Tom May's Story
Thomas “Tom” May enjoys working out, reading, rooting for University of Southern California football and volunteering—especially community patrols with the Henderson police department. Retired from a career in health care administration, Tom, 75, and his wife, Diane, also appreciate spending time with their children and grandchildren.
Tom visited his doctor after two episodes of dizziness. He was surprised when testing revealed the episodes were actually strokes. Tom was scheduled for a medical procedure to correct the bleeding vessel in his brain. The surgery to correct the leaking blood vessel was a success, but during the procedure, an unknown aneurysm burst causing a devastating stroke.
When Tom regained consciousness, he couldn’t walk or even sit up due to the weakness on his left side. In addition to mobility issues, Tom struggled with cognitive focus. The intended one-night stay in the hospital for the procedure turned into five nights. Once stable, Tom and his family chose Dignity Health Rehabilitation Hospital for extended healing and recovery.
“We selected Dignity Health Rehabilitation Hospital because we wanted the most comprehensive rehab care in the region so I could return to my normal life as quickly as possible,” Tom said.
On his first day, Tom met with his physician-led multidisciplinary team including nursing, a speech-language pathologist and physical, occupational and recreational therapy. He outlined his goals—regaining independence, returning home to help his family, getting back to the gym and resuming his volunteer activities.
Nursing monitored Tom’s blood pressure for episodes of low blood pressure. As directed by his physician, Tom’s nurses also administered his medication and provided education on transitioning positions slowly to avoid dizziness.
Tom’s speech-language pathologist helped rewire is brain following the stroke with cognitive exercises including memory activities to help improve his recall. They also taught him strategies to help minimize confusion such as using calendars and checklists and breaking tasks into smaller steps.
Physical therapy created a plan to strengthen Tom’s left side. In addition to weakness, Tom had difficulty maintaining an upright position because his perception of balance had shifted. Called pusher syndrome, this neurological disorder is characterized by a patient’s tendency to push away from their non-paralyzed side after a stroke. During physical therapy, Tom practiced sitting upright in front of a mirror to help his brain correctly process his center of balance. He worked on this every day. Tom soon progressed in his ability to sit upright without assistance and from there, to stand from a sitting position.
Once standing successfully, Tom practiced walking with the LiteGait system—a bodyweight supported harness to keep him safe while he focused on picking up his feet and walking in a natural motion. Diane attended Tom’s therapy sessions, learning how to best help him with the direction of his therapists. “My wife and family encouraged me every step of the way,” Tom said.
Tom’s stroke severely affected his ability to participate in everyday activities such as getting in and out of bed, bathing, toileting, dressing, grooming and helping out at home. Tom tackled these challenges with occupational therapy by working on mat table exercises to strengthen his core. This helped Tom correct his center of balance and increase overall strength. Next, he moved to the Bioness Integrated Therapy System (BITS) where his therapists took him through hand-eye coordination activities on an interactive touch screen to improve depth perception, reaction time and memory. Meantime, Tom was working with weights to build arm strength and learning modifications when dressing his left side. With these gains, Tom moved to standing balance activities including kitchen and laundry tasks in the hospital’s Activities of Daily Living area which provides a simulated home environment.
Throughout this time, Tom also engaged in recreational therapy. During these sessions, Tom drew on his musical and historical knowledge during trivia game challenges such as “Name That Tune” and “Family Feud.” Tom looked forward to these sessions, “The leisure therapy elevated my mood and brought a smile to my face each day.”
After three weeks of inpatient therapy, Tom was walking and completing all his self-care activities independently. As a final step, the care team conducted a home visit with Diane and Tom, recommending modifications such as moving furniture for clear pathways to optimize safety. After 24 days at Dignity Health Rehabilitation Hospital, Tom looked forward to returning home to his family and friends.
“All of the staff were helpful and dedicated to my recovery,” Tom said. He plans to continue building strength with outpatient therapy and looks forward to getting back to the gym and volunteering.