Short-term rehabilitation is a wonderful option after involved treatment or a hospital stay. Patients re-learn basic living skills while adapting to any new functional challenges. Short-term rehab is also helpful when a caregiver needs a break.
Dr. Ann Allie discusses what to look for in a short-term rehabilitation facility in Chicago.
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What to Look for in Short-Term Rehabilitation in Chicago
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Learn more about Ann Allie, MD
Ann Allie, MD
Ann Allie, MD is a physician at Northwestern Medical Group specializing in geriatric medicine.Learn more about Ann Allie, MD
Transcription:
Bill Klaproth (Host): When you have orthopedic surgery or experience a stroke or cardiac event; you want to make sure you can receive the right short-term rehabilitation care as soon as possible. Here to talk with us about what to look for in short-term rehab in Chicago is Dr. Ann Allie a physician specializing in geriatric medicine who works with older adults at Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services. Dr. Allie, thank you so much for your time today. First off, what is short-term rehab?
Ann Allie, MD (Guest): A lot of times when patients, particularly older adults are hospitalized for a variety of reasons, say a joint replacement or maybe they have had a stroke or a heart attack; there comes a point in their hospitalization when they don’t need to be in the hospital anymore, but they are not quite ready to go home. It might be that they are just not quite strong enough to be independent in the home or they may have other medical or nursing needs where they just need a little bit more time, a little more support before they are ready to go home. So, short-term rehabilitation is what we recommend for these people. It’s a place where they can go where they have 24-hour nurses to support them with their medicines and any needs and then they have access to both physical, occupational and speech therapists to work with them to achieve their goals so that they can again return to home.
Bill: So, when looking for a short-term rehabilitation center in Chicago, what do you want to look for in that community?
Dr. Allie: I think it’s helpful to find a place where the staff is experienced. A place like Wesley Place part of Chicago Methodist Senior Services, they have a team of experienced physical therapists and occupational therapists who routinely take care of people after hospitalizations and know what kind of physical or occupational therapy they may need for say following a stroke where they might have some weakness or difficulty walking or after a joint replacement where we are working on getting that joint to restore its range of motion so the patient can walk and move again. So, I think having a staff that can walk you through what you need to do to reach those goals. They have seen it before. They know what to look for as far as troubleshooting any sort of problems. It is really reassuring when you are going through this process. And I say the same for the nurses as well. You want nurses who are familiar with the typical course after hospitalization, those that are there consistently so they get to know you as a person, it’s not a different person each day. They see you each day and kind of go with you through the process. I think that’s really helpful so both consistency and experienced staff can be great and help you get along your way.
Bill: So, this therapy is very important for someone as you said, not quite ready to go home yet. So, what goals does a person generally have to achieve before being ready to go home?
Dr. Allie: Well, to give one example, I would talk about the orthopedic patients. So, these are patients that have had a joint replaced from arthritis or maybe they have broken a bone and it is being repaired. The goals are somewhat individualized. Here in Chicago, some people have 30 stairs at home. And so, we have to make sure they can go up and down those stairs, so they can live their life. So, that’s going to be a goal for some patients. And for others, they won’t have as many stairs but they have to walk a certain length in their home or to get to the store, so we will sit down and figure out what they need in order to get home. A lot of this is being safe, comfortable, feeling that your balance is good enough that you can do the things of your daily life, taking a shower, getting dressed, preparing a meal, driving; those are some of the goals that people will have. And when you are there, you will work with physical and occupational therapists for a couple of hours a day in a gym using a variety of equipment some that we will look familiar like exercise bikes, treadmills, other things are more specific for physical therapy to try to get the joint moving well enough that you can move without anyone else’s assistance. When it comes to other things like having a heart attack, you might be short of breath and just can’t walk very far without getting tired and that is something they work with you as well, when you are deconditioned; getting you stronger, getting your heart and lungs in good enough shape that you can move around like you did before.
Bill: So, Dr. Allie, you mentioned Wesley Place. Can you tell us why Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services is an excellent place to receive short-term rehabilitation in the Chicago area?
Dr. Allie: Well I have been seeing patients there for about eight years. And so, I feel like I know the staff pretty well. I think one of – what makes them stand out is the experience of their staff. It’s the same people that have been there for years. I know those nurses and I know those therapists well. They are very experienced. We will have people come multiple times and they come back because they know these therapists and these nurses. So, they get one knee replaced, they come back when they have their second one because they know that the staff is so experienced. I think what also is really nice about Wesley Place is it’s kind of small and homey so it’s a comfortable place to stay and everyone in my opinion, from the top down, from the physicians, the nurse practitioners, the nurses, the therapists, the nursing assistants even those that are providing the food and snacks are all incredibly friendly and very patient. So, those are some of the things that make Wesley Place unique. It’s very personal.
Bill: And for older parents who happen to be in rehab, this therapy and care and experience of staff that you talk about, has got to be very comforting for the children as well. Can you tell us about should we look for an easy application process, any other specialties that the rehab facility should offer as well? Can you tell us about that?
Dr. Allie: Well, Wesley Place with Chicago Methodist Senior Services covers just about all short-term rehab needs. We have a dietician on staff so if a person has lost weight while they are in the hospital or they have new dietary restrictions or changes; they can make sure that you are getting the right kinds of food that is going to help you heal, so it’s nice to have the dieticians there. The social workers I think are incredible. They can help patients transition into short-term rehab and then transition home making sure that they have got everything they need when they leave. So, those part of the team are also important. I think that the administrative staff is very accommodating. I will say, I don’t know as much about the application process, but I know it’s pretty streamlined. They are able to get patients over quite quickly when the hospital identifies that they need short-term rehab. So, I think on that end, they are working pretty quickly to help patients find a place to go.
Bill: And I would imagine having admissions seven days a week is really an important benefit too.
Dr. Allie: Yeah, there are operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week so you can go to rehab on a Friday night or a Saturday or Sunday and they can evaluate you pretty quickly, usually the next day to get you started on your physical therapy. So, they are not limited with Monday through Friday. There is staff there every day.
Bill: So, we are saying short-term rehabilitation. How short is short-term in general how long is a short-term rehab stay?
Dr. Allie: It depends a little bit on what the patient needs. So, we have to individualize it. for a typical orthopedic patient, getting a joint replaced, I tell my patients about two weeks. But it comes down to when I tell them, it is when you and the physical therapist think you are ready to go home. So, sometimes it can be as short as a week and other times it can be longer depending on what they need. If they are not quite ready and we think they would benefit from more rehab before they go home; we will try to keep them so that when they go home, they are in the best condition they can be and ready to be independent again. Some patients will stay longer depending on what they need, and some will stay a little bit shorter, but it is individualized.
Bill: And that individualized care and support and attention is so important. So, make sure you look for that in a community and also very important is Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services has a convenient location in Andersonville, a charming neighborhood near public transportation, convenient from downtown and from the suburbs. It’s just a great location and wonderful people. Dr. Allie, thank you so much for your time today. I really appreciate it. For more information or if you want to book a tour just visit www.cmsschicago.org, that’s www.cmsschicago.org. This is Living Well with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. I’m Bill Klaproth. Thanks for listening.
Bill Klaproth (Host): When you have orthopedic surgery or experience a stroke or cardiac event; you want to make sure you can receive the right short-term rehabilitation care as soon as possible. Here to talk with us about what to look for in short-term rehab in Chicago is Dr. Ann Allie a physician specializing in geriatric medicine who works with older adults at Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services. Dr. Allie, thank you so much for your time today. First off, what is short-term rehab?
Ann Allie, MD (Guest): A lot of times when patients, particularly older adults are hospitalized for a variety of reasons, say a joint replacement or maybe they have had a stroke or a heart attack; there comes a point in their hospitalization when they don’t need to be in the hospital anymore, but they are not quite ready to go home. It might be that they are just not quite strong enough to be independent in the home or they may have other medical or nursing needs where they just need a little bit more time, a little more support before they are ready to go home. So, short-term rehabilitation is what we recommend for these people. It’s a place where they can go where they have 24-hour nurses to support them with their medicines and any needs and then they have access to both physical, occupational and speech therapists to work with them to achieve their goals so that they can again return to home.
Bill: So, when looking for a short-term rehabilitation center in Chicago, what do you want to look for in that community?
Dr. Allie: I think it’s helpful to find a place where the staff is experienced. A place like Wesley Place part of Chicago Methodist Senior Services, they have a team of experienced physical therapists and occupational therapists who routinely take care of people after hospitalizations and know what kind of physical or occupational therapy they may need for say following a stroke where they might have some weakness or difficulty walking or after a joint replacement where we are working on getting that joint to restore its range of motion so the patient can walk and move again. So, I think having a staff that can walk you through what you need to do to reach those goals. They have seen it before. They know what to look for as far as troubleshooting any sort of problems. It is really reassuring when you are going through this process. And I say the same for the nurses as well. You want nurses who are familiar with the typical course after hospitalization, those that are there consistently so they get to know you as a person, it’s not a different person each day. They see you each day and kind of go with you through the process. I think that’s really helpful so both consistency and experienced staff can be great and help you get along your way.
Bill: So, this therapy is very important for someone as you said, not quite ready to go home yet. So, what goals does a person generally have to achieve before being ready to go home?
Dr. Allie: Well, to give one example, I would talk about the orthopedic patients. So, these are patients that have had a joint replaced from arthritis or maybe they have broken a bone and it is being repaired. The goals are somewhat individualized. Here in Chicago, some people have 30 stairs at home. And so, we have to make sure they can go up and down those stairs, so they can live their life. So, that’s going to be a goal for some patients. And for others, they won’t have as many stairs but they have to walk a certain length in their home or to get to the store, so we will sit down and figure out what they need in order to get home. A lot of this is being safe, comfortable, feeling that your balance is good enough that you can do the things of your daily life, taking a shower, getting dressed, preparing a meal, driving; those are some of the goals that people will have. And when you are there, you will work with physical and occupational therapists for a couple of hours a day in a gym using a variety of equipment some that we will look familiar like exercise bikes, treadmills, other things are more specific for physical therapy to try to get the joint moving well enough that you can move without anyone else’s assistance. When it comes to other things like having a heart attack, you might be short of breath and just can’t walk very far without getting tired and that is something they work with you as well, when you are deconditioned; getting you stronger, getting your heart and lungs in good enough shape that you can move around like you did before.
Bill: So, Dr. Allie, you mentioned Wesley Place. Can you tell us why Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services is an excellent place to receive short-term rehabilitation in the Chicago area?
Dr. Allie: Well I have been seeing patients there for about eight years. And so, I feel like I know the staff pretty well. I think one of – what makes them stand out is the experience of their staff. It’s the same people that have been there for years. I know those nurses and I know those therapists well. They are very experienced. We will have people come multiple times and they come back because they know these therapists and these nurses. So, they get one knee replaced, they come back when they have their second one because they know that the staff is so experienced. I think what also is really nice about Wesley Place is it’s kind of small and homey so it’s a comfortable place to stay and everyone in my opinion, from the top down, from the physicians, the nurse practitioners, the nurses, the therapists, the nursing assistants even those that are providing the food and snacks are all incredibly friendly and very patient. So, those are some of the things that make Wesley Place unique. It’s very personal.
Bill: And for older parents who happen to be in rehab, this therapy and care and experience of staff that you talk about, has got to be very comforting for the children as well. Can you tell us about should we look for an easy application process, any other specialties that the rehab facility should offer as well? Can you tell us about that?
Dr. Allie: Well, Wesley Place with Chicago Methodist Senior Services covers just about all short-term rehab needs. We have a dietician on staff so if a person has lost weight while they are in the hospital or they have new dietary restrictions or changes; they can make sure that you are getting the right kinds of food that is going to help you heal, so it’s nice to have the dieticians there. The social workers I think are incredible. They can help patients transition into short-term rehab and then transition home making sure that they have got everything they need when they leave. So, those part of the team are also important. I think that the administrative staff is very accommodating. I will say, I don’t know as much about the application process, but I know it’s pretty streamlined. They are able to get patients over quite quickly when the hospital identifies that they need short-term rehab. So, I think on that end, they are working pretty quickly to help patients find a place to go.
Bill: And I would imagine having admissions seven days a week is really an important benefit too.
Dr. Allie: Yeah, there are operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week so you can go to rehab on a Friday night or a Saturday or Sunday and they can evaluate you pretty quickly, usually the next day to get you started on your physical therapy. So, they are not limited with Monday through Friday. There is staff there every day.
Bill: So, we are saying short-term rehabilitation. How short is short-term in general how long is a short-term rehab stay?
Dr. Allie: It depends a little bit on what the patient needs. So, we have to individualize it. for a typical orthopedic patient, getting a joint replaced, I tell my patients about two weeks. But it comes down to when I tell them, it is when you and the physical therapist think you are ready to go home. So, sometimes it can be as short as a week and other times it can be longer depending on what they need. If they are not quite ready and we think they would benefit from more rehab before they go home; we will try to keep them so that when they go home, they are in the best condition they can be and ready to be independent again. Some patients will stay longer depending on what they need, and some will stay a little bit shorter, but it is individualized.
Bill: And that individualized care and support and attention is so important. So, make sure you look for that in a community and also very important is Wesley Place at Chicago Methodist Senior Services has a convenient location in Andersonville, a charming neighborhood near public transportation, convenient from downtown and from the suburbs. It’s just a great location and wonderful people. Dr. Allie, thank you so much for your time today. I really appreciate it. For more information or if you want to book a tour just visit www.cmsschicago.org, that’s www.cmsschicago.org. This is Living Well with Chicago Methodist Senior Services. I’m Bill Klaproth. Thanks for listening.