Driver Rehab Program

What is driver rehabilitation?

Independence is a core goal of every rehabilitation program. For many, driving a vehicle represents the ultimate freedom, which when prohibited or lost due to a medical diagnosis, can be devastating. For decades, Bryn Mawr Rehab has offered a unique way for patients to access and/or return to this crucial aspect of their lives. Through our Driver Rehab Program, patients work one-on-one with our team of certified driver rehabilitation specialists (CDRS) to ensure a safe start, return, or continuation to their driving, including hands-on training in our specially adapted vehicles.

In many cases, conditions that formerly kept people close to home can be overcome with modern adaptations and specialized training, providing an enormous boost in quality of life as well as economic opportunity for those returning to work. When clinically indicated, our adaptive driving vehicles can be equipped with a variety of low-tech solutions, such as hand controls, steering devices, or pedal modifications to allow drivers to return to the roadway in a safe and effective manner.

Driver rehab is for ages 16+ and many conditions. A certified driver rehabilitation specialist can help people of all ages in their pursuit of driving safety. Our clients include:

• New drivers with physical challenges like cerebral palsy, spina bifida or short stature
• New drivers with learning challenges like ADHD and autism
• Adult drivers who are relearning to drive after illness, stroke, spinal cord injury, brain injury (including concussion) or amputation
• Senior citizens looking to ensure their continued safety behind the wheel

Outpatient driver rehab is offered at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital in Malvern, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia. Our program is specifically tailored to meet the needs of new and experienced drivers with a range of conditions seeking to explore or return to driving, as well as those wishing to explore low-tech adapted driving solutions. At this time, our program is not equipped to assist those requiring mid to high-tech adapted driving solutions, which often coincide with the need for a wheelchair-accessible vehicle (WAV). Presently, our fleet of adapted vehicles includes modified sedans only. All patients must be able to independently transfer into and out of the driver’s seat and load/unload their mobility device independently to be eligible for services with the Driver Rehab Program. For those requiring use of powered mobility devices (e.g. power wheelchair, scooter), particularly those wishing to drive from their power wheelchair, please visit ADED for a listing of van-accessible providers in your area.

Driver rehab enhances skills gradually

The program is led by a team of licensed occupational therapists and certified driver rehabilitation specialists with advanced training and licensing as certified driving instructors by the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Our driver rehab program takes a multi-pronged approach from initial assessment to training to driver certification and ongoing support. Each evaluation includes a thorough clinical pre-driving risk assessment, focused on factors including:

• Visual and perceptual skills
• Motor and sensory skills
• Reaction time
• Balance and flexibility
• Attention, memory, and executive functioning
• Knowledge of road rules

Once the initial assessment is complete and favorable results have been obtained, driver training can begin! All driver training is conducted using the adaptive equipment and vehicles maintained by the program, beginning with short trips within the private, hospital grounds to develop basic skills and build confidence. When you're ready, you'll progress to public roads to negotiate a variety of encountered traffic situations with guidance from your instructors. If required, our Bryn Mawr Rehab instructors can also accompany you to the state exam site for driver skills testing in one of our program vehicles. Our instructors remain with you through every step of the process, ensuring a seamless transition from training to relicensing. This level of support continues after the test, with detailed equipment prescriptions for your own vehicle(s) and an unbiased list of NMEDA QAP-accredited vendors who can provide and install the gear.

The Driver Rehabilitation Program at Bryn Mawr Rehab Hospital aids more than 400 people every year and is licensed as a private driver training school (PDTS) by the PA Department of Education.

• Driver Rehab Program Welcome Letter