The Rehabilitation staff at Veterans Memorial Hospital work with people of all ages, helping them to reduce pain and regain strength, independence and health. The Healthy Lifestyles Rehabilitation Center at Veterans Memorial Hospital is fully equipped for all rehabilitation patients with 17 weight machine stations, tread mills, exercise bikes, NuStep and eliptical machines. The 6 treatment rooms allow one-on-one evaluation and treatment with the therapist.
Individual Physical Therapy services provided include athletic training, home health, work hardening/conditioning, wellness programs, headache management, lymphodema therapy, and wound care. Now five physical therapists currently serve Veterans Memorial Hospital and the surrounding community, including Amy Robinson, P.T., Rehabilitation Director; Laurel Hagensick, P.T.; Alana Gavin, D.P.T.; Austin Troendle, D.P.T; Abbie Daniels, D.P.T.; Amy Ghelf, Physical Therapist Assistant; Sara White, Physical Therapist Assistant; Shelly Valley, Physical Therapist Assistant and Certified Athletic Trainer; Dacia Johnson, Physical Therapist Technician/Office Manager; and Brad Krambeer, Certified Athletic Trainer.
Physical, Occupational and Speech therapies are provided by the Veterans Memorial Hospital staff members in a variety of settings, to people of all ages. They treat those in the hospital who are recovering from an illness, those who are at home yet come into therapy on an outpatient basis, and those who are unable to leave their homes, providing therapy through VMH Community and Home Care.
Don and Mary Jane McGraw of rural Waukon have both benefited from the many services offered by the hospital Rehabilitation Department; Don following a tractor accident a couple of years ago and Mary Jane recently following a fall.
“I had a tractor run over my legs and I spent three weeks in LaCrosse healing. I was able to come back to Waukon and have therapy three times a week for several weeks as an outpatient,” explains Don. “I recovered well thanks to the physical and occupational therapy staff. We are so lucky they are here.”
Don has been bringing Mary Jane into the hospital recently for outpatient therapy. She adds, “The therapy staff is just wonderful. They even came into our home and helped me there. We are also so fortunate to have our local, reliable ambulance crews. They have both responded for us and they were so good and right there when we needed them.”
Amy Robinson, PT, is the Director of Rehabilitation at Veterans Memorial Hospital, and adds, “Traveling the area and treating patients in their homes has been an enjoyable challenge for all of us and very rewarding. We try to go the extra mile for our patients by analyzing their surroundings and making adaptive equipment to help them be more independent while living on their own.”
The therapy staff is available from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., providing treatment for patient’s around their busy schedules, saving them the time and effort of driving out of the area for their physical therapy.
For more information on the rehabilitation services available at Veterans Memorial Hospital, please contact the Rehabilitation Department at 568-3411.
