Pediatric Therapy Gym part of rehab facility remodel
At St. John’s Rehabilitation Services
by St. John’s Lutheran Hospital
March 31, 2009
(Libby) - In the past two years, the St. John Lutheran Hospital’s Rehabilitation Department, located one block north of the hospital, has experienced significant growth going from eight to 12 permanent staff members, and adding a variety of new services including pelvic muscle rehabilitation for bowel and bladder incontinence, low vision therapy, functional capacity evaluations, vestibular rehabilitation, and just recently, pediatric physical therapy. "We are excited that the demand for additional therapists and services has pushed us to remodel our building adding more therapy space," explained Ahyoung Huff, MPT, and SJLH Rehabilitative Services Department Manager. "It’s the kind of problem we look forward to solving."
Being creative and cost-effective, they renovated the garage that they once used for storage into an office for the therapists, freeing up two additional patient treatment rooms in the main building – one for physical therapy and one for a new pediatric gym.
One of the major catalysts for the project was the completion of the pediatric therapy team with the addition of Els O’Rourke, a Physical Therapist who specializes in pediatric therapies. Els joins pediatric therapy team members Carolyn Peterson, MA-CCC, SLP, (Speech Language Pathologist) and Cindy Sullivan, OTR, (Occupational Therapist). "Pediatric patients have a specific need that differs greatly from that of the general population, and the remodel provides a separate space specifically for the benefit of these patients," stated Cindy Sullivan, OT. "Children need room to move during treatment for sensory integration and gross motor skill development. We are excited about the extra space and equipment now available for meeting these needs."
Huff exclaimed, "We thought it would be great for the pediatric therapists to design their own treatment space because they are the experts in knowing what kind of environment will be best for their patients. Pediatric Therapy is a growing discipline in our area of expertise. We needed to address this growth by adding the correct amount of space so that the children have the best opportunity to experience success in their programs. The goal is to provide them with a great environment in which to improve their lives and maximize independence and function."
For more information please call SJLH Rehabilitative Services 406-293-0154.
Related Links
www.sjlh.com - St. John’s Lutheran Hospital in Libby
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