What is Pulmonary Rehabilitation?
It is a multidisciplinary and comprehensive program for patients with chronic respiratory disease and decreased respiratory function. Treatment in Pulmonary Rehabilitation involves medical evaluation, prescribed exercise, education and counseling. The program is designed to reduce symptoms, optimize functional status, increase participation, and reduce healthcare costs through stabilizing the disease, improving oxygen utilization and overall efficiency in performance of activities of daily living.
Who should participate in Pulmonary Rehab?
Any person suffering from breathing difficulties and finds that day to day activities are becoming harder. Patients with oxygen are encouraged to attend. Talk to your doctor to see if you have a diagnosis qualifying you for Pulmonary Rehab.
Aims of the program:
-
Increase exercise tolerance in order to reduce impairment
-
Improve adherence to recommended treatments
-
Reduce frequency and severity of symptoms
-
Improve mood and motivation
-
Reduce dependency
-
Enhance participation in therapy decisions by building self-management capacity
-
Increase participation in everyday activities
-
Reduce hospitalization
-
Improve quality of life
What do I need to get started?
What are the costs?
Costs vary with the services performed. Most insurance companies recognize the benefits of rehab and pay for these services. In many cases Total Health will file your insurance for you. Pre-approval is sometimes necessary.
What are the hours?
Pulmonary Rehab is offered on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
Phase II-Outpatient
An initial evaluation will help the Pulmonary Rehab staff and physician develop an individualized treatment plan for each patient. Exercise training may include stretching, aerobic training, resistance training, and breathing techniques. Ongoing education will be provided throughout the program in relation to management of respiratory disease. During each session staff will monitor heart rate, oxygenation status, and blood pressure. A physician is always present during Phase II pulmonary rehab.
Phase III- Medically based exercise program
Phase III is for patients who have successfully completed Phase II and are stable and independent. Those who have respiratory disease and may not be candidates for Phase II are also considered for this program.
Phase IV- Maintenance
Phase IV is a long term exercise program that emphasizes long-term lifestyle changes such as a regular exercise program. The individualized program will help patients practice and maintain healthy habits to manage your respiratory disease and reduce the risk of future exacerbations.