155. Exploring the synergistic mechanism of psychological rehabilitation and medical rehabilitation from the perspective of rehabilitation management

Abstract Background Patients recovering from injuries or illnesses often face the dual challenges of physical dysfunction and psychological distress. While medical rehabilitation alone can improve physical symptoms, it struggles to address the psychological obstacles to the recovery process, leading to prolonged rehabilitation periods and decreased adherence. Psychological rehabilitation can enhance patients' initiative in rehabilitation through emotion regulation and cognitive restructuring. Furthermore, synergistic interventions of psychological and medical rehabilitation can create a virtuous cycle of "physical improvement - positive psychological state - accelerated rehabilitation." Existing research often examines the effects of these two types of rehabilitation in isolation, lacking sufficient exploration of the underlying mechanisms and practical pathways of their synergy. Therefore, this study aims to clarify the synergistic mechanism of psychological and medical rehabilitation, providing a basis for optimizing rehabilitation management programs. Methods Ninety patients in the recovery period were selected for this study and divided into three groups of 30 each, based on their rehabilitation protocols: a combined group receiving both psychological and medical rehabilitation, a single medical rehabilitation group receiving only their respective single psychological rehabilitation protocols, and a control group receiving routine rehabilitation guidance. The intervention period was 3 months. The Fugl-Meyer Assessment of Motor Recovery (FMA), Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and Rehabilitation Adherence Questionnaire (RAQ) were used to assess patients at baseline and 3 months later. Data are expressed as mean ± standard deviation, and independent samples t-tests were used for inter-group comparisons. Results At baseline, there were no significant differences in FMA, SAS, SDS, and RAQ scores among the three groups (p>.05). After 3 months of intervention, the FMA score in the synergistic group increased from 45.2 ± 8.6 to 78.5 ± 7.3 (p<.001), significantly higher than the single medical rehabilitation group and the single psychological rehabilitation group (p<.001). The SAS score in the synergistic group decreased from 56.8 ± 6.5 to 34.2 ± 5.1 (p<.001), significantly lower than the two control groups (p<.01). The RAQ score in the synergistic group increased from 52.4 ± 6.8 to 81.3 ± 5.9 (p<.001), better than the two control groups (p<.01). These results indicate that synergistic intervention combining psychological and medical rehabilitation is most effective in improving physical function, alleviating psychological distress, and enhancing rehabilitation adherence. Discussion The results show that synergistic intervention of psychological and medical rehabilitation can significantly optimize patient rehabilitation outcomes. The core mechanism lies in the fact that psychological rehabilitation improves emotional state and confidence in rehabilitation, enhancing patient adherence to medical rehabilitation, while the improvement in physical function brought about by medical rehabilitation further strengthens the positive psychological experience. Future research could expand the sample size and extend the follow-up period to explore appropriate synergistic intervention programs for different disease types and rehabilitation stages, refine the synergistic implementation process, and improve the accuracy and effectiveness of rehabilitation management.