Christina
I am very grateful to everyone who cared for me and helped me get my life back
Christina lived at home and was independent; even though she relied on her wheelchair for mobility, she was able to live a normal life. When she contracted acute respiratory failure as a result of cardiac arrest she was rushed to the hospital where physicians placed her on a ventilator and began to administer treatment. At the general hospital, it became clear that Christina a longer course of treatment and she was transferred to Kindred Hospital Sugar Land.
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When she arrived, Christina was still in a very delicate condition. She was unresponsive and fully dependent on the ventilator and her team of caregivers in the ICU. She began to receive respiratory therapy and slowly started to make progress. When Christina had recovered her cognitive abilities and her lungs started to get stronger, she was transferred out of the ICU and continued to improve, responding well to the treatments she received from her team.
Christina reached a major milestone when she was able to be weaned from the ventilator and no longer required mechanical ventilation. She then was able to have the breathing tube removed and her speech therapist assisted Christina to be able to speak and swallow safely again, allowing her to drink and eat a normal diet once more. She made great progress as well with her physical and occupation therapists and by the time she was discharged from Kindred to return home, Christina was able to transfer from her bed to a chair and had regained her independence over the tasks of daily life.
On the day she left Kindred her team celebrated Christina’s amazing recovery. “I am very grateful to everyone who cared for me and helped me get my life back – and helping me get home,” Christina said.
Roy
I am so glad that Roy is now able to come home
Roy was admitted to a general hospital for abdominal surgery and during the procedure he developed acute respiratory failure, requiring a ventilator to support his lungs. After the procedure he was placed in the ICU and also began treatment and dialysis for kidney failure. He remained in the general hospital until he was stable enough to be transferred to Kindred Hospital Sugar Land.
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When Roy first arrived at Kindred he was still dependent on the ventilator, a feeding tube, and on his caregivers for all his needs. With his wife, Tomeka, at his side every day he started to make progress with treatment from his respiratory team. Although his progress was slow, it was steady and he gradually improved over a period of several weeks to finally being able to breathe on his own. His speech therapist at first helped him communicate with the use of a speaking valve, and when the breathing tube was removed, to swallow safely and begin a normal diet once again.
Roy also made excellent progress under the guidance of his physical and occupational therapists and as he regained his strength, he was able to go from being bed-bound to walking with minimal assistance and to care for all his daily needs. After two months of treatment and care at Kindred, Roy was ready to be discharged to his home. “I am so glad that Roy is now able to come home – thank you all for the care you gave my husband,” said Tomeka just before they left the facility.
Mr. Zatopek
From Abscesses on His Brain to Home Bound
Mr. Zatopek was a patient admitted to Kindred Hospital Sugar Land with a medical diagnosis of sepsis and respiratory failure related to abscesses in the brain. He had significant functional impairments and required complete assistance with mobility and activities of daily living upon admission.
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Mr. Zatopek had a long hospital course, with ups and downs, but through out his stay the hospital team encouraged him to stay positive. He had high hopes that he could eventually make it home.
Michelle Jardinel, COTA assisted Mr. Zatopek with Occupational therapy, and progressed his rehab from bed level exercise to high level standing balance activities in the gym.
Donna Rizkallah, PTA worked in the gym to improve his scissoring walking pattern, very commonly seen in neurological patients. Working in the Rehab gym, Mr. Zatopek stated, "I don't even remember my first few days here, I was so out of it. But now I can walk and I sure hope I can go home!”
With perseverance, Mr. Zatopek will be able to finish his speech therapy at an outpatient clinic, and was successful in leaving Kindred for HOME!
Diana
Journey to Recovery
Diana was admitted to Kindred Hospital suffering from respiratory failure and sepsis due to multi-drug resistant pneumonia. When she came to the Kindred ICU, she had been on a ventilator for two months. She was extremely weak, unable to move, speak or eat, and relied on a feeding tube for all her nutrition.
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Early in her journey, her husband was told that she was not expected to make it through the weekend. "I knew I was very sick, but I'm glad no one told me I wasn't expected to make it! I think that it would've taken away all my hope" Diana said.
She also recalled the moment that marked a turning point for her. "I was lying in the ICU and focused on one thought; 'God, there's plenty more you have for me to do.' And that was what helped me - it gave me the determination to get well.”
Under the skillful treatment of her team of doctors, as well as the daily efforts of the respiratory and nursing teams, she slowly began to improve. Eventually, she was able to wean off the ventilator and have the tracheostomy tube removed when could breathe on her own. Diana remarked, "I had so many tubes coming out of me, to have the breathing tube removed really left me feeling free!”
Her next challenge was to focus more of her energy on regaining her strength with the help of the rehab team. "They kept telling me not to give up. At times I wanted to give up, but they would not give up on me." As she got stronger, her mobility improved and she worked with her speech therapists to re-learn how to swallow and speak again.
Diana continued to improve and was able to be discharged first to a rehab facility, and then to her home to continue on her journey to recovery. It's been several months since she was released and shared that she's overjoyed to be able to do the simple things again, care for her home and her husband. She is back to taking walks in her neighborhood and is able to drive again. "I feel like I'm back to my old self!" Diana said.
”For three months I couldn't move or eat - I couldn't even talk." Diana recalls. "I was lying in bed wondering if I would make it. But with my faith, and with the efforts of all the medical professionals working with me, I have been able to return to my life and to my home!"
All of us at Kindred are profoundly inspired by Diana's determination to regain her health and are proud to have been there to support her. We wish her and her husband a long and healthy lifetime together!