Concierge Director: Jonathan Berger
Patient: Irene Shanahan
Patient age: 80
Admission date: 12/5/23
Admitted From: Mather Hospital
Discharge date: 12/22/23
Discharged to: Home
Length of stay: 2.5 Weeks
Reason for stay: Rehabilitation
How did the patient hear about Water’s Edge? Mather Hospital – Social Work

Details of Experience:

Irene Shanahan was admitted to Water’s Edge Rehab & Nursing Center on December 5th, 2023. She came to us from Mather Hospital, which is located locally, right here in Port Jefferson. What brought Irene to the hospital in the first place was that she had shortness of breath, and her lower extremities were swollen, limiting her ability to walk. Additionally, another challenge arose for Irene. Shockingly, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, which was discovered while in the hospital.

Upon being admitted, Irene met with the RN Supervisor, who explained to her and her family the process of her stay, from a clinical perspective. The next day, she met the Director of Concierge Services, who took her through her stay from an admissions and day-to-day angle. Irene set out from the start that her goal was to return home with her husband by Christmas, less than three short weeks away. That meant she needed to be off the oxygen (and be able to breathe normally), have the swelling in her legs go down, and ultimately back to walking on her own. There was lots to do and not a lot of time.

Right away, Irene was focused and driven to accomplish whatever it took to improve and return home for the upcoming holidays. She participated in physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) five days a week. The goals of Irene’s rehab team were to get her back to needing just supervision while performing her activities of daily living (ADLs), which include, but are not limited to, walking, toileting, dressing, bathing/showering, eating, and transferring from chair to bed, etc. In addition to working on her mobilization, Irene’s therapists also focused on her ability to keep her balance while standing.

Irene was discharged from Water’s Edge back home on December 22nd, 2023, just two and a half weeks after being admitted for her rehabilitation treatment. Originally, when she came in, she could not walk at all, go to the bathroom alone, and was a two-person-assist with everything. Upon discharge, she was ambulatory with a walker, not requiring any hands-on assistance, and she was capable of walking 100 feet and toileting herself. Before she went home, her husband was educated by the therapy team on how she should be transferred from her wheelchair to the toilet and car, and vice versa, and how she should be walking with the walker.

Irene was also taken off the oxygen, as she was breathing normally and didn’t require assistance in that regard any longer. The swelling in her lower extremities disappeared, and she went from a weak and deconditioned upper body upon admission to normal upper body strength and endurance. We are so proud of Irene and all she accomplished and are so glad she could return home with her husband for the holidays.

We wish her luck in her continued battle with cancer and only hope for the very best for her in her continued journey ahead!