The Pines offers a full range of Rehabilitation Services at both the Machias Campus and Olean Campus.
The Pines Machias Rehabilitation Program
The Therapy Department at The Pines is not just for our Long Term Residents. Many come to The Pines for a rehabilitation stay after surgery or an illness to gain strength and skills before returning to their normal everyday life.
We Offer:
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy can be best defined as the study of movement patterns and how the way individuals complete these movements that affect their daily lives. Movement patterns assessed by physical therapists include everything from walking to neck/head movements.
Common services practiced by physical therapists include walking, stair climbing and range of motion in joints. Here at the Pines, our physical therapists also focus on fall recovery training and increasing an individual’s ability to balance.
During your stay, physical therapy will assist in creating realistic goals to increase your ability to safely move around within your environment. Physical therapy will also assist in building strength in several areas of the body, including your legs, in order to complete safe movements.
During your first meeting with the physical therapist, you will be asked questions about your home. These questions will cover the amount of stairs needed to get in and out of your home, or whether there are stairs to climb to reach the bedroom or bathroom. The physical therapist will also assess the mechanics behind how you walk or move, as well as how strong your legs are.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy can be best described as the use of everyday functional tasks to remediate physical deficits. Occupational therapy can also adapt the environment to increase performance and simplify a task based on an indvidual’s needs.
Common skills practiced in occupational therapy include the participation in vital everyday tasks that allow us to remain independent. These tasks may include toileting, bathing or feeding, but may also include more personally-valued activities that make life worth living, such as gardening or taking care of a pet. During therapy, one can expect to practice both the entire task as well as pieces of a task such as reaching or grabbing for optimal outcomes.
During your initial evaluation, your therapist will evaluate strength such as grip and pinch. Your therapist will also assess your level of independence and what your home setup is; both physically and socially. The therapist will also assess things such as sitting/standing balance, endurance and movement patterns in regards to functional tasks.
During your stay, our occupational therapy staff will ensure that your environment is setup for success. Occupational therapy will also address barriers that impede your ability to participate in desired tasks, with an end goal on adapting the task or environment to mitigate these barriers. Occupational therapy will also discuss the role of adaptive equipment and how it can increase your ability to participate in activities.
Speech/Language Pathology
Speech therapy focuses on the treatment of speech, language and swallowing disorders.
The speech therapist focuses on several skills involved in chewing, swallowing and speech. Often the speech therapist will work on strengthening muscles that assist in mechanics of feedings and spoken language. The therapist can also assess whether food needs to be pureed or thickened to decrease an individual’s chance of choking. Speech therapists also facilitate communicative function for those with cognitive impairments such as Stroke, Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
During your initial evaluation the speech therapist will assess your ability to communicate. The speech therapist will assess both physical aspects of communication such as the associated muscle movements and the cognitive aspects as well. The speech therapist will also pay close attention to your swallowing ability to reduce risk of aspiration.