The State of the Rehab Address

Tonight's post will be short, but informative.  I promised a report after our Family Meeting this morning at 9:30.  Benjamin, below, with a spoiler alert as to how the meeting went:

The three of us were led to a large conference room and were invited to sit at the head of the table.  The objective of this meeting was to communicate Benjamin's progress, set goals for continued rehabilitation and recovery, and discuss the projected release date.  I'll let the cat out of the bag on the last point.  Benjamin will be released from in-patient rehab in 10 days - September 29th.  There were reports from each group:

Physical Therapy:    Goals were as follows: By the time he leaves, he'll be able to get into and out of the bed with no help, Put back brace on/off while lying down in bed, Stand and turn on walker on load-bearing leg without hopping, get into/out of a car, Begin electrical stimulation on right foot and ankle.

Occupational Therapy:    Will take a shower today.  First time in over two weeks.  Benjamin said, "Dad, I stink!"  Goals: to continue to get independent in self care, bathroom, bathing, etc.  We talked about the numbness/pins and needles in his right (dominant) hand.  They want to give it more time, but there are therapies like an EMG nerve study (I think?) to help as well as doing a C spine MRI to locate potential areas causing this.  We communicated that he doesn't have a lot of fine motor skills in his dominant hand, so writing with a pen is hard as well as typing.  They were happy to add those skills to his training regimen for the next 10 days.

Speech Therapy:    The rigorous testing on cognition is over and Benjamin did great.  No brain injury.

Dr. Alyson Jones:    Overall, Benjamin is doing great, improving every day and motivating others in the gym.  Still watching his ankle that is oozing.  He will go home on September 29th, but so as not to lose momentum, will get out-patient or home health therapy 3 times a week along with exercises/homework.  He will have an appointment with his neurosurgeon and orthopedic surgeon in Lafayette two weeks after discharge from rehab.  Once orthopedic doctor gives the green light to bear weight on his legs (~ 6 weeks) he can resume rehab with learning to walk, gait, etc.  We asked about pain meds.  He is not needing near as much as he did previously.  He'll go home with pain medication and other prescriptions, but said he could experiment weaning down.  We asked if he would have chronic, long lasting pain/arthritis.  They said perhaps his ankle would tell him when the weather was going to change, but they foresee a good recovery and are optimistic.  Benjamin asked if he would ever be able to run again.  Dr. Jones quickly answered, "Yes."  Generally, the Return to Work date is 3 months post accident date, but she said they would assess that as time goes on.

All in all it was a very encouraging and positive meeting.  We thanked the entire staff and thanked the Lord.  As I type this, I'm overwhelmed by the last two weeks.  God has been so good to us.  You prayer warriors have been so faithful.  We love you, from the bottom of our hearts, we love you!

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