The Best Path Home
Courtesy Senior Care Health and Rehabilitation Center of Denton, Denton LIVING WELL Magazine
Each new year brings a list of resolutions. Perhaps you plan to eat a more nutritious diet; perhaps you plan to exercise more. However, unplanned events can occur. Often seniors are hospitalized due to illnesses such as pneumonia, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and strokes. Recovery from these illnesses can be lengthy. Before returning home, it may be necessary to find a transitional care facility that will provide the rehabilitative care needed for a complete recovery.
Returning home quickly is always desired but it is best to remember that returning to good health is the most important goal. The length of stay at a rehabilitation center is determined by the patient’s progress in recovery. The objective should always be to return home safely and fully recovered in order to avoid a relapse and return visit to the hospital. Medicare supports the benefit of short-term rehabilitative care, often covering 100% of the cost. Senior Care Health and Rehabilitation Center of Denton has a transitional care center created exclusively for short-term stay patients who need additional time to recover before returning home from the hospital. Their goal is for all patients to recover to their prior level of health, as quickly and safely as possible.
Rehabilitation centers focus on returning the patient to their prior level of function promptly, providing nursing and medication management 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Rather than being considered the traditional nursing home, a transitional care center is sub acute nursing and has a return to the community rate of 95%, according to a survey listed on NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information).
Jan Johnson-Roe, an ORT (registered occupational therapist) for Senior Care Centers states, “I think the benefits of the transitional care center are multifaceted. The therapists are able to provide onsite, intensive rehabilitation services, which include physical, occupational, and speech therapy. Our therapists are in-house employees who are able to maintain continuity of care and will continue with their patients from their initial evaluation until their transition back home. Our services are more rigorous than the services provided by home health agencies. We provide up to three hours of treatment per day, seven days a week, completely customized to the patient’s need. Additionally, we have modalities including pulsed shortwave diathermy, ultrasound, electrical stimulation that can significantly speed up recover. These modalities assist in pain management, edema control, and muscle re-education.”
At the Senior Care Rehab Center of Denton:
- Therapy is available daily if ordered by the physician and set at times most appropriate for the patient’s involvement.
- Physical therapy focuses on a person’s ability to move within their environment, with or without a wheelchair, walker, or other device.
- Occupational therapy focuses on improving a person’s ability to participate in daily activities, ranging from getting dressed to fixing a meal.
- Speech therapy addresses speech, language, communication, cognition, and swallowing disorders.
- The nursing staff is trained in providing IV antibiotics and medication. Pain management is promptly addressed so patients can actively participate in therapy to regain strength and function.
- Dieticians on staff will help monitor and create the most appropriate and therapeutic diet, while dietary managers create individualized dining options.
- A social worker is available to assist in planning a safe transition home with all equipment and resources required.
Dr. Neeraj Sharma, one of the attending physicians at the center, comments, “The attending physician in a transitional care center coordinates a team of healthcare professionals who care for our patients. The physician can address and adjust medications in a timely fashion, as well as focus on patients’ changing medical needs as they progress through convalescence and recoveries, helping them reach their maximum functional potential.”
In addition, labs and x-rays can be taken while remaining at the rehabilitation center, addressing issues and avoiding re-hospitalization.
When an unfortunate event occurs that requires an individual to receive skilled nursing and rehabilitation, an appropriate setting for healing and a rapid return home is a transitional care center. Senior Care Health and Rehab Center of Denton wishes you a happy and healthy new year.
Senior Care Health and Rehab Center of Denton is located at 2244 Brinker Road in Denton, TX 76208 and may be reached at 940-320-6300.
