Rehab Select Blog

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a disease that makes breathing difficult for sufferers. There are multiple reasons why a person could find it difficult to breathe, ranging from decreased elasticity of the airways to increased inflammation of the airways.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) affects more than 6.3 percent of American adults. It's a life-threatening lung disease that kills millions of people every year.

If you are in the planning phases of an upcoming joint replacement surgery, you should know that what happens during your recovery period is crucial to getting the highest level of benefit from your procedure. For that reason, being well-prepared for the recovery process is just as important as preparing for the surgery itself. So what should you be doing to ensure that you emerge from surgery well-prepared to make your best recovery? Here are 4 ways to prepare for recovery:

Managing your recovery after a serious medical incident—stroke, heart attack, surgery or injury from a fall or auto accident, for example—can be a complicated and confusing endeavor. Among the many choices you will be asked to make as you begin to recover is what comes next for you when it is time to be discharged from the hospital. In most cases, the next step will be rehabilitation therapy, and your basic options for pursuing that care will include both outpatient and inpatient short term rehab programs. 

Person-centered care, also commonly referred to as patient-centered or individualized care, is quickly becoming the standard of care throughout our healthcare system, and short term rehab is no exception to that rule. In fact, inpatient short term rehab services providers have been, in many cases, on the cutting edge of this trend since the primary focus of these programs—to aid patients in achieving their own, individual, best level of health, well-being, ability and independence in their daily lives—clearly lends itself to a person-centered approach and atmosphere.

If you have shoulder pain that has been diagnosed as shoulder osteoarthritis, a number of treatment options are available to ease the pain, stiffness and discomfort this degenerative joint disease can cause. These range from topical treatments to oral medications, orthopedic rehabilitation, and, in serious cases, surgical solutions. Here we'll outline 9 common treatments for shoulder arthritis, information that can help you make solid decisions about your care as you work with your healthcare providers to find the right treatment or combination of treatments to ease the impact of this disease on your daily life.

If you have been told that you need rehabilitative therapy to aid in recovering from a medical incident, illness or surgery, or as a means of improving or managing functional deficits or disabilities, chances are you'll have questions about what to expect from this form of treatment. Here, we'll look into that question in regards to outpatient short term rehabilitation programs, giving you an idea of what to expect if you choose outpatient services to meet your rehabilitative needs.

If you or a loved one have suffered a stroke, chances are you have already been told that rehabilitation therapy is an integral part of any effective stroke recovery plan. You have likely also been asked to choose among a list of options for receiving that therapy. These will typically include both inpatient and outpatient rehab programs. Ultimately, the decision as to whether you should choose an inpatient or outpatient short term rehab program is one that should be made in close consultation with your medical care team.

If an injured or diseased joint is causing chronic pain and/or disability, joint replacement surgery is often the best means of treatment. These procedures have proven very effective in reducing pain, increasing function and mobility, and improving quality of life. However, if your medical team has recommended surgery for you, it is important to know that this procedure is not a quick fix. Realizing the potential benefits of joint replacement will mean spending quite a bit of time on recovery and rehabilitation after surgery—anywhere from 3 months to a year.

Has your healthcare team suggested that a stay in a short term rehab facility would be the best next step in your care after hospital discharge? If so, you likely have questions about the financial aspects of getting the care you need, and those questions are best dealt with before your admission to prevent unpleasant surprises later. Here, we'll outline what you need to know in terms of insurance considerations for short term rehab.