Patients Age: 77 days
Admission Date: 2/10/17
Admitted From: Methodist Hospital
Discharge Date: 3/1/17
Discharged To: Home
Length of Stay: 18 Days
Reason for Stay: Neck and Right Arm Fracture

Details of Experience:

Mr. Smalkowski was admitted to The Phoenix Rehabilitation & Nursing Center on February 10, 2017 from New York Methodist Hospital – Brooklyn for rehabilitation due to a broken neck and right arm from falling down 30 steps at home.

Mr. Smalkowski was warmly greeted by the Concierge Department and escorted to his room. By the next morning, he was greeted by therapists, social service team members and the community dietitian. His goal was to be independent like he used to.

Although he was very high functioning when arriving to The Phoenix, he was often very tired. The team at The Phoenix created a comprehensive individualized plan of care to best support Mr. Smalkowski in healing.

1. Begin on Platform Walker.
2. Upgrade to Hemi-Cane.
3. Upgrade to Quad-Cane.
4. Strive for stair training to accommodate 30 stairs walk up.

After the team discussed the program with him, he’s shared that he was very excited about beginning. He received physical and occupational therapy five days a week. Before he leaves, he mentioned that he really loved his physical therapist, Gabriel, and occupational therapist, Daisy. They really made him work hard, but at the same time, they made him very comfortable while laughing alongside him and enjoying eachother’s company.

The biggest challenge for Mr. Smalkowski was the stair exercise. Due to his neck brace, it was very hard for him to look down the stairs. We had two therapists assisting him at the same time, educated him and showed him the proper way of walking down the stairs when he was using the neck brace. He proved to be a quick learner and the improvement he made was incredibly noticeable.

On March 1st, 2017, Mr. Smalkowski was discharged home! Although it was a short stay, he participated a lot of recreational events, which further motivated him to recover and return to his wonderful life. Congratulations, Mr. Smalkowski!