January 8, 2003

Brain injury patients benefit from animal assisted therapy
The Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program at St. Camillus is using animal assisted therapy as part of its therapeutic recreation to help patients in new and creative ways.

Therapy animals help motivate patients to achieve goals such as coordination, balance, mobility, problem solving, verbal expression, social interaction and self esteem. Animal assisted therapy can help maximize patient strengths by enhancing physical, occupational and speech/language therapies. Patients who will care for a pet after rehab also benefit by practicing typical tasks such as grooming, feeding and walking.

"We've seen many people 'down in the dumps' who just light up when they see that they'll be working with a therapy dog," says St. Camillus' Trish Triffo, Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program therapeutic recreation specialist. "By the end of their session they've worked on a variety of their therapeutic goals and at the same time had a lot of fun doing it!"

		Former Brain Injury Rehabilitation Program patient Stephanie K. pets Angie, a trained therapy dog, as Therapeutic Recreation Specialist Trish Triffo offers encouragement. Working with Angie helped Stephanie regain use of her left hand.

Animal assisted therapy is growing in popularity among rehab providers because animals are often able to "get through" to some patients who may not respond well to traditional therapies. St. Camillus is currently using trained dogs in its animal assisted therapy, although just about any animal––from cats and rabbits to hamsters––have been used as motivators in other facilities.

To receive animal assisted therapy, St. Camillus Brain Injury Rehab patients must be recommended by the treatment team, be medically cleared, have a physician's order and have established goals that can be addressed. Currently, up to three patients at a time can be enrolled to work with therapy dogs.

Animal assisted therapy at St. Camillus is conducted in partnership with Sunshine Friends, a local not-for-profit organization that provides the dogs. Triffo's dog, Angie, also helps out with therapies at the facility three Fridays a month. Angie received her Canine Good Citizens Certificate from the American Kennel Club after passing a series of tests conducted by Sunshine Friends.

Other furry friends making rounds
In addition to animal assisted therapy, St. Camillus has brought the power of pets to other parts of the facility.

The Adult Day Health Program's yellow parakeet, Tweety, was recently joined by a rabbit named Cadbury. He is Activity Leader Sue Stevenson's pet and now resides at St. Camillus. In addition to interacting with Adult Day Health clients daily, Cadbury and Tweety regularly visit Continuing Care residents throughout the facility. They are delighted to pet and hold the soft and furry bunny, and to listen to Tweety sing.

"[Cadbury's] been getting results from people I couldn't even get through to," says Stevenson. "He has a very calming effect on people."

Waldo, a five-year-old Sheepdog and Poodle mix, has been visiting with St. Camillus Continuing Care residents for about a year. He's affectionately known as "the wonder dog" because he has only three legs. Waldo's owner, Liz Harris, began bringing him to St. Camillus when she came to volunteer. He has since been elevated to full volunteer status and even wears his own volunteer nametag. A change in Harris' work schedule has caused her to now drop Waldo off at the facility each Thursday morning for the entire day. Staff take turns bringing Waldo around St. Camillus to visit with residents.

Although Waldo is considered "top dog" by many at St. Camillus, other canine visitors can be seen cozying up to residents on a regular basis. Families of residents and patients may bring in dogs, cats and other pets––provided they're on a leash and their vaccinations are up to date––to hang out with their loved ones during regular visiting hours. The Activities Department also works with Sunshine Friends, the local SPCA and a number of individuals who regularly bring their dogs in to visit with Continuing Care residents.

"The pets provide a special bond and the smiles just keep coming," says Mary Ellen Goodbread, Activities director. "The residents love to reach out and pet and interact with the animals, which provides a sense of companionship. This is one of the comforts of home that residents often miss."