need to have a number of organizational and operational models in place to provide safe and effective care for patients and health professionals. There is need for global action by professional organizations in developing a structured rehabilitation approach for international response to disasters, including pandemics. This report proposes development of a "Rehabilitation Response Plan" to enable the International Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, to provide crucial leadership and governance role in liaison and coordination with the World Health Organization (and other stakeholders), to provide rehabilitation input during current and future pandemics. The key considerations include following categories: governance, coordination, communication, evaluation, and care continuum. These will strengthen rehabilitation, assist in the effective delivery of services, and provide advocacy and an international coordinated perspective.