Barbara Addler: the journey home

Ms. Addler was initially admitted to The Lane House in July of 2023 following a spinal fusion and laminectomy. She began her rehabilitation but had a short readmission to the hospital following a diagnosis of flu and sepsis. She soon returned to The Lane House to continue her rehabilitation journey with the goal of returning to her apartment.

When she arrived at The Lane House, she required maximum assistance to reposition in bed and was dependent with dressing, bathing, toileting, wheelchair mobility and functional transfers. She was unable to walk and had poor sitting, standing and balance tolerance, which directly impacted her ability to care for herself.

She participated in physical and occupational therapy three to five days a week during her stay. They worked on improving her strength, standing tolerance and balance and activity tolerance. They also worked to increase her independence with wheelchair mobility, ambulation, transfers and activities of daily living, such as dressing, bathing and toileting).

The team introduced many pieces of adaptive equipment in order for her to return home safely. During her stay she enjoyed working with the therapy team and all the staff. She was determined to return home, especially after her sister moved into an apartment right in the same building! "She worked hard everyday and will be missed", said Brandy, DOR.

After seven months of hard work, with a few setbacks, she was able to return home to her apartment. She is able to walk over 250 feet with a rollator and complete all hygiene, grooming and dressing tasks without any assistance. She was able to install and follow all recommendations for adaptive equipment from her home safety assessment.

The entire staff would like to shout our CONGRATULATIONS on a job well done to Barbara! We are so excited that she is able to return home, and we are glad she chose us to assist her on her rehabilitation journey!