Rehabilitation In Nursing Home Care

An elderly woman looks across the room to her spouse, finding him smiling back. His soft skin is now creased by age, one for every smile, one for every laugh, and one for every tear through the years of their marriage. His frail frame is covered by a hospital gown that is barely visible underneath the blankets covering his body. There is silence except for the hissing of a machine filling his lungs with oxygen. Suddenly a soft knock resonates on the wood of the door before a shorter woman walks into the room. The petite nurse informs the woman that dinner will be served shortly and asks if she would like to eat in the room with her spouse like usual. She replies to the nurse and continues sitting at her husband’s bedside. The nurse brings them …show more content…
Restorative care helps patients return to a level of function and maintain that level. Rehabilitation involves intensive care to reach the highest level of functioning while taking physical, emotional, and social changes into account. All though not all residents can be rehabilitated, it is the main goal of the facility. The health care team works with the residents to prevent complications of inactivity by providing daily activities and opportunities for motion, increase the safety of the resident during locomotion, and help the resident gain independence and self-care skills. Restorative aides, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and speech therapists work together to reach the goal of each resident. Another benefit for restoration are assistive devices such as special eating utensils, personal care devices, devices for dressing, and even wheelchairs. Many people in long term care use wheelchairs, but another example for those who can bear weight on their feet and maintain their balance is a gait belt. A gait belt is a supportive belt that is placed around the waist of a resident that helps when a nurse or nurse aide is lifting a resident. An example of the use of the gait belt is when transferring a resident from their wheelchair to their bedside. By using these assistive devices, caregivers can frequently encourage the residents’ independence and rehabilitation, involve residents in recreational activities, and help the resident’s care for themselves. This makes it possible for residents to be released, but provides a boost for their self-esteem despite living in a nursing