Penn's Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, founded in 1897, is the oldest in the nation and has pioneered essential rehabilitation treatments, including prosthetics and orthotics, and computer-based vocational training. Its development was central to the growth of rehabilitation medicine as a specialty nationwide. Graduates of the program have shaped programs in rehabilitation medicine, playing a central role in the evolution of physical medicine and rehabilitation during the past 100 years.
More on the history of rehabilitation medicine at Penn.