(l-r) Meg Otake, an occupational therapist, Virginia Mellendick and Gredrivus Valaitis, a physical therapist at St. Elizabeth.
“On the 21st of May, I went into the Upper Chesapeake Hospital as a result of neurological difficulties that I was having. There were a number of symptoms and I was having trouble walking. I spent several days there and they actually never came up with a clear diagnosis of what was wrong. However, they recommended that I have rehabilitation therapy before going home. It was clear to me that I needed what they recommended. I decided to go to St. Elizabeth for rehabilitation. t was the best decision I could have made because I received excellent care. From the start everyone was helpful, professional and reassuring. I was very comfortable and felt at home.
When I would get up in the morning, I was greeted by Margie, the Nursing Assistant. She took my vitals and asked me what I wanted for breakfast. Let me say that, from breakfast through dinner, the food was excellent. The selections were varied, tasty and served in the family dining room. After breakfast, I had Physical Therapy for an hour and learned all of the exercises that were going to make me better—and did! After lunch, I had Occupational Therapy. It surprised me that I needed to go through the activities of daily living—making a bed, scrambling an egg and doing a load of wash, but I did. It was helpful because it gave me the confidence. As it happened, 2:00 in the afternoon became the highlight of my day—snack time. I always had a milk shake. Dr. Yi ordered it!
I lived at St. Elizabeth for 20 days. And day-by-day, I could feel that I was getting stronger, and more capable. I was becoming myself again. I left St. Elizabeth very grateful for the excellent care that I received and went back to my life actually stronger in many ways than I had been in a long time!”
Virginia Mellendick