Frances: "I'm A Lot Stronger Now"

Frances is the mother of an active two-year-old. Her husband is in the Armed Forces and often away from home. Her hobbies include cooking and experimenting with new dishes.

Over time, she started becoming extremely lethargic. She lost her appetite and was experiencing arthritis-like pain, including backaches. Her doctor kept prescribing Motrin for the pain, but when that was no longer effective she was referred to a gastroenterologist, who ran extensive tests. Eventually Frances was diagnosed with systemic lupus.

In December, Frances was admitted to a short-term acute care hospital for surgery related to a stomach infection. After surgery she required a chest tube and was on a ventilator. Though her condition was stable, Frances required extended recovery time. She was transferred to Kindred Hospital La Mirada for continued care.

Frances was admitted to Kindred Hospital La Mirada with c-dif. diabetes, pneumonia, acute renal failure and anemia. She had four drains in her abdomen.

The interdisciplinary team assessed her condition and designed a treatment plan tailored to her needs. She began rehabilitation therapy and made rapid progress, moving quickly from using a walker to walking without an assistive device.

She is currently practicing walking on uneven surfaces and going up and down stairs. She is wearing a weighted pack during the day to build her endurance and stamina. She is now able to dress, shower and use the bathroom with no assistance.

Frances continues working with occupational and physical therapy to increase her endurance and balance so she can return home to her housework, hobbies, and child.

“With the help of the physical therapy staff I am able to move around without any assistance,” she said. “I’m a lot stronger now than I was on my good days at home. Thank you all so much for your help.”

Kindred Hospital La Mirada’s success is apparent in stories like this as well as in our quality scores – our patients and families rate our quality of care at over 99 percent and 100 percent would recommend Kindred. Kindred Hospital La Mirada received the 2^nd quarter, 2010 Silver award from the Hospital Employee Performance Program, based on excellence in patient care, customer satisfaction, efficiency and employee satisfaction.