Tina's story

Tina Terrell smiles during recovery.

Before being diagnosed with acute pancreatitis that landed her in the intensive care unit, Tina Terrell was a busy mother and grandmother. The 51-year-old Delhi, Ohio resident was in a lot of pain and doesn’t recall asking family to take her to the hospital.  Although she does remember feeling poorly and not eating much the prior week.

By the time she admitted to Cincinnati’s Good Samaritan Hospital, she was unconscious and unable to breathe on her own. Doctors intubated Tina and placed her on a ventilator. Given her diagnosis, the medical team treated the inflammation in her pancreas but her weakened lungs required Tina to remain on the ventilator.

Physicians recommended her family transfer her to Select Specialty Hospital – Cincinnati because of its expertise in helping patients get back to breathing on their own.

Tina faced an uphill battle. After three weeks in an intensive care, she had lost significant strength and, in addition to needing a ventilator, couldn’t eat, talk or walk.  Tina doesn’t recall her stay at Good Samaritan; but remembers awakening at Select Specialty Hospital and being scared. Nurses assured her she was in good hands, and daily visits from her husband and children also helped to alleviate her fears.

A physician-led, interdisciplinary team assessed Tina and developed a care plan for her.  Her goal was to get back to the life she led before her illness – working in her garden and spending time with her grandchildren.

Tina simultaneously participated in respiratory, speech, physical and occupational therapy, as each activity improved her overall strength and mobility.

Respiratory therapy focused on helping Tina breathe independently.  By reducing her ventilator settings or giving her time off the ventilator, Tina’s lungs got stronger day by day. Only 13 days later, Tina no longer needed the ventilator.

“It was a big day when the ventilator was moved from the room,” Tina said.

Tina arrived at Select Specialty Hospital with a tracheostomy – a hole surgically inserted in her airway – with a tube that connected to the ventilator. She hadn’t been able to speak for weeks. A speech-language pathologist connected a special valve to her tracheostomy tube that enabled Tina to speak her first words in weeks.

Every day, physical and occupational therapists worked together to get Tina on her feet again. Early on, the most she could do was sit in a chair but just being upright helped rebuild core strength, stamina and balance.  It was also the first step toward independence. Soon Tina was balancing herself on the edge of her bed and that led to standing.

“The staff really helped me to believe in myself. I kept thinking that I was going backwards, but they kept telling me that I was doing good,” she said.

Tina admits that some days, she didn’t want to participate in therapy but knew it was important to get back home.

“The rehab team has been excellent. They have been patient and showed me many things that have helped me,” Tina said. “I am able to do a little bit of walking…I am so happy!”

Three weeks after admission, Tina was breathing, eating, talking and taking steps again. Her tracheostomy was gone. She was discharged from Select Specialty Hospital to further her recovery at TriHealth Rehabilitation Hospital.

At TriHealth Rehabilitation Hospital, Tina met with her physician-led multi-disciplinary team that included physical and occupational therapists. She was determined to put in the work and return back to her daily life activities.

At TriHealth, Tina continued to build on the progress she made at SSH-Cincinnati. She expanded on her   overall strength and balance working with physical therapy (PT) on targeted exercises including leg squats and steps, upper and lower body resistance band exercises. As Tina’s leg strength increased and her balance improved over the course of her first week in inpatient rehabilitation, she was able to achieve a milestone…taking her first steps. Therapists assisted Tina as she started walking further distances with hands-on support and a gait belt for added stability.

“I didn’t think I would ever walk again… but practicing walking and doing arm and leg exercises to get stronger made all the difference,” Tina said.

Meantime, occupational therapy worked with Tina retraining her on self-care tasks such as bathing, dressing and grooming. Her gains in upper body strength helped advance her progress, as did demonstrations by her therapists on energy-saving approaches to everyday activities. They taught her to use a tub transfer bench to get in and out of the bath and how to use a rolling walker for safe mobility. Tina’s husband participated in family training on how to best support Tina upon her return home.

After 15 days at TriHealth Rehabilitation Hospital, Tina was walking 155 feet supported by her rolling walker, able to manage six steps with supervision and managing her self-care using the modified techniques she learned in OT. She looks forward to returning home to her family and plans to continue her recovery with home health.

“I would highly recommend this hospital to anybody that needs rehab because everyone here is very good at what they do,” said Tina.