Patient’s Age: 67-years-old
Admission Date: 02/14/2019
Admitted From: West Boca Medical Center
Discharge Date: 03/29/2019
Discharged To: Home
Length of Stay: 43 Days
Reason for Stay: Compression Fracture.
How did this patient hear about The Encore: Patients Surgeon, Dr. Sahai.

Details of Experience:

Mrs. Pilar Angel had been suffering from multiple sclerosis for years. In January of 2019, she had found herself falling more than usual. Then, unfortunately, she had a fall that had a worse effect than the others, which led to a compression fracture in which she went to receive surgery.

She arrived at The Encore to receive physical therapy as she had hoped to regain her normal health and independence. Upon arrival, Pilar was greeted by the director of concierge services who assured her excellent customer service throughout her stay and let her know that he would be there if she needed anything. She was then greeted by her physical therapist who came to evaluate her. The results were moderate assist, inability to stand for longer than 10 seconds, and ambulation that was not very coordinated nor the ability to walk long distances.

Quickly after the evaluation, Pilar got to work with her therapist, J.R. Durity. Although in the early weeks she was making slow progress, Pilar didn’t see it and she became discouraged. She felt she would never get back to her previous state and stated, “I’m too young for these limitations.” She started to get depressed; however, she always tried to be social with the staff and residents and stay positive in order to remain motivated.

Her therapist then had an idea- he took Pilar to the parallel bars so she could see the progress in her balance and control. This was the first time Pilar witnessed how much she had actually been benefitting from the first few weeks of therapy and she was very excited and determined. J.R. decided that showing Pilar her progress will become the regular weekly routine to keep her motivated.

Due to the awareness of her progress, Pilar’s successful rehabilitation became a snowball effect and she started progressing at a high level. In her final weeks at The Encore, Pilar did a lot of community reintegration which included outdoor walking with steps, curbs, ramps, and gravel. This was her safety awareness training.

In her sixth week, Pilar was discharged from The Encore. She left walking around casually, almost completely back to her prior level. She stated to the director of concierge services, “when I came I was in a wheelchair, I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t do anything. Now I can walk! Everything about this place is amazing, it’s the best! And [my therapist] J.R. is the best!”

Pilar still joins us at The Encore a few times a week to maintain her progress. We look forward to watching her continue to grow stronger every day!