WFCPC Helps Define Benchmarks for Comprehensive CP Care Across N America

Congratulations to Cerebral Palsy Research Network (CPRN) on the publication of “Benchmarking Models of Care Delivery within Cerebral Palsy Research Network Sites” in Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology. The Weinberg Family Cerebral Palsy Center (WFCPC) is one of the 11 leading CP programs in the network included in this multi-site benchmarking study, which examined how multidisciplinary CP care is delivered across North America.

Led by the CPRN Models of Care Working Group, the study found that services such as tone management, therapy, orthopedic care, and gait analysis are offered almost universally, while significant gaps remain in adult transition care, mental health integration, and reproductive health services.

Based on these findings, the authors propose a tiered checklist of “foundational,” “core,” and “specialty” services to serve as benchmarks for CP programs. This framework is intended to support quality improvement across programs and provide clinicians and families with clearer expectations for what comprehensive CP care can include.

This publication is among the first to systematically define comprehensive CP care should look like, offering a practical framework for program improvement while clarifying for clinicians and families what services to expect and advocate for. It also highlights ongoing gap in adult and mental health care, and points toward more consistent, equitable care across CPRN and nationally.