Life Care Center of LaGrange helps heart patient regain independence

Frequent falls and increasing weakness due to his heart disease led Frederick Good to be hospitalized for 11 days.

Before he could return home, Good needed rehabilitation. When he arrived at Life Care Center of LaGrange, Indiana, on Feb. 20, 2017, he required assistance with walking, standing balance, transferring from one surface to another, bathing and dressing, and he had to have supervision with his daily hygiene tasks.

To help Good reach his goal of independence, occupational therapists worked with him seven days a week. They retrained him on his activities of daily living and home skills and paid special attention to his cardiac needs. They taught him energy conservation skills and proper breathing techniques to help him manage his condition at home.

Physical therapists worked with Good five days a week. With balance training, he started to practice walking with a walker, then progressed to where he could walk without an assistive device.

"Everyone here, nursing and therapy, were great," said Good. "The therapy department is well trained and put me through all the steps I needed to get stronger to go home. The food was very good, with many choices."

Good returned home on March 9, independent in all his self-care skills and his mobility.