Wednesday March 21

Post date: Mar 22, 2012 5:52:39 AM

Martha has continued to progress well. She has been hearing so much encouraging news, however, she decided a day or two ago that she is ready to go home. Today she and I and some of the therapists discussed with her about how much more she needs to progress before she can safely manage things by herself. She is not as strong as she needs to be to get around her house or be steady when nobody is around. Her house is a single level, but the doorways and bathrooms are not suitable for a wheelchair, so she would need to "graduate" to a walker or cane to navigate it. She continues needing supplemental oxygen, which limits her mobility until she is strong enough to handle the equipment. She also continues to have some orientation issues -- she still gets confused about the time of day and sequences of events, so she cannot safely manage her medications. She cannot yet drive or walk far, so she would need assistance to go out.

Overall, Martha is progressing very well, but the therapists feel she needs several more weeks of progress before they might consider her safe at home even with home assistance. I believe she must be getting bored with being in rehab, and believes that being at home will be better. She seems determined, so I don't doubt she will continue meeting her targets as quickly as she can.