Building the Future of Rehabilitation - Together
2.4 billion people worldwide need rehabilitation (WHO)
Rehabilitation is not one discipline, one profession or one intervention. It is an ecosystem of people with lived experience and their families, clinicians, researchers, healthcare organisations, policymakers, industry, technology partners and funders, all shaping outcomes together.
26–31 October 2027 · Bruges, Belgium
On behalf of the International Rehabilitation Summit Organisation, it is our honour to invite you to Bruges for the inaugural edition of the Summit. For many centuries, this city has connected its quarters, its guilds, its professions and its people by the bridges spanning its canals: a fitting home for a Summit dedicated to connecting the rehabilitation world.
This is the first edition, but it is not conceived as a one-off. It is the starting point for a lasting, international rehabilitation community.
Two banks
Too often, the communities of rehabilitation stand on opposite banks, working alongside one another rather than truly together.
One bridge
The International Rehabilitation Summit is a bridge between them: an independent, inclusive meeting place where scientific knowledge, clinical expertise, lived experience, technology and policy can cross over, connect, and reinforce one another.
Our vision is a world where everyone can achieve their greatest potential through better rehabilitation. The summit is global catalyst for collaboration, knowledge exchange and innovation across the field.
Seven spans. One bridge.
- Clinical practice
- Research
- Lived experience
- Technology
- Industry
- Education
- Policy
Seven on this bank
- Clinical practice
- Research
- Lived experience
- Technology
- Industry
- Education
- Policy
Five ways across
The Summit programme reflects that ambition. Scientific and clinical sessions sit alongside industry-led activities, lived-experience perspectives, policy discussions and a strong focus on AI and innovation, not as separate tracks, but as spans of the same structure.
Instead of running in parallel, the programme is designed for genuine interaction: critical dialogue, and new collaborations across all these worlds.
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Scientific Programme
Discover the latest research, clinical developments and emerging perspectives in rehabilitation.
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Industry Programme
Connect with industry and technology partners working across the field of rehabilitation.
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Lived Experience Programme
Discover rehabilitation through the perspectives and priorities of people with lived experience, families and patient organisations.
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AI & Innovation Programme
Explore how AI, emerging technologies and new ideas can shape the future of rehabilitation.
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Pre-Summit Programme
Start your Summit experience early, with focused learning, practical training and opportunities to connect.
One programme, many perspectives: five programmes, one connected Summit.
What the field can plan around
- Abstracts openAutumn 2026
- Registration opensNovember 2026
- Early bird closesMarch 2027
- The Summit26–31 October 2027
Nothing on this site is a fixed commitment until the founding committees confirm it.
The meeting point
One meeting point, in the heart of Bruges: five programmes, seven communities, 2,000 seats.
Bruges sits in the heart of Europe, close to its key policymaking institutions, an ideal setting for a Summit that aims to bridge science, clinical practice, industry, people with lived experience and policy, and to help define the European and international rehabilitation agenda for years to come.
Not yet built
The Scientific Committee is being formed. Leave your email to hear who joins, and when the call for abstracts opens.
After the week
The Summit is one week. The story is bigger.
Every bridge needs two banks willing to be connected. Join us to build this one.
Together, we can turn knowledge into action, innovation into meaningful progress, and collaboration into better outcomes, for the people who need rehabilitation today, and for the generations who will need it tomorrow.
Building the Future of Rehabilitation - Together
26–31 October 2027 · Bruges, Belgium