Meet your rehabilitation care team
Various rehabilitation team members will be assigned to a patient’s care during your stay at the Lakeland Hospital Watervliet. Our rehabilitation team will develop an individualized treatment plan which is under the supervision of the Medical Director.
The rehabilitation team will meet regularly to review a patient’s goals and progress. The team will be in regular communication with the patient and family. Family involvement is encouraged throughout the rehabilitation progress. Family conferences will be held to review a loved one’s progress and to answer any questions. Patients and families will also receive education and the training necessary to help meet individual goals and highest level of function.
The following are members of our rehabilitation team who may be part of your plan of care:
Medical director and physicians
The medical director, Sean Sullivan, DO, along with a team of physicians monitor your health, evaluate your physical capabilities and lead the rest of the care team in developing your individualized treatment while staying at the rehabilitation unit.
Rehabilitation nursing staff
Our rehabilitation nurses care for you 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Our nursing staff will assist you with activities of daily living, administer medications and treatments and help you to use the skills learned in therapy in your daily routine.
Physical therapist
Physical therapists will work with you to help you achieve the highest level of motor functioning possible. The physical therapist will assess your muscle tone, movement, strength and coordination. You may also need a wheelchair, walker or other equipment. The physical therapist will help determine your equipment needs and then will work with you and this equipment to maximize your mobility.
Occupational therapist
Occupational therapists will help you achieve your level of functioning in basic self-care skills such as dressing, bathing, grooming and feeding as well as homemaking, and work and leisure activities. Range of motion, muscle strengthening, cognitive and perceptual re-training, sensory re-training, therapeutic activities and adaptive equipment may all be used to maximize your potential to reach functional independence.
Speech-language pathologist
A speech-language pathologist will assess your communication potential and assist you to be as effective as you possibly can be in getting your message across to others. This may involve working to improve your voice and speech, language, thinking skills, conversational skills or teaching you how to use gestures. Another role of the speech-language pathologist is to help you if you have difficulty with swallowing. This may involve teaching you techniques to help you swallow safely.
Social worker and case managers
A team of social workers will work with you, your family, and community agencies to help solve problems that come with changes in your abilities and the need for medical care and equipment. This may include providing you with information, making referrals and arranging for continuing care after you leave the Rehabilitation Unit. The social worker will also discuss with you and your family your disability, your treatment and goals, and your discharge plans.
As you prepare for discharge, a case manager will be available to help you and your family with any special needs or concerns. After your physician has given the discharge order, a hospital associate will explain the discharge procedure to you or your guardian.
Neuropsychology
A neuropsychologist is available to you if your care team believes these services are needed. They can offer consultation and assessment for cognition, emotional health and treatment planning.
Because we individualize your care, these team members may be different for each patient. Some patients may require services of other team members such as a registered dietitian, prosthetist/orthoptist, pharmacist, respiratory therapist, radiologist, laboratory technician.