The Rehabilitation Institute of Kansas City

“An independent accounting firm prepares and reviews the 990. The 990 is then reviewed by the organization's officers, accounting personnel, and the finance committee. Any questions and concerns the organization's officers and accounting personnel have are addressed and any corrections or clarifications are made. The updated draft 990 is then provided to all the voting members of the board for review. Prior to filing the 990, any concerns/questions from board members are addressed and any additional corrections or clarifications are made.”

“At the time of hire (or election in the case of corporate directors) and annually thereafter, the ceo or his/her designess shall provide to the board and to all executive officers, administrative staff, associates, and volunteers a copy of the conflict of interest policy and the applicable conflict of interest disclosures form and questionnaire, which shall be completed to identify any relationships, positions, or circumstances with respect to which it is believed a conflict may arise. Such annual monitoring and review procedures shall be part of the corporate compliance plan. An appropriate report shall be submitted to the board of directors concerning any interest so disclosed. Each member of the board of directors and all management associates shall disclose fully and frankly any and all actual or potential conflicts or duality of interest or responsibility, whether individual, personal, or business, which may exist or appear at akc or akci, or any matter or business which may come before the board (including its committees). The disclosing individual shall neither vote nor endeavor to influence corporate action in any such matter upon request of the subject board. The affected individual shall leave the boardroom while the matter is discussed and a vote, if any shall be recorded in the minutes of the board or its committee.”

“The ceo's compensation includes a review of comparability data prepared by an independent organization (compensation survey), discussions/review at the executive committee and then the recommendation of the executive committee is made and voted on by the board. There are minutes for the executive committee and the board to substantiate this process. Compensation for all other officers, other than the ceo, is based on a set pay scale for the position. Pay scales are reviewed by an independent organization in the form of a compensation analysis and annually updated based on their review of labor market trends.”

“The organization's governing documents, conflict of interest policy and financial statements are available upon request.”

“Since 1947, ability kc has been driven by the unwavering belief that people with the most complex disabilities should have the support they need to fully participate in their communities. In 2023 we celebrated 76 years of unmatched expertise, an individualized approach to rehabilitation, and the connected continuum of care that makes ability kc a destination for care where people can build brighter futures. Our mission has been strong in kansas city at every juncture of life: from a child's kindergarten readiness to an individual returning to high school or work, or to building and achieving a plan of living independently in their home and community. Ability kc is the longest-standing comprehensive outpatient medical rehabilitation facility in kansas city and has been internationally accredited through the commission on accreditation of rehabilitation facilities (carf) for over 50 years. Through our partnership with carf international, we are recognized as a value-based care leader. Over the past seven decades, ability kc has risen to the challenges of the rapidly changing rehabilitation landscape, providing a model of care, culture and services that is a critical bridge for individuals to integrate into homes, schools, workplaces, and our communities. The demand for outpatient medical rehabilitation continues to rise with the growing acuity and complexity of injuries, illnesses, and disabilities. In our greater kc community and beyond, thousands of individuals experience life-changing injuries, illnesses, and disabilities each year. These individuals represent the rich diversity of our communityacross all ages, genders, races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic statuses. If ability kc did not exist, individuals and their families would have to travel to multiple places and often a different city to get the therapies and support they need, resulting in additional expenses, inefficiencies, and disparate care. Our intensive and complex outpatient medical rehabilitation is individual-centered, with therapy designed to meet each patient's unique needs and to maximize care within one center. Our model bridges healthcare to quality of life through non-traditional medical therapies in education, driving, neuropsychology, assistive technology, community independence and employment services, serving all ages. In 2023, 35% of our outpatient medical rehabilitation patients served (across all ages pediatric, adolescent and adult) were recovering from a stroke; 17% were recovering from a brain injury, 16% had a developmental disability; 13% had a spinal cord injury; 3% were living with an amputation, and 16% had "other" complex medical conditions. In the past few years, ability kc has seen a rise in patient complexity and acuity (a measure of a patient's severity of illness or conditions, including, but not limited to, the stability of physiological and psychological parameters and the dependency needs of the patient and their family). In 2023, 26.5% of patients needed assistance with toileting, 7.8% were dependent on/required tube feeding, 5.3% had swallowing precautions, and 2.3% required constant observation. For this reason, ability kc continues to invest in the professional development of our team of experts across roles like nursing and social work in addition to our therapists, to support individuals with these complex needs. In addition to traditional outpatient medical rehabilitation services, ability kc offers an intensive day program for individuals who need more comprehensive therapy services after being discharged from an inpatient hospital or while recovering from a complex injury or illness. With the day program, individuals get to go home at the end of the day, but they receive the benefit of an inpatient program by being with a team of therapists for around five hours a day. Ability kc's day program utilizes the principles of neuroplasticity of practice, repetition, and intensity to design an expert-driven, comprehensive, indi”

“Ability kc is built on a strong founding legacy that continues to inspire the work done each day for the children we serve. In 1947, mary shaw branton, jeanette luhnow and jane dick founded the therapeutic preschool for children with special needs. Now, 76 years later, we continue to help children achieve their goals and reach key milestones through the great work of our teachers and therapists at ability kc's mary shaw branton therapeutic preschool. Nationally accredited by the national association for the education of young children (naeyc), and state licensed, our early education therapeutic preschool classrooms offer a caring, inclusive environment that provide children ages 1 to 5 years old with a wide range of educational, medical, and therapeutic services. By delivering therapeutic services within an age-appropriate and natural educational environment, our highly experienced team can help young children of all abilities maximize their potential. Ability kc's inclusive classrooms pair children living with disabilities together with typically developing peers, with a ratio of 1:4 teachers to students to support every level of need. Additionally, therapists join the classroom teams to provide a holistic experience specific to each child's goals. The goal of every team member at the preschool is helping each child to become more independent and successful in their community and with life's important transitions. To do this, specialized care teams, including the child's family members, develop a customized plan of care that emphasizes building the child's strengths and coping with differing abilities. Our program offers children one-on-one or group therapy, aquatic therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy along with the use of adaptive computer and communication technology and sensory equipment. Our teachers and therapists are specially trained to address a wide variety of educational, medical, and therapeutic diagnoses. Families are encouraged to get involved early and to partner with us in preparing their child for the journey ahead as we address each child's individual developmental needs, while celebrating what makes them unique. Our teachers utilize a variety of research-based approaches when working with each child. Our classroom structure follows the creative curriculum. This curriculum is closely aligned with the missouri early learning standards to ensure that children who transition from our program to the public school system are ready to meet the challenges of school aged curriculum. From a social-emotional-behavioral perspective, we implement the conscious discipline approach, a social-emotional curriculum that promotes developmentally appropriate practices for children of all abilities. All our practices are trauma informed and the children benefit greatly from these varied approaches, ensuring a rich learning environment for every child. During the 2023-2024 school year, we served 252 students within our onsite preschool and outpatient services, 75% of which are living with a developmental disability. We also celebrated our 41st anniversary of the annual groundhog run 5k/10k event, which raises money for the children served at ability kc.”

“Ability kc provides a unique range of vocational services to help individuals experiencing disability or recovering from an illness or injury realize their employment and independence goals. From job training and placement to use of assistive technology for critical work tasks, through driving services and more, we collaborate with each patient and our community partners to help individuals with disabilities thrive in the community and in the workplace. Ability kc offers disability employment services in kansas city and across the region for individuals dealing with barriers to employment. Working closely with the missouri and kansas vocational rehabilitation offices, this carf-accredited service is a resource for job seekers with disabilities looking for assistance with vocational planning, placement and supports. For those who have had a traumatic brain injury (tbi), ability kc offers specialized employment services delivered by a specially trained team of experts in the areas of brain injury, neuroscience, assistive technology, and more, to meet the specific needs of individuals seeking employment after a tbi. Our passion and goal are to ensure the employee has a successful transition into the work environment. Ability kc's return-to-work navigators provide enhanced service navigation to patients receiving medical rehabilitation at ability kc. These navigation services will support a seamless, efficient transition between medical care and the community independence services they need to return to work and home. The navigator helps the individual reach their employment goals more quickly by removing barriers to employment. The navigator works closely with clinical, non-clinical and employment services staff to identify critical resources for patients, helping them navigate their post-care services in preparation to return to work. Ability kc also offers a summer work experience program in conjunction with the missouri division of vocational rehabilitation to support a paid work experience and training for high-school age youth. The six-week initiative provides a paid, competitive, and integrated employment opportunity for students entering their junior and senior years of high school. Participating students work 20 hours per week to develop a range of job skills as well as soft skills, such as effective communication, teamwork, problem solving and critical thinking. Ability kc currently works with 34 school districts to provide these services to local students. Since 1989 the adaptive computer and communication technology (acct) program at ability kc has been providing opportunities for greater success and independence through the use of assistive technology. Children, adults, and families work with ability kc's experienced team to identify, acquire, and learn how to use assistive technology tools for everyday needs in their home, work, school, and community. Areas of expertise include: augmentative and alternative communication (aac), adapted access to computers and other forms of everyday technology, adaptive gaming, home and environmental modifications, voice and message banking, tools to compensate for learning difficulties related to reading and writing, adapted computer use for physical or visual disabilities, adapted writing strategies, computer workstation ergonomic accommodations, training in the use and implementation of assistive technology identified for school, work or leisure, and support & guidance through the funding process for equipment and training. Ability kc's project search program is a unique, business-led, one-year employment preparation program for students that have completed high school academic requirements. Project search seamlessly combines classroom instruction, career exploration, and hands-on training through worksite rotations. Ability kc partners with local organizations to provide youth living with a disability a proven path toward job and career readiness.”

“Contributions to restricted assets 937,306. Temporarily restricted net assets released from restriction -720,547. Net assets released from restriction used for purchase of property 70,052.”

“The organization didn't change its oversight or selection process during the tax year.”