32 Rotarians and no guests attended the meeting. The guest speaker was Patti Sheahan, Associate General Counsel of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, who is a young mother of 4 children, has been an attorney for the Rehabilitation Institute for 15 years and is running unopposed in the Democrat March primary for Cook County Circuit Court judge—yet she took time to be our guest speaker!!

Dr. Henry Betts started the RIC to provide rehab treatment to those with injuries/disabilities to help them regain their ability to function in society. The patients are of all ages and over the last ten years the number of military personnel has increased dramatically. The patients must continue to improve in the rehab process in order to stay in the hospital. RIC has 30 outpatient clinics throughout the Chicagoland area for outpatient treatment. It is affiliated with Northwestern Memorial Hospital where its interns and residents are educated.  Its revenues come from Medicaid, Medicare, government grants/ projects and fundraising—little comes from private pay insurance.

It is building a new facility at McClug Court and Erie  on Chicago’s near Northside to be opened in 2017. The new facility will increase by 30% the current 182 patient beds. It has always been recognized as the top rehab hospital in the Country.