Parkview Care Center helps Fritz recover from heart surgery

After having heart surgery to replace a valve, Thomas Fritz needed rehabilitation before he was ready to return home.

Fritz came to Parkview Care Center in Evansville, Indiana, on May 15, 2018, for physical and occupational therapies. When he arrived, he needed moderate assistance to transfer from one surface to another, such as from a chair to a wheelchair or a bed. He also needed some assistance with walking, getting dressed and his sitting and standing balance.

Physical and occupational therapists met with Fritz six days a week to help him recover. The PT team worked with him on safety with transfers and walking and monitored his vitals to avoid shortness of breath and increased heart rate. The OT team helped him relearn his self-care skills, teaching him energy conservation skills and working to gradually build his activity tolerance. They also helped him with standing balance.

"I had great therapy here and am so thankful for all the people I came in contact with," said Fritz. "They brought me back to where I needed to be in a short time."

Now, Fritz is fully independent once again. He returned home to his wife on May 28 and continued his therapy as an outpatient for three weeks to continue to make gains in his gait distance and endurance.