Sage Rehabilitation Hospital’s speech-language pathologists provide an evidenced-based treatment approach in the areas swallowing, language (receptive and expressive), voice, articulation, social and cognitive communication services designed to meet each individual patient’s needs.

Techniques to accelerate recovery time include:

• AmpCare– AmpCare is a safe and effective treatment for patients suffering with difficulty swallowing or dysphagia. AmpCare is a non-invasive, external neuromuscular electrical stimulation therapy utilized improve overall swallow function and to strengthen the musculature involved with chewing and swallowing.
• Traditional Swallowing Therapy– Compensatory strategy training, swallowing exercises, diet modification, suctioning/oral care, and positioning recommendation are provided by Sage SLPs.
• Cognitive Retraining– Sage SLPs design patient-specific remediative and compensatory cognitive training to assist patients to improve safety in the home, to improve function with daily activities, and to address memory and executive function deficits that affect mobility and basic care needs of the patient.
• LSVT (LOUD) Trained Therapists– The Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) is utilized by SLPs to treat vocal deficits as a result of Parkinson’s Disease.  LSVT LOUD treatment tasks are directed toward increasing overall volume and endurance of the patient’s voice and to improve breath support over consecutive sessions.  SLPs utilize specific cueing techniques to assist the patient to achieve the highest level of vocal performance.

Sage Rehabilitation Hospital’s physical therapists provide an evidence-based treatment approach in the recovery of orthopedic, neurologic, and cardiovascular impairments. Treatment sessions are individualized for each patient and might include activities for strengthening, balance, flexibility and endurance as well as functional training to improve bed mobility, walking ability, and/or wheelchair mobility.

Techniques to accelerate recovery time include:

• NDT treatment approach. Neuro –Developmental Treatment (NDT) is a hands-on approach used by Sage therapists to improve function after neurological injuries, such as strokes or other forms of brain injury. The NDT approach uses tasks meaningful and functional to the patient to develop new nerve pathways, allowing patients to regain function lost from the neurologic injury. Therapists work with patients, loved ones, caregivers, physicians, and other members of the rehab team to develop an individualized treatment focused on recovery of tasks meaningful to the patient.
• Use of manual therapy. Manual therapy includes various hands-on techniques used to increase flexibility and reduce pain. These techniques include but are no limited to massage therapy, range of motion exercises, and joint mobilization. Once flexibility and pain are addressed with manual therapy, functional mobility improves at a faster rate.
• LSVT BIG trained physical therapist. Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) began as a highly effective speech therapy approach specifically designed to treat Parkinson’s Disease. The LSVT principles have been applied to the whole body and developed into a physical therapy and occupational therapy treatment (LSVT BIG).  LSVT BIG targets impairments specific to Parkinson’s Disease and uses specialized cues effective in patients with Parkinson’s Disease. Both LSVT BIG (physical/ occupational therapy) and LSVT LOUD (speech therapy) have a multitude of research supporting the use of these treatments.
• The therapy gym has both standard equipment used in therapy treatment as well as specialized equipment including:
  • Lite Gait is designed to support a percentage of the patient’s body weight in standing. This allows therapists to progress patients from non-weight bearing to full weight bearing in a fall free environment as patients practice walking.

• • NuStep provides a total body workout using a smooth stepping motion. It supports deconditioned patients and provides a low impact exercise with minimal joint stress. Adjustable resistance levels allows therapists to increase the challenge as the patient progresses.

Occupational therapists work to help patients develop, recover, or improve the skills needed for activities of daily living after they have had an injury or illness. Treatment sessions might include teaching a patient to re-learn how to dress or feed themselves or to prepare a meal using a new approach or technique.

A patient may need to strengthen their upper body or learn to use their hands in order to be able to return to work or home. Simulated functional activities can help retrain weakened muscles when a skilled therapist designs and directs an appropriate treatment program that is individualized to meet the needs and goals of each patient.

Special Programs Include:

• Lymphedema Management. A certified lymphedema therapist can help address uncontrolled swelling through a combination of manual lymphatic techniques (massage) and compression bandaging that will improve circulation of fluids, improve skin conditions, and decrease discomfort.
• Animal Facilitated Therapy. Canine Companions for Independence has provided Sage Rehabilitation with a professionally trained facility dog to use during therapy sessions to help patients achieve their goals. “Leena” has received two years of extensive and specialized training and has passed the nationally standardized public access test in order to allow her to safely work with patients in the hospital as well as while on community outings. Her facilitator has been trained to utilize the approximately 40 commands that Leena is able to perform, and incorporate them into a therapy session which can address strength and balance issues, cognitive deficits, and provide external motivation for patients that may otherwise resist certain treatments.

If you have been diagnosed with any of the following, the Sage Rehabilitation Hospital healthcare team can help you focus on achieving recovery:

•         Cerebral vascular accident (stroke)
•         Hip fracture
•         Total joint replacement (hip/knee/bilateral joint replacements)
•         Arthritis (osteoarthritis/rheumatoid)
•         Amputation/post amputation/pre-prosthetic training and prosthetic training
•         Neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, West Nile Virus with neurologic involvement, and Myopathy
•         Transverse Myelitis
•         Multiple fractures/multiple trauma
•         Polyneuropathy
•         Brain injury
•         Spinal cord injury
•         Burns
•         Congenital deformity
•         Other debilitating illnesses causing a severe functional decline