The Kessler Story

Henry H. Kessler was a man of great vision. From his early days in medical school to his work as an orthopedic surgeon during World War II, Dr. Kessler found that much of the rehabilitation of individuals with catastrophic injuries and illnesses focused on their physical recovery.

He, however, believed that rehabilitation – to be effective – must address the overall needs of those with physical disabilities and functional limitations. He was determined to "create a program to treat the whole individual, one that would help him or her successfully regain physical, mental, social, vocational and economic usefulness to the fullest possible degree." And in 1948, that became the guiding principle on which the Kessler organization was founded.

A New Era In Medical Rehabilitation

With the support of local business and community leaders, Dr. Kessler purchased a small, two-story brick building on a hillside in suburban West Orange, NJ for $125,000. On January 3, 1949, the first patients were admitted to the 16-bed Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation … and a new era in rehabilitation began.

Dr. Kessler established a five-fold mission for the new hospital: patient care, community education, the training of rehabilitation personnel, research and international programming. But patient care always came first – just as it does today.

He further realized that he would need to assemble a group of specialists to provide the comprehensive services patients with diverse conditions and concerns would require. Dr. Kessler sought the expertise of orthopedists, urologists, neurosurgeons, and internists, as well as neurologists and psychologists. He drew on the experience of nurses, therapists, prosthetists and other clinicians. And he developed a unique interdisciplinary team approach to rehabilitation, which became the model on which the provision of rehabilitation services is now based.

The first patients were coalminers who had experienced spinal cord injuries and amputation. But soon, a Juvenile Amputee Clinic was established to provide treatment for such children's medical needs, as well as to offer support to their families. The core programs at Kessler Institute continued to expand to include state-of-the science care, research, training and education for individuals with brain injury, stroke, neurological disorders and musculoskeletal conditions.

Over the past 60 years, Kessler Institute has grown dramatically. An increased demand for physical medicine and rehabilitation services, the development of specialized treatment programs and waves of technological advances drove this expansion. During the 1980s, three additional inpatient hospital campuses were opened in East Orange, Saddle Brook and Chester, NJ, and by 1990, Kessler, with a total of 322 beds, was one of the largest and most recognized rehabilitation organizations in the nation, and the world.

Although patients travel from throughout the state, across the country and even from international destinations to benefit from Kessler care, the organization's growth was not confined to inpatient rehabilitation.  To best serve our local communities, specialized outpatient satellites – Kessler Rehabilitation Center – were established. In fact, these outpatient centers have grown from just four locations in 1995 to more than 75 throughout northern New Jersey today.

In 1990, Kessler received federal designation as a "Model System" for the treatment and research of spinal cord injury, and a decade later, was awarded similar recognition for Brain Injury Rehabilitation. Today, Kessler is one of only seven dual-model systems in the nation to be recognized by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research.

A Unique Model of Rehabilitation Care

Much of the growth in the outpatient arena, as well as in other areas of medical rehabilitation services, can be attributed to Kessler's strategic business development initiatives. In 1998, Kessler, which had been founded as a not-for-profit organization, underwent a major restructuring through which it became a for-profit corporation. This helped to position Kessler Rehabilitation Corporation for further expansion both clinically and geographically through acquisitions and joint ventures, as well as start-up operations in those communities or regions where such services were needed.

At that same time, two other entities were formed: Kessler Medical Rehabilitation Research and Education Corporation (KMRREC), a non-profit medical research organization; and The Henry H. Kessler Foundation, a non-profit organization that raises and distributes funds to support rehabilitation research, education and community programs. The HHK Foundation also became the sole shareholder of Kessler Rehabilitation Corporation stock and the parent company of both the Corporation and KMRREC.

Examples of the organization's growth include Kessler Onsite Rehabilitation Services, which provided contract physical, occupational and speech therapy services to individuals in hospitals, senior care centers, and nursing homes and specialized pediatric services to children in schools, daycare centers or in the home; Kessler ArgosyHealth, which delivered custom-tailored physical and occupational therapy, ergonomics and injury prevention services to workers in offices, factories and other jobsites across the country; and Kessler Care Centers, long-term skilled nursing facilities. Kessler also continued to offer patients a complete line of home medical equipment, prosthetics and orthotics, and infusion/ intravenous services through Kessler Wilpage Medical. In addition, through a joint venture with Adventist HealthCare, Kessler Rehabilitation Corporation opened the 55-bed Kessler Adventist Rehabilitation Hospital in Rockville, MD, in 2001.

Change & Challenges

In 2003, Kessler was acquired by Select Medical, one of the nation's leading providers of specialty health care that includes rehabilitation hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, outpatient centers and contract services. This marked the beginning of a new chapter for the Kessler organization. With a shared vision and the support of Select Medical, Kessler has continued to meet the challenges of a changing health care landscape and to respond the increasingly complex needs of our patients.

Over the past 60 years, Kessler has developed the standard for the delivery of quality rehabilitative care that is unsurpassed in the industry. That model, which combines clinical expertise, excellence of care and leading-edge technologies, continues to distinguish Kessler among it colleagues. And the principles upon which the organization was first founded remain the driving force within the Kessler organization today.

A Kessler Timeline

Key Dates In Kessler's History