Success Stories

He was rushed to the hospital and had to be immediately placed on a ventilator as he had developed respiratory failure. Physicians diagnosed him with neurological damage and he began treatment in the ICU of the hospital where he was admitted. Michael endured two additional transfers to different facilities before finally coming to Kindred Hospital Houston Medical Center to receive respiratory therapy and rehabilitation.

When Michael first arrived he was mostly unresponsive and unable to actively participate in therapy, requiring maximum assistance from his team of caregivers for all his needs. His respiratory team started the process of strengthening his lungs and he began to show physical and cognitive signs of improvement. As he became more alert and oriented, and with constant support and encouragement from his wife who was always at his side, Michael started to engage with his therapists and caregivers.

He was able to transition from full ventilator support to a portable device, allowing him to participate more fully in his therapy sessions, and soon he was up on his feet and walking with the aid of a walker. Michael also made great gains with his occupational therapy program and regained much of the independence he had lost in performing the simple activities of daily life. His speech therapists helped Michael regain the ability to swallow and speak once more, although he still needed supplemental nutrition through a feeding tube to make up for his severe undernourishment.

When Michael was discharged from Kindred he was overjoyed to be returning to his home after being in hospitals for nearly three months. “I can’t believe how far I’ve come along,” Michael shared just before he left Kindred. “Thank you all for the care you gave me.”

She was admitted to Kindred on February 16 for ventilator weaning and management of conditions complicating her hospitalization including diabetes mellitus, hypertension, diverticulitis, deconditioning and a sacral decubitus ulcer.

On February 28, she was placed on the weaning protocol. The speech-language pathologist started her with a Passy Muir valve in-line with the ventilator on March 2.

The next day, she was started on TTAV (trans-tracheal augmented ventilation), per the weaning protocol, so she could speak during her weaning sessions. She progressed steadily and gained strength with the addition of aggressive physical and occupational therapy and speech-language pathology for the next two weeks.

On March 15, Vicenta was weaned from the ventilator. On March 18, she was decannulated and her tracheostomy tube was removed. She was discharged on March 23 to acute rehab with a plan for ultimately going home. By this time, she had made good functional gains in occupational therapy, was able to complete basic activities of daily living, was ambulating 60 feet, and was swallowing pureed foods.

We look forward to a visit from Vicenta and her family in the near future.

He was immobilized with broken bones, fractured ribs and a punctured lung. “Somehow I was able to wiggle around and get the cell phone out of my pocket,” he said. He called his wife, and within an hour a medical helicopter was taking him to a short-term acute care hospital. He stayed there in the Intensive Care Unit for seven weeks and was then admitted to Kindred Hospital. “Really, by that point he was still in critical condition,” his wife said. “He was totally dependent on a ventilator to breathe. The people at the hospital had done everything they could – we just needed to go somewhere where they had expertise in caring for vent patients.” Almost immediately, the caregivers at Kindred Hospital began rehabilitation therapy and the process of weaning John from the ventilator. “He had been on his back for seven weeks, and gradually they kept having him do a little more at a time,” his wife said. “The walking helped him strengthen his lungs.” “I felt like I was making progress, absolutely,” John said. “I’d heard of Kindred before, but I didn’t really know what they did.” Six weeks later, John was released to home care to fully recover. “By the time we left, he was walking, breathing, swallowing and eating,” his wife said. “And it was the teamwork that was great.” “The care was excellent,” John said. “Everybody knew what they were doing and everybody worked together.” “Just excellent.”