Hope Center Therapists Give Special Patients Encouragement To Heal

Hope Center for HIV and Nursing Care on University Avenue in the Bronx is a highly-respected four-star 66-bed skilled nursing facility that receives HIV patients plus those who have struggled with drug and alcohol addictions. Although the majority knows that this is the place in the Bronx for these folks to get well, it is the facility's short-term rehabilitation therapy department that faces these challenges because the patients here are not the "everyday" or common nursing home residents, rather they are those who have everything from strokes and depression to due addiction, to falls and infections. It is the job of these therapists to get these folks up and out of their wheelchairs and inform and re-informing them that they can go back to their lives, but better off and clean. Three Hope Center residents are pure examples of overcoming such obstacles.

64-year-old Bronx native Nelson Alves had an unfortunate incident on his birthday back in July of 2020. Mr. Alves was walking in his kitchen when he slipped and hit his toe under the sink where his toenail came off and ultimately got infected. He went to Lincoln Hospital where the nurses told him to make sure the area stayed clean and although he tried hard to make sure of that, Nelson acquired gangrene where the doctors needed to amputate his left leg above the knee. Later, he went to Metropolitan Hospital in Manhattan for Rehab for prosthesis, following that he went to University Nursing Home in the Bronx and from there to Hope Center, admitted in January 2021.

"They (the therapists) are doing a good job with me, and I'm trying to get my balance," said Alves.

Receiving both physical and occupational therapy, Nelson's challenge was and still is balancing due to his new prosthetic leg. The therapy has been great with Nelson, even though he has some pain, as well as phantom pain, also known as phantom leg syndrome, from the leg that's no longer there. This condition has also led to arthritis in his right hip, dealing with a blood clot due to being mostly non-mobile. Nelson will be scheduled to see a vascular surgeon for his blood clot and when that’s taken care of, then the hip and leg will follow. With all of this, he continues to thank the Hope Center therapy team, remaining very positive and motivated where he still likes to lift weights and strengthen his upper body. Nelson keeps on making progress by walking further and further throughout the building, exercising with his prosthetic leg.

The always lively and energetic Dierdre Provost, 57, has HIV and has been battling alcoholism and a 30-year fight with depression since losing her mother decades ago. The highly spiritual Ms. Provost has been at Hope Center since early 2021 but things are looking up for her. Dierdre, who has had a Native American upbringing, has been doing great on her medication. Hope Center therapists work hard with her as she is learning how to walk again after having an infection in her toe and had refused physical therapy at first, all due to her depression. The infection wasn't only in one of her toes, the infection later showed up in both of her feet. Ms. Provost also has had back pain lately and hasn't been at physical therapy in a while but knows she needs it. Diedre knows she needs it since her legs have gotten a bit weak and they have been buckling when trying to use the weights, so she is equipped with knee braces for her therapy sessions.

"The people here (therapists) talk to you with respect," said Ms. Provist. "What also led me to my depression was being tired of having doors slam in my face. Nobody today shows respect, manners, or common courtesy."

Ms. Cynthia Wilson, who's from Queens originally and later moved to Harlem, had a stroke in November of last year while feeding her fish in her apartment. Cynthia was taken to New York Presbyterian and was then transferred to Hope Center where she was receiving therapy for two to three months. Ms. Wilson, 64, was on her first stay at Hope Center where she did well, until she was discharged home. One day while at home, Cynthia's knees got weak, twisted her foot, and then fell when she was reaching for her walker in her bathroom. She returned to New York Presbyterian and for rehab, she chose to return to Hope Center last month given the very positive experience she received the first time. Ms. Wilson, who was a machinist for Con Edison for 18 years, has worn a patch over her left eye since her stroke because she says she sees double while not wearing it. Also due to her stroke, her swallowing mechanism is off so, not only does she receive physical therapy, Cyntyhia also speech therapy.

"I'm doing OK and it's all because of Tom and the other therapists here, I'm thankful and doing OK," said Ms. Wilson.

Cynthia also had an unfortunate experience at lunch one day this past October where she had choked on her food and if it wasn't for the nurses and one particular resident at the time, she feels that this incident could have been a lot worse. At the time of her choking, nurses are trained to call a Code Blue, which happened, but what also happened is that a mobile resident came to Cynthia's rescue and helped her dislodge the trapped food while she was passing out. This situation only confirmed that speech therapy was in order.

"All of our therapists are passionate about their work and it shows in the mannerisms that they portray naturally with the residents," said Hope Center Director of Rehabilitation Krishna Pendem. "The patients we get here have so many different and underlying challenges when they come in after a stroke, fall, or infection so we need to understand that they may have an addiction of life-long illness on top of why they need PT, OT or ST."

According to Medicare.gov, the four-star Hope Center, whose focus is on HIV and patients fighting addiction, their rehab numbers are quite high. The percentage of short-stay residents who improved in their ability to move around on their own is at almost 95 percent, while the national average is at 76 percent and the New York state average is at nearly 78 percent. This impressive statistic shows that short-term residents do extremely well at this intimate 66-bed skilled nursing facility.