Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, formerly the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (RIC), is the global leader in physical medicine and rehabilitation for adults and children with the most severe, complex conditions. Upon opening in March 2017, the $550 million, 1.2-million-square-foot Shirley Ryan AbilityLab became the first-ever “translational” research hospital in which clinicians, scientists, innovators and technologists work together in the same space, surrounding patients, discovering new approaches and applying (or “translating”) research in real time.
This unique model enables patients to have 24/7 access to the brightest minds, the latest research and the best opportunity for recovery.
Today, after 40 years of Model System Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) work, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab is the leading center (and referral destination of choice) for innovative, integrated, interdisciplinary care for people with SCI. Key to these efforts is the organization’s research involving new methods of enhancing medical and functional outcomes. Within the hospital, state-of-the-art “Ability Labs,” applied research and therapeutic spaces, infuse science into treatment and therapy. Additionally, the hospital conducts clinical trials and human-subject research to facilitate neurologic repair and recovery. The goal: better, faster patient outcomes.
Shirley Ryan AbilityLab’s Spinal Cord Innovation Center is staffed with leaders in the field and is equipped to handle all levels, types and severity of SCI, including patients with complete paralysis and those who require mechanical ventilation. The rehabilitation course for patients with SCI includes precise medical and nursing expertise, intensive therapy, respiratory and pulmonary care, and sophisticated diagnostic and therapeutic equipment. Primary goals for patients include the emergence of meaningful motor function, sensation, coordination and endurance, resolution of respiratory and vascular instability, and overall continued medical recovery from the injury or disease.
