Success Stories

Her respiratory therapists began a course of aggressive treatments to strengthen her lungs and Julie responded well to her therapies. Her progress was gradual, but Julie was finally weaned from the vent. She regained the ability to use her voice and begin a regular diet with help from her speech-language pathologist. During her stay at Kindred, Julie made remarkable progress. Despite a few setbacks, Julie was always an eager participant in rehab therapy sessions, ready to regain her mobility and independence. With her wound nearly healed, she is now able to ambulate with a rolling walker and manage all the tasks of daily life.

“Seven months ago, I couldn’t breathe or walk or even feed myself,” Julie shared. “Now, with all the help I’ve received from everyone on staff, I can do all these things again. My caregivers are my angels and I am very blessed.”

Robert was diagnosed with thoracic discitis – a vertebral disc infection – that was causing him to feel extreme pain in his chest, hips and legs. He began to receive treatment, and when stabilized he was transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake. Under the care of a team of physicians, therapists, nurses and caregivers, Robert began to make progress. As his pain levels were managed and he started to do more with help from his rehab team, he progressed from being bedbound to getting up into a wheelchair and reclaiming his independence. Although he was reluctant at first to participate fully in his therapy sessions, with support and encouragement from his wife, family and caregivers, Robert finally began to see and feel the progress he was making. He soon met all of the goals set for his recovery and he was able to return home.

“The care I received here at Kindred Clear Lake gave me a sense of family,” Robert shared. “I knew that if I needed help it was going to be there. All of the staff here are caring professionals and I walked away with a sense of being loved, which is critical to people in my position. If I should ever have to go through this again, the people at Kindred would be my first choice. I felt I was their top priority.”

He was admitted to a general hospital and was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis and respiratory failure, requiring him to be placed on a ventilator and started on treatments to stabilize his condition. Thomas was then transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake to receive respiratory therapy, wound care, ongoing medical care and rehabilitation. At the beginning of his stay Thomas was still experiencing extreme anxiety which made initial treatments difficult, but once his team of caregivers gained his trust he started to participate in therapy sessions and allow his wound care nurse to administer treatment. Thomas progressed sufficiently to be weaned from the ventilator and have the breathing tube removed, and he also was able to start walking again with the aid of a rolling walker and regain his independence over the tasks of daily life.

“I am grateful and can only say this much – we often don’t like what we need the most,” Thomas shared. “I am so glad I had therapists and caregivers who pushed me to succeed!”

She was admitted to an acute care facility and then transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake where she could receive advanced wound care. At the beginning of her stay, Paula was in significant pain and apprehensive about her rehab therapy due to her weakness and lack of mobility. Her wound care team together with her physicians and caregivers helped her manage her pain and become accustomed to the equipment needed to help resolve her complex wound. As she became stronger and her wound began to heal, Paula was able to do more activities with her rehab therapists and progressed to being able to get up from bed, regain her independence, and walk with the aid of a rolling walker. Prior to her discharge Paula was given instruction on how to continue managing her wound so she could return home with her family and she looked forward to getting back to her normal life.

When she first arrived she was disoriented and lethargic and unable to eat or drink. Under the care of an interdisciplinary team, and with her mother, Judy, at her side, she began to receive rehabilitation therapy to help her regain her fine motor skills, strength, balance and coordination. Allison’s speech pathologist worked closely with her to enable her to be able to swallow and regain her speech and cognition. At the beginning, her team worked to overcome the effects of the brain injury she had suffered, and their ongoing efforts began to pay off when Allison started to participate actively in her therapy sessions and steadily began to improve. Within a short period of time she was able to tolerate sitting up in a chair and was eating a drinking a normal diet. After a few weeks at Kindred, Allison was ready to move on to the next part of her journey to recovery and back home to her family and children.

“I am very grateful for the effort your team of therapists put forth to prepare Allison for the next part of her journey to wellness,” Judy said before her daughter was discharged.

She had to be placed on a ventilator and started on IV antibiotics for pneumonia and sepsis. She remained at the facility until she was able to be transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake to receive respiratory therapy and rehabilitation. Shortly after she was admitted Alberta began to receive pulmonary therapy and was able to be weaned successfully from the ventilator. She then started to become more engaged with her recovery and worked with her physical and occupational therapists to recover her fine motor skills, strength and mobility. With constant support and encouragement from her family and caregivers Alberta steadily progressed from being bedbound and completely dependent, to being able to get up from her bed, stand with some assistance and reclaim her independence over the activities of daily life.

“I can’t believe I’m getting close to being able to leave Kindred and go home!” Alberta shared. “The dedication and hard work from all the people here helped me to progress quickly. I would recommend this hospital to anyone and praise God for his mercy.”

He was also found to have a septic infection and was placed on a ventilator and started on IV antibiotic therapy. Once he had been stabilized Garlen was transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake for respiratory therapy and rehabilitation. Even though he was completely dependent on the ventilator and on his caregivers, Garlen had a positive attitude right from the start and was always eager and ready to participate in his therapy sessions. He reached one success milestone after another, beginning with his successful weaning from the ventilator, to being able to get back on his feet and start walking with the aid of a rolling walker. Garlen also reclaimed his ability to take care of the tasks of daily life before he was discharged.

“I’ve had great help from my doctors, therapists and nurses,” Garlen shared. “My RNs have spoiled me and I’m sure going to miss them. Kindred is an excellent hospital with excellent staff. I would recommend this place to anyone.”

He was fortunate to not require the placement of a ventilator, but Richard needed a large volume of supplemental oxygen to support his lungs. When he had been stabilized he was transferred to Kindred Hospital Clear Lake to receive respiratory therapy and rehabilitation. At first Richard still required large volumes of oxygen and would quickly become winded with even minor activity. His respiratory therapists worked with him to strengthen his lungs and Richard responded quickly, needing less oxygen as he increased his stamina and endurance. By the time he was cleared to be discharged, Richard was up on his feet and walking, independent in all the activities of daily life, and looking forward to a complete recovery.

“My advice to anyone going through this is to just stay with the program,” Richard shared before he left Kindred to return home.

When she arrived she was still dependent on a ventilator and on her caregivers for all her needs, as she was unresponsive and still in a critical state. Her respiratory team immediately began to work with Maria to restore her ability to breathe unassisted, and when she recovered her consciousness it marked a major turning point in her recovery as she began to apply herself to all of her therapy sessions and was very determined to recover. Maria made progress every day and reached one success after another once she was liberated from the ventilator, gaining strength through her occupational and physical therapy sessions and getting back the ability to speak and swallow with help from her speech therapist. In the rehab gym, Maria made excellent progress with a therapy device called the EKSO exoskeleton which allowed her walk and recover her gait pattern and she became stronger and more confident in her abilities. Then, just a little over two months since she was admitted, Maria was found to be ready to be discharged to return home.

“With the help of all the great doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists and the team in the rehab department, I am almost to the point where I was before I got COVID,” Maria affirmed. “I am so blessed to have had all the help I got here at Kindred, and now I can go home with my family!”

When she arrived, Millie was still receiving supplemental oxygen through a specialized mask and needed significant assistance to get up from bed as she was still unable to walk on her own. Undaunted by the challenge she faced, Millie applied a positive mindset to everything she needed to do to recover and made steady progress day by day. Initially she had difficulty speaking after having been intubated, but her speech pathologist helped her regain her voice and ability to swallow, allowing Millie to begin eating and drinking a normal diet. She made excellent strides toward regaining her independence with help from her physical and occupational therapists and by the time she was discharged from Kindred to return home to her family she was able to walk with a rolling walker, needed only supplemental oxygen through a nasal cannula and continued making progress every day.

"I feel grateful to God that he put this hospital in my way and to each and every one who has been helping me,” Millie expressed before leaving Kindred. “I’m looking forward to having a normal life like I had before I got sick. I can’t thank everyone at Kindred enough!”