Recovering From COVID-19
2022
ROGER JEFFREY: I had COVID pneumonia.
I was in the hospital for six weeks,
and my lungs were damaged.
The hospital transfers me to a non-Sutter acute care hospital
90 miles away, three beds in a room,
very limited physical therapy.
It's so inconsistent.
After five weeks, I can't even walk.
My daughter says to the doctor, can't you
send him to the Sutter Rehabilitation
Institute in Roseville?
And 48 hours later, I'm here.
PAT BLAIR: The Sutter Rehabilitation Institute
is a CARF-accredited inpatient rehab
facility that's part of Sutter Roseville Medical Center.
We get support from the hospital for our patients.
Whether they need a cardiologist,
or they need to go to the hospital for a specialized
test, we have that readily available for our patients.
ROGER JEFFREY: When I came in, I was not able to get out of bed.
When I stood up, my blood pressure
got to a dangerous level.
And I was incredibly weak.
I couldn't dress myself.
Even feeding myself with something that was difficult.
Immediately, the next day, I went through an evaluation
with both physical and occupational therapy
to see where I was and how they could map out my strategy.
PAT BLAIR: Rehabilitation for patients with COVID
and other kinds of pulmonary conditions
takes special considerations.
They don't have the same energy level.
And so you have to be very diligent about scheduling
and pacing out the amount of therapy
over longer periods of time.
ROGER JEFFREY: The entire therapy staff was amazing.
I was able to make suggestions about my condition.
And they listened, and they changed accordingly.
They pushed me, but not to an extreme.
My goals were to be able to walk without a walker and climb
stairs.
And those are things we've worked on.
PAT BLAIR: We really are trying to replicate what it's going
to be like when you go home.
The nurses and the occupational therapists and other therapists
help with their morning routine, their self-care skills.
And then they start the day with therapy.
ROGER JEFFREY: So we did upper body.
I had no upper-body strength.
Cardiovascular-- I had to start pushing my lungs again
and pushing my heart rate.
So all of those came together as we kept building
on my endurance and my strength.
PAT BLAIR: The environment is unique
because it was specifically designed
for inpatient rehabilitation.
Our therapy gym, our outdoor therapy area,
we have an apartment that patients and families can
go in and practice before they go home.
We have a room that people can go in and practice cooking
and just basic life skills.
This facility and the surroundings
just makes you feel so much more comfortable.
ROGER JEFFREY: My wife is able to come.
And having her come and visit made every day so much easier.
I was at Sutter Rehab Institute for five weeks.
When I left, I was able to walk on my own,
dress myself, shave myself, take a shower.
I would recommend Sutter Rehab to anybody.
It was perfect.
It saved me.
I don't know where I'd be today if I hadn't come here.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
I was in the hospital for six weeks,
and my lungs were damaged.
The hospital transfers me to a non-Sutter acute care hospital
90 miles away, three beds in a room,
very limited physical therapy.
It's so inconsistent.
After five weeks, I can't even walk.
My daughter says to the doctor, can't you
send him to the Sutter Rehabilitation
Institute in Roseville?
And 48 hours later, I'm here.
PAT BLAIR: The Sutter Rehabilitation Institute
is a CARF-accredited inpatient rehab
facility that's part of Sutter Roseville Medical Center.
We get support from the hospital for our patients.
Whether they need a cardiologist,
or they need to go to the hospital for a specialized
test, we have that readily available for our patients.
ROGER JEFFREY: When I came in, I was not able to get out of bed.
When I stood up, my blood pressure
got to a dangerous level.
And I was incredibly weak.
I couldn't dress myself.
Even feeding myself with something that was difficult.
Immediately, the next day, I went through an evaluation
with both physical and occupational therapy
to see where I was and how they could map out my strategy.
PAT BLAIR: Rehabilitation for patients with COVID
and other kinds of pulmonary conditions
takes special considerations.
They don't have the same energy level.
And so you have to be very diligent about scheduling
and pacing out the amount of therapy
over longer periods of time.
ROGER JEFFREY: The entire therapy staff was amazing.
I was able to make suggestions about my condition.
And they listened, and they changed accordingly.
They pushed me, but not to an extreme.
My goals were to be able to walk without a walker and climb
stairs.
And those are things we've worked on.
PAT BLAIR: We really are trying to replicate what it's going
to be like when you go home.
The nurses and the occupational therapists and other therapists
help with their morning routine, their self-care skills.
And then they start the day with therapy.
ROGER JEFFREY: So we did upper body.
I had no upper-body strength.
Cardiovascular-- I had to start pushing my lungs again
and pushing my heart rate.
So all of those came together as we kept building
on my endurance and my strength.
PAT BLAIR: The environment is unique
because it was specifically designed
for inpatient rehabilitation.
Our therapy gym, our outdoor therapy area,
we have an apartment that patients and families can
go in and practice before they go home.
We have a room that people can go in and practice cooking
and just basic life skills.
This facility and the surroundings
just makes you feel so much more comfortable.
ROGER JEFFREY: My wife is able to come.
And having her come and visit made every day so much easier.
I was at Sutter Rehab Institute for five weeks.
When I left, I was able to walk on my own,
dress myself, shave myself, take a shower.
I would recommend Sutter Rehab to anybody.
It was perfect.
It saved me.
I don't know where I'd be today if I hadn't come here.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
Roger was bedridden and could barely feed himself after a severe bout of COVID-19. But when he was transferred to Sutter Rehabilitation institute, their team helped him get back on his feet and regain his independence.
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