Common Functional Problems Treated

• The inability to walk
• Weakness or loss of joint movement
• Difficulty with coordination or balance
• Difficulty moving from one surface to another (i.e., from the bed to a chair or from a chair to the tub)
• The inability to control bowel or bladder function
• Difficulty with everyday activities such as eating, grooming, dressing, bathing or homemaking
• The inability to swallow
• Problems with memory, thought processes, decision making or reasoning
• Difficulty communicating with others
• Emotional problems associated with serious illness or injury
• The inability to pursue recreational activities

Specialized Facilities
Key features of the St. John's Mercy Brain Injury Unit include:

• Electronically controlled access
• Environmentally modified rooms for limited distraction
• Video monitoring capabilities for patients with an increased safety risk
• Treatment areas designed and used only for patients with brain injury

Admission Criteria
Early Intervention Brain Injury Program (COMA)
Rancho Los Amigos scale 1 to 3
Patients must:

• Be within three months post injury
• Be medically stable
• Not be ventilator dependent
• Have a long-term discharge option

Acute Brain Injury Rehabilitation
Rancho Los Amigos scale >4
Patients must:

• Have a brain injury and must be physically impaired with or without cognitive problems, as well as able to benefit from a structured rehabilitation program
• Be medically stable, not ventilator dependent, and able to participate in full rehabilitation program
• Be able to achieve new goals and further improve physical or cognitive status, regardless of previous participation in rehabilitation program

Treatment
Enabling the patient to improve physically and cognitively requires the collaboration of the brain injury treatment team. Many physicians, medical specialists, advisors and support professionals work together to help every individual with brain injury work toward his or her recovery and make the transition to home and the community. The patient's family members are encouraged to participate in rehabilitation.

All inpatient treatment is provided in the Brain Injury Unit. The team members monitor each patient's rehabilitation progress and meet regularly with the patient's family to provide progress updates. Education and skills taught in the Brain Injury Program include:

• Motor skills
• Eating and swallowing
• Communication skills
• Cognition
• Perception
• Behavior control
• Self-care
• Adjustment to the effects of brain injury
• Nutrition
• Driver retraining (outpatient)
• Family education
• Vocational counseling (outpatient)
• Community reintegration

Education
We are committed to helping individuals with brain injury and their families relearn old skills and understand and adjust to the effects of brain injury on emotions, memory, cognition and motor skills. Individual or group assistance is provided, and educational literature is available.

The Transition to Home
Adjusting to a post-injury lifestyle takes time and requires support. At the Rehab Hospital, we provide a variety of facilities and programs to make that adjustment as easy as possible. We offer community outings to help patients with brain injury remaster skills and make the transition to home and community successful. We help each patient set reasonable short- and long-term goals. We continue to work with medical care providers, friends and family long after the patient leaves the medical center. We also offer a furnished apartment in the Rehab Hospital that is used to teach patients with specific needs how to adjust to the routines and pleasures of daily living.

Discharge Planning & Follow-up
To ensure each patient's progress after he or she leaves the medical center, our rehabilitation staff coordinates services such as outpatient therapy, residential treatment, home therapy, and/or comprehensive day treatment at the St. John's Mercy Head Injury Resource Center. We also make referrals to local, state and federal agencies for vocational opportunities, support groups and financial assistance.