Rehabilitation

Adaptive equipment and durable medical equipment are pieces of equipment that help you be more independent and safe at home.  Assessments, recommendations, and training for equipment are available through our Occupational Therapy Department.

WWH OT providers:
Alex Erickson
Emily Eckberg

Aquatic therapy is unique in its the ability to either assist or resist, depending on how it is utilized. The buoyancy of water decrease weight bearing and pressure on joints while hydrostatic pressure of water allows for increased resistance with movements as well.  Our therapy pool at WWH maintains a water temperature of 90, which is excellent for those with arthritis or people who are not able to move fast enough to stay warm in a standard pool. 

Diagnoses that can benefit from aquatic based rehabilitation:

• Arthritis (not recommended during an RA flare)
• Back pain, acute or chronic
• Balance challenges
• Fibromyalgia
• Hip pain
• Knee pain
• Muscular dystrophy/Multiple sclerosis/Parkinson’s/other progressive disorders
• Post op patients with weight bearing restrictions (incisions must be healed and cleared by rehab staff)
• Pregnancy pain
• Shoulder pain
• Stroke/traumatic brain injury

WWH aquatic therapy providers:
Jayne Rimer
Jen Jorgensen
Jen Hinkel

Blood flow restriction cuffs are used to restrict the blood supply in the upper or lower extremity during low load exercise. This provides the same benefits as heavy-load exercises without mechanical stress. This type of treatment is beneficial for patients who are post-surgical, higher level, or with acute upper or lower extremity pain. Your therapist would be happy to discuss this treatment as a possible option for your rehabilitation.

WWH Certified Blood Flow Restriction provider:
Ben Wunrow

Concussions are a mild traumatic brain injury, which can greatly impact your daily life.  Symptoms, consequences and symptom resolution vary greatly, depending on a variety of factors.  Symptoms may begin right away or they may increase over time. While some recover from a concussion in a couple days, many experience symptoms for weeks, months, or years.

Symptoms vary greatly between people and our rehab programs are personalized to fit your unique needs and may include:

• Cognitive Impairment (word finding, difficulty concentrating, memory challenges)
• Mood Changes
• Changes in sleep patterns
• Light Sensitivity
• Dizziness
• Headaches

We address safe return to daily activities, work, school, driving, and sports following a concussion, utilizing evidence-based interventions and state of the art concussion equipment to help you recover from concussion and manage your symptoms.

Our team provides:

• Senaptec Sensory Station for assessment and training for visual- perceptual deficits
• Strobe Goggles for visual cognition, visual perception, and vestibular rehab
• American Institute of Balance Concussion and Vestibular Certification Interventions and Protocols

Concussion rehabilitation is driven by our Occupational Therapy team with collaboration with Physical Therapy, Athletic Training, and Speech-Language Pathology as appropriate.

Alex Erickson
Emily Eckberg
Ben Wunrow
Deb Kramer
Adam VanRanst

Often, over the counter braces do not fit patients comfortably depending on a variety of factors. We are able to fabricate custom finger, hand, and wrist orthotics for acute injuries, chronic conditions, and post-surgical recovery. The benefit of custom splints is the ability to be modified if a patient needs changing levels of support through the recovery and rehab process. Dynamic splints that promote functional use of the hand can also be fabricated and customized to promote increased independence.

WWH custom splint provider:
Alex Erickson

We do not offer this service however our acupuncturist does provide the comparable service of trigger point needling and is located within the rehab department.

Work hardening is an intensive program specifically designed for each patient based on what their job descriptions will be when they are physically capable of returning. This type of rehab is multiple hours a day, 5 days a week but the exact timeframe will be individualized depending on the patient and their job.

Functional Capacity Evaluations are multiple hour tests that determine a person’s ability to perform functional tasks and are used to determine return to work status or disability level. This looks at cardio fitness, strength, range of motion and how all those factors impact a person’s ability to safely perform work tasks.

Parkinson’s Disease Treatment

BIG & LOUD is the gold standard for high intensity rehabilitation targeting people who have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and has been heavily researched. Specialized training is required to become certified.

Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological condition, however with focused exercise and activities, the speed of progression can be slowed as well as preserving quality of life for people with this condition. Exercises and activities are designed to help people move BIG and speak LOUD, with focus on each person’s individualized needs. We recommend both programs at the same time, however you can do one at a time or choose just one. 

Behaviors that may indicate BIG and LOUD would be helpful:

• Slow movements and/or freezing partway through a movement
• Worsening tremors
• Posture changes
• Poor perception of body position
• Balance difficulties
• Shuffling when starting to walk; upper body appears to be getting ahead of the lower body

• Decreased volume or poor perception of volume when speaking
• Hoarseness
• Monotone
• Mumbling
• Rapid speech
• Difficulty with word finding
• Decreased facial expressions
• Difficulty swallowing or managing secretions

WWH BIG & LOUD certified providers:
Adam VanRanst
Jayne Rimer

Talk with your provider about a referral for BIG and LOUD. Learn more at wwhealth.org or call 715-684-1500 to schedule an appointment.

Lymphedema is a progressive condition that starts after damage occurs to the lymphatic system, stopping it from returning fluid to blood vessels.  This presents as swelling in the arm or leg and can be mistaken for common conditions such as venous insufficiency or edema (swelling) caused by other medical conditions.  Without proactive treatment and management it will continue to worsen, causing permanent changes to skin and swelling.

A variety of factors can contribute to the lymph system not working correctly including:

• Post mastectomy, likelihood increases with removal of lymph nodes
• Trauma to an area of the body
• Scar tissue build up
• Genetics

How is lymphedema treated?

Complete Decongestive Therapy(CDT) is the gold standard for treatment of lymphedema. It has four main components used to decrease swelling, maintain skin health, and maximize quality of life. 

Your treatment plan will include:

• Massage for lymph drainage(this is very light, not a typical massage)
• Skin care
• Compression wrapping, with progression to compression garments
• Home exercises to continue gains made during treatment sessions
• Education in lymphedema management and activity assessment with recommendations for lifestyle alterations and symptom management to maximize results.

The overall goal of CDT at WWH is to allow patients to improve their functional abilities, regain independence and improve their quality of life by teaching patients and/or caregivers how to manage their symptoms. This includes the ability to perform maintenance lymph massage, exercises, and skin care as well as applying compression. 

WWH lymphedema specialist:
Emily Eckberg

Pain in the SI joint or pelvis unfortunately is common as pregnancy progresses and also post-delivery (vaginal or c section). Discomfort in pregnancy is sometimes a part of normal changes as the body prepares for birth but often it is very fixable. Therapy can help with decreasing pain as well as strategies to stay active without pain. Speak to your provider about your symptoms to determine if a referral to physical therapy is appropriate.

All women would benefit from guidance to regain core stabilization after childbirth regardless of the type of delivery. Regaining your core becomes much more difficult for those who have had diastasis recti, post c section or history of low back or SI joint problems. The goal is to improve dynamic stabilization with core strengthening to minimize risk of injury and eliminate pain.

This is an area of care that is very prevalent, although there is often hesitancy to discuss symptoms with providers. 

Many people, both male and female, suffer from conditions related to the pelvic floor including the following:

• Incontinence (urinary or fecal)
• Pain during intimacy
• Pelvic Pain
• Prolapse
• Rectocele/Cystocele
• Testicular Pain

Treatments will vary greatly, depending on the condition and cause of the condition. There is a strong possibility that an internal examination is recommended. Please note that this is not recommended if therapists do not feel it is warranted for treatment.  Internal examinations are always discussed and written patient consent is obtained prior to beginning the exam. 

We recognize how personal this type of treatment can be and strongly encourage you to contact the WWH Rehab Department to discuss what treatment may look like with your symptoms, with the goal of increasing your comfort level when you arrive.

Wheelchair evaluations and training are available through our Occupational Therapy Department. Our therapists help guide the process of obtaining a wheelchair or a pressure relief cushion across disciplines, performing the evaluations and providing letters of medical necessity. They work closely with vendors to ensure your chair is the right one for you. This can be completed for both power and manual wheelchairs as well as scooters.

Our department can help guide seating recommendations but will refer to an Adaptive Technology Professional if specialized pressure mapping is required​​​​​.

WWH OT providers:
Alex Erickson
Emily Eckberg