Expected Outcomes

Our program for amputee rehabilitation is designed to provide short-term, cost-effective care to restore mobility and return patients to productive lifestyles.
Patients and their families are integral members of the team and participate in the development of the treatment plan. The goals of our program are:

• Increase patients' ability to perform daily physical activities such as ambulation and transfers.
• Improve patients' ability to perform self-care tasks including dressing, bathing and use of assistive devices.
• Educate patients regarding secondary health issues such as diabetes and arthritis.
• Educate patients and their families regarding residual limb care, post-surgical precautions, proper nutrition for healing, the appropriate use of medications, and the management of prosthetic devices.
• Safety training to reduce risk of potential injury.
• Transition to home / community setting.

Patient Profile

Our program is designed to treat patients throughout all phases of recovery
from amputation:

• Post-surgical
• Prosthetic training
• Pre-prosthetic
• Community re-entry

Approach to Care

Amputee rehabilitative care is provided by a multidisciplinary team dedicated to
improving patient mobility and restoring independent lifestyles. Our approach to
care includes:

• Preoperative training to prepare patients for surgery, the recovery process, and teaching specific skills such as bed mobility and postoperative conditioning exercises.
• Physical therapy including bed mobility, gait / stairs / transfer training, lower extremity conditioning, and use of ambulation devices.
• Training in edema control, and the use of prosthetic devices.
• Occupational therapy including dressing training, energy conservation, use of assistive devices, upper extremity conditioning and home safety consultation.
• Nursing education including wound care, medication precautions and required modifications to daily living activities.

Continuum of Care

The amputee rehabilitation program is designed to meet the individual needs of
patients as they progress through their recovery. Patients are continuously evaluated
by the rehabilitation team to ensure effective utilization of services. Care is available
on an In-Patient and / or Out-Patient basis, and includes the following specialized
features:

• Frequent monitoring of patient care by a rehabilitation physician.
• Case management support to coordinate all components of the patient's stay,
including clinical, utilization management, payer relations and follow-up services.
• Follow-up care will be scheduled for all patients with their referring physician upon discharge.

In-Patient Acute Rehabilitation

Patients are admitted to the acute In-Patient level of care once they are medically
stable and ready to begin an intensive therapy program. Many patients can be transferred
to Marlton Rehabilitation Hospital as early as the second post-operative day.

Out-Patient Rehabilitation

This level of care is designed for patients who do not require the intensity of an In-
Patient program, or for those who are completing their functional goals established
during an In-Patient program. Therapy is typically provided one to five times per
week, based on individual need.

Accessing Care

For admissions information about our rehabilitation programs for amputees, please
call the Marlton Rehabilitation Hospital Admissions Department at 856-988-4106.