Talbot's Skilled Nursing Home Therapy Offers Variety and Creativity

Therapy and rehabilitation is one of the most important aspects of any long-term care facility.

At 100% employee owned Talbot Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare, it's an area they take very seriously; and if there's one thing to know about this nursing home’s therapy programs, it's that they are anything but typical.

As Physical Therapist Rodney Copes puts it, "Our many therapists are pretty balanced in terms of their specialties, as well as ideas.  We try to think outside the box, and we try to find the right way to match the patients’ abilities and interests with the therapy they are doing."

Making It Personal
Talbot skilled nursing facility staff has plenty of examples of this kind of personalization.

First, they find out what a given resident did for a living.  Then they model activity after that or after a particular hobby - which keeps residents interested in the therapy. 

Take a resident who used to work at Boeing and now needs to work on strengthening their wrists.  The creative nursing home team will create a toolbox of familiar tools (reminiscent of their jobs) and design activities centered on the wrenches and other tools. 

One particular gentleman who used to be a woodworker and built birdhouses was given the materials to do so once again.  Their enjoyment in revisiting their talents from the past becomes obvious when they look wide-eyed and eager to begin their therapy session.

"This generation is very wary of being a burden to people," Copes says, "so this lets them feel like they can give back while, at the same time, progressing with their therapy."

Man’s Best Friend
While the residents are busy giving back to their nursing home community, a furry companion is busy giving back to the residents…with a wiggle and a wet nose.

Enter Tango, an 8-year-old Chocolate Labrador and Talbot nursing facility’s resident therapy dog.  Tango belongs to Mr. Copes, and has been coming to the facility since he was 9 weeks old. 

Besides simply boosting the resident's spirits with just a wag of his tail, Tango aides the therapy program in three very unique ways. 

First, he acts simply as an icebreaker for those patients who may arrive at the skilled nursing facility confused and unsettled.

There are people who come to nursing facilities like this and have lots of questions.  They don't know why they're here and why they can't go home, so Tango helps to calm them down.  A dog is something they're often used to and there is great comfort in petting his softness. 

And when it comes time to do those exercises that might be challenging, Tango is a friendly cheerleader in the room while they do their therapy.  “Something about his presence takes their mind off the pain and the exercise - they can transfer some of that energy and thought into petting the dog,” says skilled nursing facility staff.

Tango also helps patients who are working on familiar household activities through Occupational Therapy – especially those with dementia. 

With Tango's hairbrush, residents will busy themselves brushing the dog and at the same time benefit from getting their arm movement under way.

Brushing also helps those who have a hard time understanding the concept of leaning forward.  Sometimes they are afraid of leaning forward and then falling.  So if they have to lean forward to pet or brush a dog, they do it without thinking and it engages the motion in their trunk and shoulders.

Third, Tango helps the higher-level residents work on their animal care.  Many of these residents have pets back at home, so what they work on is putting down water for Tango, taking him for walks, playing “fetch” with him, and all around caring for him.

"That just helps get that higher level balance, and gets them back to where they need to be in order to care for their own pets when they get back home," said Copes.

Games People Play
When they're not with Tango, the skilled nursing home residents are still plenty busy.

Talbot has a Nintendo Wii™ that is used not only for therapy and balance activities, but it's also something fun for the residents to do. It keeps their minds and bodies stimulated, the nursing facility staff says.  They have a group exercise class and games like scavenger hunts, so they're still getting their strength training while their minds are on other things.

This might sound above and beyond your typical therapy program, yet to dedicated staff at Talbot Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare, it's all in a days work.  It’s all about finding the best way to take them from where they are, to where they need to be.
 

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