When Marion Finneran had her first hip replacement in April 1995, the surgery was the simple part. Getting the post-surgical physical therapy she needed was the real ordeal.
Since no bed space was available in the hospital, Finneran, a long-time resident of The Highlands retirement community in Topsham, had to move to a nearby rehabilitation center for two weeks of therapy. When she was back in her apartment, a physical therapist from a Portland home health agency visited a few times each week to do mild exercises. After six weeks, she was on her own.
Things were a lot different when she had the other hip replaced last November. This time, getting therapy was the easy part. That's because the Parkview Hospital Wellness Department had opened a physical therapy clinic on The Highlands' campus.
Located in the Cadigan Lodge assisted living facility, the clinic offers both residents and nonresidents of The Highlands easy access to professional rehabilitation services. It is the first clinic of its kind to be located at a retirement community in Maine.
For Finneran, the therapy process actually began prior to her surgry. "When I had the first hip done, the doctors told me it was only a matter of time before the other one would need to be replaced," Finneran recalls. "They also said that physical therapy might be a good way to postpone it.
Referred by her doctor, she began a program of exercise at the clinic designed specifically for her needs by a Parkview physical therapist. It included walking on the treadmill with the help of a special harness to take weight off her hip and doing resistance exercises on a slant board to help strengthen her leg and hip muscles.
|
