Rehabilitation for patients with hip replacements starts prior to surgery. Care team trains the patient to evade hip dislocation, explains the basics of relearning how to safely and effectively walk once again, and shows exercises that are necessary to perform after surgery. Rehabilitation team members devise a personalized plan for the patient. They take into consideration any health problems which might negatively impact the individual’s recovery.
As a rule, the patient stays in the hospital up to three or four days, although discharge depends on how fast the patient progresses. Generally, by the third day after surgery, patients are ready to be discharged so that they could continue their rehabilitation in home environment.
When surgery is completed, the patient is transferred to the recovery room. During this time, the patient is monitored until awakening. On the first day after surgery, a physical therapist meets with the individual to practice particular exercises in order to help the person restore complete hip movement. The individual tries sitting at the edge of the bed and moving from chair to chair with the help of a walker. This is usually done from one to two times every day.
On the second day, the patient continues to perform therapeutic exercises under supervision. Self-care, dressing, bathing, and toileting, is done with assistance of an occupational therapist. It is possible to try walking to the door, up and down the stairs, or to the bathroom with either a walker or crutches. If required, the patient is shown how to use lower body dressing equipment.
On the third day, it is possible to perform the exercises without any assistance. Grooming and hygiene is practiced independently as well as the use of lower body dressing equipment. If the patient is preparing to go home, crutches may be given out for home use (Atrium Medical Center, 2014).
Rehabilitation is a significant part of stroke treatment. Rehabilitation aids patients in keeping and regaining their abilities, thus allowing them become more independent. Commonly, it starts while the individual receives acute care. In many cases, acute care is provided to the patient after discharge from the hospital. This is done by means of a usual rehabilitation program or through individual rehabilitation services. A lot of decisions concerning rehabilitation are made by the patient, family members, and doctors prior to finishing acute care.
Since every stroke is different, every person receives different treatment. Encouraging the patient to move and carry out self-care tasks like eating and getting out of bed is the first step in rehabilitation. While going through hospital or nursing facility rehabilitation programs, the patient may spend a couple of hours each day on activities like physical therapy, speech therapy, recreational therapy, and other group activities.
It is very important to maintain the patient’s skills, thus fostering his or her recovery. A part of the time, the individual devotes to relearning walking and speaking skills that were impaired due to the stroke. Another part of the time, the individual spends on learning new methods to perform things that can no longer be done the way it was possible before the stroke. For instance, the patient tries using one hand for tasks that generally require two hands.
The goals of rehabilitation depend on the harm inflicted by the stroke to the person, the patient’s abilities prior to the stroke, and the patient’s desires. Working together as a team, the goals are established by the patient, family members, and rehabilitation program workers. Being able to walk without assistance or, at least, with the help of a walker or cane is a realistic goal for the majority of stroke survivors. Other realistic goals include being able to take care of oneself with special apparatus, driving a car, and having a job (National Stroke Association, 2016).
References
Atrium Medical Center. (2014, December 3). Ask Atrium: Rehabilitation after hip replacement. Retrieved form https://www.atriummedcenter.org/Rehabilitation/Education-and-Support/Ask-Atrium---Rehabilitation-After-Hip-Replacement/
National Stroke Association. (2016). Rehabilitation therapy after a stroke. Retrieved form http://www.stroke.org/we-can-help/stroke-survivors/just-experienced-stroke/rehab
