CROR's Primary Research Projects

The Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago's (RIC) Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research (CROR) conducts a variety of research projects related to quantifying the outcomes of rehabilitation. This work is in part funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, the Social Security Administration, the Veterans Administration and other sources. CROR's primary research projects are listed below.

Current Projects

• RRTC on Improving Measurement of Medical Rehabilitation Outcomes - These research and training projects aim to improve measurement of the cognitive and environmental factors affecting participation for persons with disabilities.
• Center for Rehabilitation Research Using Large Datasets -  This study will build rehabilitation research capacity by increasing the quantity and quality of rehabilitation outcomes research using large administrative and research datasets.
• TBI-QOL - Measuring Quality of Life for Traumatic Brain Injury: The Next Generation of Instruments - This study will develop a scale to measure quality of life (QOL) for people with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
• Project to Improve Symptoms and Mood after Spinal Cord Injury (PRISMS) - This is a clinical trial that examines how well the study drug, Venlafaxine XR (more commonly known as Effexor XR), works on people who have had a spinal cord injury. 

• Motivational Interviewing and Physical Activity Behavior Change in Arthritis - This research will help health professionals understand how people with arthritis view the motivational interviewing process and how it helps them improve their physical activity behavior.

• Development of Quality Measures for Post-Stroke Rehabilitation - The goal of this project is to develop quality measures for post-stroke rehabilitation programs that can be used to foster the delivery of high-quality rehabilitation care.

• RRTC on Rehabilitation Outcomes & Effectiveness - These research and training projects will help determine the effectiveness of various post-acute care settings, and use a health literacy framework to provide quality information to consumers when making choices.  In addition, we will develop an innovative measure of community participation to better capture the long-term outcomes of rehabilitation services. 
• Physical Activity Promotion for People with Arthritis - This project will test the effectiveness of physical activity promotion combined with physical activity counseling in improving arthritis and general health-related quality of life, function and physical activity performance.
• Enhancing Quality of Prosthetic and Orthotic Services with Process and Outcome Information - This study will enhance quality healthcare in prosthetic and orthotic practices and help increase efficiency and support initiatives that improve patient outcomes as well as allow providers to compare their patient outcomes with other providers.

Other Active Research

In addition to conducting numerous primary research projects the researchers who work at the RIC's CROR also lead and participate in a number of other active research projects that are initiated by their colleagues at other leading institutions, across the nation. A list of these projects is found below.

• RRTC-Stroke
• Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) 
• Computer Adaptive Testing
• Midwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System (MRSCICS)

Completed Projects

• Arthritis & Physical Activity
• Health Services Research DRRP on Medical Rehabilitation
• SSA Disability Research Institute
• Promoting Substance Use Assessment
• Second Chances: An Investigation of Quality of Life following Stroke
• Outcomes on Prosthetics and Orthotics
• Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders

• SCI-QOL - Measuring Quality of Life for Spinal Cord Injury: The Next Generation of Instruments