Rehabilitation Programs

REHABILITATION SERVICES

Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County provides multi disciplinary rehabilitation services to people of all ages and diagnoses. The department is staffed by:

Physical Therapists
Physical Therapist Assistants

Occupational Therapists
Speech and Language Pathologists

Registered Nurses
Respiratory Therapists

Services are provided to inpatients at the hospital, outpatients, and in the natural environment to infants eligible for the Birth to Three program. Special Programs include Cardiac Rehabilitation and Pulmonary Rehabilitation.

PHYSICAL THERAPY

Physical Therapy provides treatment to individuals who have pain, disease, injury or impairment that limit their ability to perform sports, work, leisure or other daily activities. They also educate and assist people to maintain a healthy lifestyle and prevent injury. Physical Therapists utilize specialized evaluation skills to determine the causes of a persons deficits and then develop a plan of care to eliminate or decrease those deficits. Interventions include, but are not limited to, therapeutic exercises, modalities such as electrical stimulation or ultrasound, and manual techniques such as soft tissue mobilization, joint mobilization, or myofascial release.

Physical Therapist’s generally focus on the back, neck and legs but can also work on the arm. Common diagnosis or injuries that are referred to Physical Therapy include:

-Neurological Problems CVA’s (stroke) victims
-Amputees
-Low back or neck pain
-Joint surgery
-Wounds
-Sprains and Strains
-Sports Injuries
-Work related injuries
-Arthritis, bursitis or tendinitis Fractures
Most major insurance companies pay for all or a portion of physical therapy services.

Physical Therapists can also educate and make recommendations for work place design, stress management, relaxation training and Wellness programs.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY

Occupational Therapy focuses on functional, day to day activities that a person needs or wants to be able to do. These tasks can be as basic as feeding yourself or as complex as caring for your home or meeting job requirements. Occupational Therapists work under a physician’s order and treatment is paid for by Medicare, Medical Assistance and most private insurances. Occupational Therapists evaluate and treat a wide variety of physical, mental and psychosocial abilities such as flexibility, coordination, strength, muscle tone, attention span, sensory processing, memory, and coping skills. The types of diagnoses we work with are just as varied, often including:

• Arthritis *Brain trauma
• CVA (stroke)
• Developmental Delay
• Mental Health conditions
• Orthopedic or other injuries that affects a person’s ability to complete daily activities
• Neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease

CARDIAC REHABILITATION

The Cardiac Rehabilitation program is a multi-disciplinary program staffed by Respiratory Therapists, Registered Nurses and Physical Therapists. The program is Nationally Accredited by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation.

The Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is designed to assist people who have suffered a cardiac event such as a Myocardial Infarction (heart attack), Coronary Artery Bypass Graft, Angioplasty, Stable angina or some other heart related problem. The program focuses on strengthening the heart and whole body to assist in the return to their prior level of function and on education for secondary prevention of further heart disease. During exercise, the participants are on telemetry, which monitors the heart’s response to exercise, and are closely observed by the staff for their response. Education includes topics such as diet, cholesterol, stress management, CPR, proper exercises, anatomy and physiology of the heart, risk factors for heart disease, diabetes, and emotional response to heart disease.

Most major insurances companies pay for all or a portion or the Cardiac Rehabilitation Services.

For more information about heart disease check out: americanheart.org or AACVRP.org

PULMONARY REHABILITATION

The Pulmonary Rehabilitation program is staffed by Respiratory and Physical Therapists and is designed to help people who have a decreased quality of life due to respiratory problems. The goals of the program are individualized but geared towards increasing a participants activity level, decreasing the need for use of oxygen and decreasing the frequency of respiratory complications.

The program consists of exercise and education. The exercise program is a gradual increase in activity to promote overall strength/endurance and the body’s utilization of oxygen. The participants blood oxygen level and other vital signs are frequently monitored and instruction is given for proper breathing techniques. Education is geared toward improving the participants respiratory health with a focus on diet, activity, stress management, understanding of health problems, oxygen utilization and energy conservation.

Most major insurance companies pay for all or a portion of Pulmonary Rehabilitation.

For more information about lung disease check out WWW.AACVRP.org

BIRTH TO THREE

The Birth to Three Program is a service provided to children birth to three years of age who show delays in their development. The child may be referred by a parent, caregiver or health care provider. The referral process is started by calling the the Program Coordinator at Lafayette County Human Services, 608-776-4913. The Coordinator then does an initial screening, obtains a physician order, and sets up treatment with the appropriate therapists.

The program includes a Physical Therapist, Occupational Therapist and Speech Therapist. Once the therapist(s) evaluates the child; the family, program coordinator and therapist(s) meet to develop an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). An IFSP includes goals and what will be done to accomplish them as well as the frequency of visits. Therapy takes place in the child’s natural environment (home, daycare, ect..).

SPEECH AND LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY

Speech and Language evaluations and treatments are provided to patients of all ages, pediatric through geriatric. All services are provided within the guidelines of the American Speech and Hearing Association (ASHA) and the Wisconsin of Department of Regulation and Licensing. The speech pathologists are trained to provide prevention, screening, consultation, assessment, and treatment for disorders of:

SPEECH includes the building blocks needed to produce understandable sounds: articulation, fluency, resonance, and voice.

LANGUAGE - which is how speech sounds are put together to allow communication between people includes phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics and social aspects of communication.

SWALLOWING and other aerodigestive functions - this involves evaluating a persons ability to swallow foods and liquids then working with them to improve their ability to perform these tasks.

COGNITIVE ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATION working with the meaning of the spoken word. Many medical illnesses result in a decrease ability to communicate in an intelligibly way. Speech and Language Pathologists can work with patients to decrease the confusion of the thought process and how to compensate for the losses from the disease.

EDUCATION

Occupational Therapists and Physical Therapists need a Bachelor’s Degree (Master’s Degree after 2003) and Occupational Therapy Assistants need a n Associates Degree. Both types of therapists must participate in ongoing education after graduation as well.

Speech Pathologists require a Master’s Degree to practice. An undergraduate degree in Communication Sciences or Disorders is recommended. A wide range of topics are covered: normal language development, articulation, fluency (stuttering), aphasia, motor speech disorders, dysphagia (swallowing problems) and others. In the Master’s level students gain experience through discussions and hands on training with supervision. The last portion on education is spent in the work place/clinical situations applying knowledge.

For more information go to: WWW.APTA.org. This site also has information on different medical conditions that benefit from Physical Therapy Services. Other good Web Sites are WWW.arthritis.org and WWW.RWHC.com.

The American Occupational Therapy Association (www.aota.org) and the Wisconsin Occupational Therap Association (www.wota.net) both provided further information about Occupational Therapy, O.T. educational requirements and types of conditions that O.T.’s work with.

At MHLC Contact:
Krisann Karls
Manager of Rehabilitation Services
Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County
P.O. Box 70
Darlington, WI 53530
(608) 776-5744