If you or a loved one is in need of rehabilitation due the effects of illness, injury, surgery or another serious medical event, one of the first decisions you will have to make in pursuing that care is whether to use outpatient or inpatient short term rehab services. So what is the most important factor to consider as you make this choice? Arguably, that would be which option is likely to yield the best long-term outcome. In other words, which can be expected to most effectively meet the essential, bottom-line goals of rehabilitation therapy – helping patients regain the best possible level of function and quality of life.