Helping Seniors to Stay Active and Safe During the Coronavirus Pandemic
November 5, 2020Transitional Rehab: From Hospital Stay to Short Term In-Patient Rehabilitation
A serious accident, injury or illness can result in a hospital stay that requires intensive or acute medical care. Oftentimes, these types of hospital stays require a short term, in-patient rehabilitation afterwards, to not only help support healing and recovery, but to help patients regain function and rebuild strength to return to as normal a life as possible.
The transition from hospital to rehab can be scary and difficult for patients, so it’s important to know what transitional rehab is and what the patient can expect.
During a hospital stay, doctors, nurses and other medical professionals are mainly in charge of a patient’s medical care. The main responsibility for the patient is rest and recovery. Once in short term rehabilitation however, the focus moves to giving the patient a lot more responsibility for their recovery because the goal is now to get them healthy and back in shape to return to as normal a daily routine as they can. Medical supervision and care is still a big part of transitional rehabilitation, but recovery now requires a lot more participation from the patient.
Below we’ve listed tips to help you prepare for short term rehabilitation:
1- By the day of admission into transitional rehab, you should already be setting a discharge plan in place. You need to know where you or your loved one will live once discharged, and what therapies and treatments will be required. If the patient is going to return home, preparations should begin to make the home as safe as possible so the patient can live as independently as possible. If they are to live in an assisted living or nursing facility, these arrangements should begin immediately. The hospital discharge planner or the facility social worker can assist you in planning these next steps.
2- There are going to be a lot of details to track, and a lot of information to handle at once, so it’s vital to create and maintain a transition checklist. There are lots of online resources and books available from your public library or places like Amazon that you can gather great information from.
3- Gather a few comfort items from home. Having a favorite blanket or small family photos nearby can go a long way in easing the stress a patient may be feeling about moving into a room at a rehab facility.
4- Ask questions! What are my rehabilitation options? Can I tour the facility before my loved one is transfered? What type of treatments can I expect?
The more informed you and your loved ones are, the less stressful the transition will be.
You can expect to collaborate with a team of rehab specialists including doctors, nursing staff, various therapists and other professionals in short term rehabilitation or senior care as needed. A case manager will work with you and your loved one to formulate a specific treatment plan based on the needs of the patient.
Long known as the “provider of choice” for senior care services, Elderberry is proud to serve Madison, Buncombe and the surrounding counties. Highly respected for our skilled nursing and assisted living services, Elderberry is now recognized as the market leader for transitional rehabilitation. Through our trademarked “Home in Just 10 Days”™ approach, patients needing rehab after a stay in the hospital are returning home quickly and safely. Contact us today and let us help you or your loved one make the transition into short term, inpatient rehabilitation.