Spring 2017 Can Do!

CAN DO!

NEWS FROM MAGEE REHABILITATION HOSPITAL SPRING 2017

GOLDEN GIRL: FORMER PATIENT

MICHELLE KONKOLY Wins Gold at the Paralympics Meet Kentucky!

Magee’s Facility Dog is Teaching Our Patients New Tricks Community Programs: Q&A with Leon Harris, Rugby Player and ThinkFirst Speaker The Beerley Family Gives Back with “Moose’s Fund”

MAGEE REHABILITATION HOSPITAL

Table of Contents CAN DO! SPRING 2017

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Marissa M. Matteo Public Relations & Social Media Manager 1513 Race Street Philadelphia, PA 19102-1177 Phone 215-587-3363 MMatteo@MageeRehab.org MageeRehab.org Please write to us at the address above or call if you wish to have your name removed from the list to receive CanDo! or future fundraising requests to support Magee Rehabilitation Hospital.

Magee Rehabilitation Hospital complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, marital status, ancestry, citizenship, military or veteran status, genetic information, and any other characteristic protected from discrimination by federal, state, or local laws.

Magee Rehabilitation Hospital cumple con las leyes federales de derechos civiles aplicables y no discrimina por raza, credo, color, origen nacional, edad, discapacidad física o mental, sexo, orientación sexual, identidad de género, religión, estado civil, ascendencia, ciudadanía , Estado militar o veterano, información genética y cualquier otra característica protegida de discriminación por leyes federales, estatales o locales.

Magee 康复医院符合适用的联邦民权法律,

不会根据种族,信仰,肤色,国籍,年龄,身体或 精神残疾,性别,性取向,性别认同,宗教信仰, 婚姻状况,祖籍,公民身份进行歧视军事或退 伍军人身份,基因信息和任何其他特点,不受 联邦,州或当地法律的歧视.

On the cover: Michelle Konkoly (Photo by Dolfin Swimwear of Elite Sportswear.)

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Checking in … with Siona Zellis and Darren Rogers Happening at Magee: Events Corner, Magee Highlights, New Lobby and Patient Art Exhibit, The Creative Therapy Center and Healing Gardens Opens in May

Golden Girl: Former Patient Michelle Konkoly Wins Gold at the Paralympics The Check-Up with Dr. Fried

Meet Kentucky! Magee’s Facility Dog is Teaching Our Patients New Tricks Volunteer Spotlight: Barbara Grady Community Programs: Leon Harris, Rugby Player and ThinkFirst Speaker Research: What’s New at Magee and the Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley Givers Corner: The Beerley Family Gives Back with “Moose’s Fund”

A LETTER FROM OUR PRESIDENT AND CEO JACK A. CARROLL

To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.

— Winston Churchill

Over the past ten years that I have been a part of Magee, I have shared with you, our loyal supporters, a continuous stream of changes through which Magee has progressed to fulfill the need for continuous quality improvement.

Those changes have included facilities, equipment, and people within both our inpatient and outpatient sites.

Those changes, in the right combinations, have improved the breadth and scope of our services and thereby improved outcomes to meet the needs of those that we have had the privilege to serve. So many of you have been a very real part of those change processes, whether it was as a volunteer, someone donating their time on the patient advisory council, through generous philanthropic support, or through countless other time and talent contributions of your special expertise that gave us insight that we did not have on our own.

If you have been by the hospital within the past year, change is still everywhere. Supporters of the Creative Therapy Center and Healing Gardens will be pleased to know we are on schedule for a spring opening of that extraordinary rooftop facility, the completion of which would not have been possible without so many financial supporters. We have redesigned the lobby to be even more attractive and functional than it was previously. The lobby elevators are being rebuilt so they actually go from the lobby to the 6th floor—long overdue! The next “big hairy audacious projects” entail moving the offices of our administrative support services groups just up the street to make space for the transformation of Magee to all private patient rooms.

Think of this project as comparable to an all-suites hotel in design and amenities, coupled with state-ofthe-art clinical bedside equipment.

Now that level of change has people asking, “How are you going to do that?” Hey, this is “Can Do!” Like people, organizations have to take calculated, innovative risks to keep growing, and in this case, to maintain the mission. Magee’s mission is worth maintaining! This is yet another change that, even if temporarily inconvenient for some, will be welcomed.

Every member of Team Magee has the mutual purpose to give those we care for what they have asked for and expect us to deliver—uncompromising care in private rooms. I am positive that Team Magee won’t drop a beat in patient services during our metamorphosis. The renovations will be phased area by area so that care is never compromised.

So in reflecting upon the Churchill quote above, we may not be perfect yet, but we sure are changing enough to get there one day!

Come see the Creative Therapy Center and Healing Gardens this spring. We could not have done it without you.

Sincerely,

Jack A. Carroll, PhD, MHA

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Every now and then, a former patient drops us a line. Recently we heard from Siona Zellis and Darren Rogers.

CHECKING IN WITH…

Siona Zellis

At just 23 years old, Siona Zellis has endured more than a lifetime’s worth of surgeries, doctor visits, and therapy sessions. But a life-changing accident four years ago also helped her discover her career.

In fall 2012, Siona moved to Brooklyn, NY from her parents’ home in Bucks County, PA. She had her own apartment, worked as an assistant in a preschool during the day, and took college courses at night. It was a full, busy, and independent life. One night that January, she was talking with a friend outside her apartment. Two cars crashed in an intersection, and one slammed into Siona as she stood on the sidewalk. The impact caused a severe degloving injury to her right leg.

“It’s almost like a bad burn because of the skin and tissue loss,” Siona says. “There were doctors who thought I might be happier if I elected to amputate.”

Siona had nine surgeries at three different hospitals before arriving at Magee.

When she got to rehab, Siona was hurting both physically and emotionally.

Bedridden for weeks and unable to take care of herself, she felt incredibly vulnerable.

“I had just become an adult and then I lost all my independence,” Siona recalls.

“I had a job and was going to college on my own, and this just felt like going backwards.”

But one day in the therapy gym, Siona describes an awakening.

“I remember thinking, ‘Rehab is my life now.’ Even though I didn’t ask for it, it’s my responsibility to try to get better,” Siona says. “I knew I wouldn’t get my life back if I didn’t work for it.”

As Siona began to reach goals in rehab, she enjoyed therapy more and more.

“Being at Magee was so liberating even though I was still so impaired,” Siona recalls. She especially liked occupational therapy, because it allowed her to get back to the things she enjoyed. She likes cooking, so she worked on meal prep with crutches.

“Even if you have people who can do these things for you, just knowing you can do them is healing in itself,” Siona says.

After about a month, Siona transitioned to outpatient therapy at Magee Oxford Valley, close to her parents’ home. She’s had a number of skin graft surgeries since 2013 and has returned to Oxford Valley after all of them. Siona cannot drive with her right foot, so she went through driving rehab and had her parents’ car adapted with a left-foot accelerator.

“Driving really gave me my life back,” Siona says. “I was determined to make life as normal as possible.”

She moved back to New York in the fall of 2013, driving herself back and forth to Pennsylvania for wound care. The preschool where she worked had held her job for her.

It wasn’t until 2015, at almost 21 years old, that she was ready to try college again.

But now Siona knew for sure what she wanted to do with her life. She enrolled in an Occupational Therapy Assistant program at Eastwick College.

“I fell in love with OT while I was at Magee because it’s all about engaging in what we enjoy and what’s meaningful to us,” Siona says. “For therapists, nothing is impossible.”

Her injured right leg had gotten a lot more stable. She was working days and driving almost an hour to school on nights and weekends. Then, just a month into her program in February 2015, Siona slipped on ice and shattered her left, ‘good’ ankle. She couldn’t believe it.

“I just started school again, and this happens,” Siona shakes her head. Three surgeries on her left ankle would follow.

“I kept asking my mom, ‘How am I going to stay in school with all of this going on?’

She just said ‘Keep studying. We’ll figure it out.’”

Siona with her dad after her most recent surgery

“I fell in love with OT while I was at Magee because it’s all about engaging in what we enjoy and what’s meaningful to us,” Siona says. “For therapists, nothing is impossible.”

Siona at her clinical rotation in Brooklyn, NY 4

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CHECKING IN WITH…

Darren Rogers Siona being inducted into the National Honor Society at her college

Siona’s mom drove her to every class while she was in a wheelchair. With help from family and her passion for therapy, Siona thrived.

“I loved the subject matter so much that it drove me to work harder,” Siona says.

She graduated in December 2016 with a 4.0 GPA and received her class’ merit award of excellence. She was also asked to speak at the ceremony.

Siona recorded her commencement address on video. She was in the hospital on graduation day. Multiple skin grafts to her right leg since her initial injury had not worked. She found a plastic surgeon at New York University who would take care of it once and for all. He performed a marathon 11-hour surgery, taking a piece of thick tissue from her thigh and moving it to her lower leg, disconnecting and reconnecting the blood supply.

“My leg is healthy now! It’s amazing,” Siona reports. “It doesn’t look perfect. It was deformed and still is. But the whole rehab attitude is about finding your new normal. This is mine.” It was her 14th and final surgery to date.

This January, Siona passed her OTA boards. She wants to get stronger to manage the physical demands of her new career. Once that happens, she’ll start looking for jobs.

“To anyone going through something like this, I would just say: your story has changed, but you’re going to write a new one.”

For 52-year-old Darren Rogers, life has had its share of tough times, but he gets by with a little help from his friends.

While walking to work one evening in November 2011, Darren was attacked by two men in the Society Hill section of Philadelphia. They brutally beat him, shot him, and ran off with his backpack. His wallet was still in his jacket.

“It was totally random,” Darren says.

His attackers left him for dead.

Darren remembers waking up in a hospital bed three days later. He sustained both a spinal cord injury and a traumatic brain injury.

Looking for some way to help, the Society Hill Civic Association set up a reward fund to catch Darren’s attackers. A group of 84 neighbors raised $17,500 for anyone with information that would lead to an arrest in the case.

While his neighbors worked, so did Darren, battling back from several operations to save his life and then six weeks of inpatient therapy at Magee.

Darren transitioned to outpatient therapy and then the Wellness program at Magee Riverfront.

Today, he attends the Wellness program on a scholarship, faithfully coming in to work out on the weight machines.

“Darren is a hard worker and a big sports fan,” Wellness Coordinator Ian Crosby says. “You’ll often find him glued to the latest news on SportsCenter in between his sets.”

He lives at a nursing home in Plymouth Meeting, PA and is often visited by his aunt who lives nearby.

“My family has helped a great deal,” Darren says.

The two suspects in Darren’s attack were arrested for a similar crime. One has since died and the other is in prison for life. Because there was not enough evidence to prosecute Darren’s case, the reward money was returned to his neighbors. They turned the money over to the Darren Rogers Fund, to support his lifelong care.

“It’s the people who believe in you who help you the most,” Darren says.

Magee awarded Darren a scholarship to its Health and Wellness Center, thanks to funding through a Craig H. Neilsen Foundation Project Grant.

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Alan Milberg and Jerry Segal

EVENTS CORNER For more information on Magee events, contact 215-587-3090 or Giving@MageeRehab.org.

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John Spagnola, Dr. Jack Carroll, Chris Cashman, and Dr. Guy Fried

Art Therapist Julie Nolan and Rio Smith

THE JERRY SEGAL CLASSIC The 27th Jerry Segal Golf Classic raised an impressive $700,000 for Magee patients on Friday, September 23, 2016. As the region’s largest one-day golf outing, the Segal Classic has raised more than $15 million over the past 27 years, serving 31,000 patients, providing 70,000 family meals and making a world of difference for Magee patients and families. At the event, attendees helped to Fund a Need by collectively donating $50,000 to help fund a Vector system (see page 7.) Save the date for the 28th Jerry Segal Golf Classic on Friday, September 15, 2017.

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ART HEALS It’s a simple statement, but for patients at Magee, art does indeed heal by helping patients achieve their therapy goals. Magee’s Art Therapy Program was celebrated at the 5th Art Heals on October 6, 2016 at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts.

Patient created artwork was on display in the gallery and the Daren Dieter Excellence in Art Award was presented to former Magee patients Pat Kelleher and Rio Smith.

More than $11,000 was raised that night to support Art Therapy at Magee to continue to help patients like Pat and Rio.

ATF & MAGEE GOLF OUTING The 6th Adam Taliaferro Foundation & Magee Rehabilitation Golf Outing enjoyed a successful day with great golf and a lively auction.

The event raised more than $48,000 for the Adam Taliaferro Foundation and Magee. Save the date for the 7th Taliaferro & Magee Golf Outing on Monday, October 16, 2017 at Green Valley Country Club.

Adam Taliaferro

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HUMANITARIAN AWARD DINNER Christopher Cashman, long time Magee supporter, was honored at the 29th Annual Humanitarian Award Dinner on Tuesday, November 15, 2016 at The Logan. The event raised $180,000 for Magee’s Creative Therapy Center and Healing Gardens project on the 6th floor rooftop. Save the date for the 30th Annual Humanitarian Award Dinner on Tuesday, November 14, 2017 at The Logan Hotel.

MAGEE HIGHLIGHTS • Left to right: Mike Mamula, Gina Gannon, Geno Vento, Laura Bittner, Dr. Guy Fried

NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS Support Magee patients at the 17th Annual Night of Champions event on Friday, May 5, 2017! Night of Champions raises money for Magee’s patient and community programs such as wheelchair sports (basketball, tennis, rugby, and racing), art therapy, horticultural therapy, recreational therapy, facility dog program, patient resource center, peer mentor program, pastoral care, and ThinkFirst injury prevention for kids and youth. These programs are only possible because of support from friends like you.

• Team Magee at the Rothman 8K

THE VECTOR: SO NICE, WE BUILT IT TWICE Have you heard about the Vector? Magee installed a Vector in its General Rehab unit. That was a pretty big deal. Well, we liked it so much, we installed another one in the Spinal Cord Injury unit. The Vector provides the most advanced rehabilitation therapy to patients to engage in over-ground gait training with greater movement ranges possible than with traditional rehabilitation therapies. The Vector allows patients to stand, walk, and even climb stairs all without the fear of falling. Patients have even rollerbladed with the Vector. While this sounds fun (and it is), these activities also help patients recover from injuries and illnesses. The new Vector on the SCI Unit will provide this fun, and very awesome, therapy to patients.

The new Vector on Magee’s SCI unit was made possible through generous funding support from the Friends of Jerry Segal, the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation, and The Scholler Foundation.

PHILADELPHIA MARATHON/ ROTHMAN 8K Magee was an official charity partner of the 2016 Philadelphia Marathon with participants in the Philadelphia half and full marathon and Rothman 8K. Funds raised support Magee’s wheelchair sports programs. If you’re interested in participating with Team Magee in the 2017 Philadelphia Marathon (half or full) or Rothman 8K, save the date for November 18-19, 2017.

Physical Therapist Rochelle Gibney works with a patient on the SCI Unit Vector

Left to right: Florent Abaziou, Jim Lithgow, and Jackie Lithgow

GOLF “FORE” JACKIE The 4th Annual Golf “Fore” Jackie golf outing will be held on Sunday, May 28 in Dillsburg, PA. Former Magee patient Jackie Lithgow, his family, and friends organize the outing and donate all the proceeds to Magee. Last year’s golf outing raised more than $16,000 for Magee traumatic brain injury patients.

Mary Schmidt Read with her dance partner Elliott Ledford

MARY SCHMIDT READ DANCES WITH THE STARS SCI Program Director Mary Schmidt Read represented The Adam Taliaferro Foundation at this year’s Gloucester County Dancing with the Stars. Mary waltzed, merengued, and jitterbugged her way through three rounds of competition to raise more than $22,000 for the Taliaferro Foundation and Magee.

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Magee Celebrates New Lobby and Patient Art Exhibit On February 10, a crowd gathered in the lobby at Magee to see the beautiful artwork created by former Magee patient Dr. James George that put the finishing touches on the latest upgrades to the hospital. Bright, colorful, and awesome are just some of the ways people have described this exhibit.

Dr. George discovered his appreciation of art and love of painting many years before he became a patient at Magee. As a very busy doctor who specialized in emergency medicine, it offered him a way to relax and escape the busy work schedule he kept. Little did he know that art would play an even bigger part in his life after a spinal cord injury changed everything.

Dr. George fell in his home last year, and suddenly he was headed to the emergency room where he had spent countless hours as a doctor. When asked what it was like to go from being the doctor in charge of care to being the patient needing care, he smiled and said, “Once I fired myself from my own care team and let them do their job, things got a lot better.”

When ready to move to a rehabilitation hospital, he found a new home on the 5th floor at Magee, ultimately leaving six months later with the title of “Mayor.” Early in his stay at Magee, he met Art Therapist Julie Nolan and quickly became a fan. With his dominant, right hand affected, he wasn’t sure if making art would still be a part of his life, but after experimenting with his left hand, he quickly found that he could still make colorful and bold works of art, a style of painting he loved.

Julie really enjoyed working with Dr. George, and the volume of art he was creating helped fill a beautiful space in the newly renovated lobby.

“The energetic and vibrant nature of his artwork is a reflection of Dr. George’s passion for life and the positive impact he has on those around him,” Julie says. “He was happy to share his art with others, and the lobby is a perfect place to show off what’s possible for all of our patients.”

“I am thrilled to be able to display my artwork at Magee,” Dr. George says. “I hope that other patients will see it and know that anything is possible, if you want it to be. I am grateful to Julie, the entire Magee staff, and everyone who helps to make the art therapy program possible.” He concluded his remarks at the event saying, “I hope this is just the beginning of patients’ art gracing the halls of Magee!”

If you are visiting Magee, or happen to be nearby in Center City, please stop by and enjoy this beautiful display of what’s truly possible when you BELIEVE!

Art Therapist Julie Nolan with Dr. Jim George at the dedication of his gallery in Magee’s lobby. The new lobby is complimented by 13 works of art by Dr. George, created in art therapy sessions during his inpatient stay.

The Art Therapy Program at Magee is generously supported

by The Dolfinger-McMahon Foundation, The Drumcliff Foundation, The Gray Charitable Trust, The Hassel Foundation, The Hess Foundation, and individual donors.

Magee staff applauds Dr. George at the dedication of his gallery in Magee’s lobby.

CAN DO! SPRING 2017

Join us for the Creative Therapy Center and Healing Gardens

Wednesday, May 17, 2017 12–1pm

TO RSVP, contact HealingGarden@MageeRehab.org or 215-587-3090.

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After her injury, there were days when Michelle Konkoly wondered if she would ever stand again.

Just five years later, she stood on top of the podium at the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Golden Girl: Former Patient

MICHELLE KONKOLY Wins Gold at the Paralympics In January 2011, Michelle was a freshman at Georgetown University. As a Division 1 swimmer and pre-med student, she never expected she’d spend her spring semester in a hospital bed. One night, while trying to open her dorm room window, she slipped and fell five stories to the ground. The fall left her with countless broken bones, a shattered L2 vertebra, and a damaged spinal cord. She endured three surgeries before coming to Magee. For another three months, she was non-weightbearing on her right foot while waiting for her broken heel bone to repair. For a D1 athlete, that was especially tough.

“Everyone was optimistic about me walking again,” Michelle says. “But swimming was a whole different story. It was a very abstract idea for me; I wasn’t ready to focus on that during rehab.”

Michelle did re-learn how to walk, after a five-week inpatient stay, Day Rehab, and outpatient therapy at Magee. But she was left with permanent weakness in her legs. She returned to classes and swimming at Georgetown, but she was never again quite competitive against other collegiate swimmers. For an entire year, Michelle placed last in every practice and competition with the Georgetown swim team.

“Honestly, I was starting to get used to always being last,” Michelle says. That’s when someone suggested she try Para Swimming.

Before her accident, Michelle had never even heard of the Paralympic Games. They are just like the Olympic Games, but all the athletes have a permanent disability. They are held every two years, summer and winter, in the same facilities as the Olympics, and the competitors train just as hard. Athletes are classified by the severity of their disability, to be sure there’s an even playing field. For instance, in swimming, there are 10 categories for 10

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physical impairments: S1 is the most severe disability while S10 is the least. Michelle competes in the S9 category; most of her competitors are amputees above the knee or below the elbow.

Just one month after learning that Para Swimming existed, Michelle was competing in trials for the 2012 Paralympic Games.

She didn’t make it. The loss was crushing, but she had gained a lot, too.

“For the past year, my injury had been the most important thing about me. It was all anyone really wanted to talk about,” Michelle says. “Suddenly, I found myself in a situation where my disability was just a small aspect of my larger identity as an athlete. My mild limp actually made me fit in, rather than stand out. I was with athletes who were dealing with the everyday challenges of disabilities while also training to become the best in the world.”

Over the next couple years, Michelle’s focus was on school.

A pre-med program at a prestigious university is enough to keep anyone busy. Then in 2014, she got the urge to try another Para Swimming meet. In her first competition back, Michelle made the national team. Her peers encouraged her to stick with it.

“Everyone was saying, ‘You have to go to Rio! We need you there,’” Michelle recalls. “All I could think was, ‘Guys, I have midterms! This was not in my plan.’”

After graduation in December 2014, Michelle decided to move to Florida to train full-time. She figured she’d go to one World Championships then start med school at Thomas Jefferson University that fall. Fate had other plans. Michelle and her coach clicked, and she was swimming record-setting times. She decided to defer med school and go for the gold in Rio 2016.

“In the Paralympic world, you can accelerate more quickly because the field is smaller, but nothing is a given,” Michelle says.

For the next year and a half, Michelle worked out eight times a week with her coach Paul Yetter, who had previously worked with the 2008 U.S. Women’s Olympic team. The hard work paid off. At the Paralympic trials in June 2016, Michelle smashed a world record twice and swam personal bests in all of her events. She left Trials ranked No. 1 in the world for the 50m and 100m freestyle events in the S9 class.

Michelle became a Paralympian and an official member of Team USA. “After my great swims at Trials, I knew I had fast times in me,” Michelle says. “My biggest concern was whether I’d be able to repeat those performances under the stress of my first Paralympic Games.”

Team USA works with a sports psychologist who helped Michelle overcome a plateau she had reached going into Rio. She learned recovery was just as important as her rigorous workouts in the pool. For every three hours of training, she’d spend two hours recovering, focusing on the quality of the work rather than the quantity. It’s a lesson she first learned in rehab.

“I didn’t want to leave the therapy gym until I was falling over. I’d work for eight hours straight if you let me,” Michelle says.

She had to rewire that thought process.

In Rio, Michelle’s physical and mental preparation, along with the support of her family and teammates, came together for the meet of a lifetime.

Michelle won four medals: gold in the 50m and 100m freestyle, silver in the 4x100m freestyle relay, and bronze in the 4x100m medley relay.

Michelle with a Magee patient and one of her gold medals.

“Rio was everything I could have asked for and more. It was truly an adventure unlike any other,” Michelle says.

The magnitude of this journey—from hospital bed to Paralympic podium—is not lost on Michelle.

“It hits me when people say it all at once like that,” Michelle says. “It gives me the confidence that no matter what I face the rest of my life, I can handle it.”

Back stateside, Michelle has spent her days since the Games travelling for public speaking engagements, enjoying time with her dog, Ollie, and yes, swimming.

This fall, she visited the White House with the Olympic and Paralympic teams and even stopped by Magee to show her medals to the patients.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t advanced so quickly with the care I got at Magee.

It was absolutely top of the line,” Michelle says.

In August, she will be moving to Philadelphia to start medical school at Jefferson.

“After spending so much time in hospitals after I got hurt, I saw how amazing medicine was. My doctors literally pieced me back together. That motivated me on this path,” Michelle says. She hopes to one day work with kids with disabilities.

In 2020, Michelle will be 28 years old and about halfway through med school. People often ask if she sees herself going for the gold again at the next Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

She hasn’t ruled it out.

“I go back and forth,” Michelle says with a sigh.

“There’s actually a pool at Jeff. You never know.”

TOP AND RIGHT: PHOTO BY DOLFIN SWIMWEAR OF ELITE SPORTSWEAR

THE CHECK-UP WITH DR. FRIED Each issue, we like to introduce you to someone from Team Magee. Today, meet Dr. Guy Fried, Chief Medical Officer of Magee Rehabilitation Hospital.

The Can Do! editor sat down with Dr. Fried to discuss the experiences that led him to Magee, his role as CMO, and his thoughts on some of the most pressing issues in medicine today.

Can Do! (CD): Tell us a little about yourself and your background.

Dr. Guy Fried (GF): I graduated from Hofstra University in 1981 with a BA in psychology and additional studies in chemistry, biology, and economics. After graduation, I attended Yale Medical School where I received my MD degree in 1985. In addition to my work at Magee, I am a Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University.

CD: Why did you choose to practice at Magee?

GF: I came to Magee as a Yale medical student in 1983. I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I was extremely impressed with Magee, so much so that I was willing to move from Connecticut to Philadelphia. It worked out and the rest is history; I never left. At Magee, I found a human side to medicine. It was extremely people-oriented and still is.

Everything that was done was practical and for a reason, and the reason was that it benefited the patient’s quality of life.

That, to me, encapsulated my concept of medicine and how I wanted to approach it.

CD: What are some of your responsibilities as Chief Medical Officer?

GF: In addition to taking care of patients myself, which not all CMO’s do, I help to ensure that the quality of work of my physician colleagues within the hospital environment is the best possible rehabilitative medical care available. So I also work diligently with all of the other disciplines to make sure that Magee is always striving to provide top notch and cutting edge medical care for our patients.

CD: What is your area of expertise? Is there anything you’re working on now that you’re especially excited about?

GF: I am board certified in spinal cord injury, brain injury, pain management, electrodiagnostic management, and independent medical evaluations. These certifications allow me to understand medicine from many different viewpoints. The most exciting thing about my work is working with all of our teams, like nursing and therapy, to reduce wounds, transfers

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out, UTIs, complications with catastrophic injuries, etc.

That collaborative energy, to me, embodies the spirit of rehab. When many different disciplines are to trying to solve a problem, anything can be solved. As we find the solutions, we like to share them with our peers in the industry at conferences, to get feedback and compete with ourselves to do even better.

CD: What do you think is a pressing issue in physical medicine and rehabilitation today?

GF: The most pressing issue in PM&R today is to document what we are doing and look into ways to do things differently, incorporating the latest approaches like telemedicine. As insurance dollars get tighter and tighter, there is going to be more of a squeeze to give patients less and less, and we don’t want that. Rehab may never have the ‘glamour’ of acute care, but from my standpoint, it’s even more important because it really touches lives.

For this reason, spending our donor dollars wisely and always looking to do things differently is so important. Over the years, donors have allowed Magee to buy equipment and offer resources to patients that no insurance company will pay for. In my mind, all of those therapies like art, horticulture, or recreation, are of critical value to our patients. Being open to new and different approaches to manage each individual patient, while also looking at the bigger picture of “population health” for those we serve with permanent disabilities, will be the new trends that we see in rehabilitation in the future.

Rehab has always been, and will continue to be, a team effort where together we maximize the outcomes of our patients. I am happy to be a part of that rehab team, and I want to thank everyone a million times over for their willingness to reach back and help someone else out.

Occupational Therapist Kirsten Ondich with a patient and Kentucky

MEET KENTUCKY! Magee’s Facility Dog is Teaching Our Patients New Tricks One of the most popular employees at Magee is just twoand-a-half years old. No, he’s not a Doogie Howser, MD wunderkind. He’s a Labrador and Golden Retriever mix named Kentucky, and Team Magee has been planning for his arrival since before he was even born!

Kentucky is a Facility Dog who works at Magee alongside occupational therapist Kirsten Ondich. Kentucky is the third member of Magee’s Facility Dog Program, following in the pawsteps of Ford, who started the program in 2012, and Joey, who joined in 2013 and works with occupational therapist Christina Rinehimer, primarily at Magee Riverfront.

Facility Dogs are carefully bred and expertly trained dogs that partner with a facilitator in a professional setting like Magee to assist patients with achieving their therapy goals. Facility Dogs Joey and Occupational work side-by-side with trained Therapist Christina Rinehimer professionals to engage patients in sessions designed to improve functional outcomes, stimulate healing and recovery, and provide comfort and unconditional love.

Kentucky’s Journey to Magee Three years ago, Kirsten was working as an occupational therapist on Magee’s 3rd floor General Rehab unit. She loved her job, but her busy schedule made her dream of owning a dog tough to realize.

“I’m a big animal lover,” Kirsten says. “But I had a dog growing up, so I know what a huge responsibility it is.”

Chats with her supervisor led to an idea. What if Kirsten applied for a Facility Dog? She knew Magee was looking to expand the program with a dog at the main hospital, and Facility Dogs must go to work with their owners, so the concern of having time to walk or care for her dog was mitigated, since they would always be together.

Kirsten talked with Joey’s partner Christina and realized this was something she was meant to do. In summer 2014, Kirsten applied to get a Facility Dog from Canine Companions for Independence (CCI), a non-profit organization with the mission to enhance the lives of people with disabilities by providing highly trained assistance dogs and ongoing support to ensure quality partnerships.

A phone interview led to an in-person interview. CCI needs to be sure candidates have the drive, resources, support, and aptitude to be an effective leader for a dog. In August 2015, Kirsten was told she had passed the screenings.

Then, she waited.

The CCI wait-list for dogs is long; it can take up to two years to be matched. During that time, Kirsten attended quarterly trainings at CCI’s facility in Medford, NY outside Long Island to prepare for her pup.

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Kirsten vividly remembers the afternoon in September 2016 when she got a call from a Long Island phone number on her cell: “We have a dog for you!”

Kirsten went back up to New York for two weeks of training with a group of dogs and their humans. It wasn’t until Day 3 that Kirsten and Kentucky were matched.

CCI takes many factors into account when matching dogs. For instance, Kirsten wanted a larger dog to be sure patients in wheelchairs could easily interact with him or her.

CCI breeds Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, and a cross of the two to be assistance dogs. Puppies spend their first 18 months with volunteer puppy raisers who provide basic obedience training, socialization, and care. The next sixnine months is designated for intensive, advanced training.

In an emotional graduation ceremony, Kentucky’s volunteer puppy raiser, a student at the University of Delaware, handed Kirsten his leash. Kirsten and Kentucky returned to her Center City apartment on a Saturday, and he had his very first day on the job that Monday, November 7, 2016.

Kentucky makes stretching fun.

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A FACILITY DOG

“I’m so glad you want to know more about how I spend my dog days at Magee! Here’s a peek.”

6:09 a.m.

RISE AND SHINE! I head outside for a potty break and then come back in for breakfast.

6:00 a.m.

MOM’S ALARM GOES OFF We snuggle for one snooze, then it’s time to get up.

7:00 a.m.

WALK TO WORK I love seeing all the people and hearing the sounds of the city.

9:00 a.m.

FIRST POWER NAP OF THE DAY I work very hard, so it’s important to rest, too.

10:30 a.m.

PLAY FETCH A patient is working on getting movement back in her right arm.

11:00 a.m.

GET BRUSHED While I’m being pampered, a patient is improving his motor skills.

12:00 p.m.

LUNCH TIME Mom takes me out for a walk around Magee.

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A Dog’s Life at Magee Understandably, Kentucky turns a lot of heads as he walks through the halls of the hospital.

“Patients just get so excited to see him!

They want to hug him and pet him and love him,” Kirsten says.

For a working dog, all that attention can be a bit distracting. “Licking has been a challenge!” Kirsten says.

To help keep Kentucky focused, Kirsten gave Team Magee clear instructions for how to interact with him in his first few months at work. Christina and Joey also helped by showing Kirsten and Kentucky some of their favorite activities. Then, it was time to set up co-treatment sessions with the other therapies at Magee, like Speech, Physical, and even Respiratory Therapy. One patient on a ventilator greatly improved his power wheelchair steering after sessions with Kentucky, because he wanted to be sure not to hit him. His voicing commands also improved.

“I know Kentucky’s strengths and I can build on them,” Kirsten says. “But we still have to practice at home.”

Facility Dogs work side-by-side with trained professionals to engage patients in sessions designed to improve functional outcomes, stimulate healing and recovery, and provide comfort and unconditional love.

“A Facility Dog… is that like a Therapy Dog?” While many health care facilities may have animals visit with patients, these animals are generally handled by volunteers and are not used to help patients meet specific, planned treatment goals.

Through Magee’s Facility Dog program, the treatment providers are health and human service professionals, not volunteers. Patients’ sessions with Kentucky, who is highly trained and educated, are goal-directed, and functional outcomes are measured, recorded, and documented. Kentucky knows more than 40 commands, all of which can be utilized during therapy.

Kentucky can also perform the commands of a one-on-one Service Dog, such as retrieving items from the floor and pressing the push-plate to open accessible doors. Working with Kentucky educates patients on the potential benefits of applying for a Service Dog after they are discharged.

‘Man’s Best Friend’ Needs Friends Like You Despite the many benefits of animalassisted therapy, insurance does not support therapy provided with a Facility Dog. The Facility Dog Program at Magee is supported by generous donors.

The Facility Dog Program at Magee is generously supported by The Casey Feldman Foundation, Katie’s Fund, The Samuel P. Mandell Foundation, The Ruth Widmer Fund, the Anapol Weiss Foundation, and individual donors.

1:00 p.m.

PATIENT BRUSHES MY TEETH No one wants a stinky kiss!

3:00 p.m.

TREAT PUZZLES I love a good brain teaser, especially when there’s a snack involved.

4:00 p.m.

QUITTIN’ TIME The day’s therapy sessions are over. But mom still has some work to do on her computer.

4:30 p.m.

BUG MOM TO FINISH WRITING HER NOTES FOR THE DAY. Let’s go home for dinner!

6:00 p.m.

DINNER IS SERVED “Bone” appetit

2:30 p.m.

MENTAL BREAK There is a lot going on in the therapy gym. I like to rest in a dark, quiet spot.

8:30 p.m.

BED TIME Off to dream about what a fun day I’ll have tomorrow!

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COMMUNITY PROGRAMS SPOTLIGHT

Q&A

Leon Harris, Rugby Player and ThinkFirst Speaker Volunteer Spotlight:

Barbara Grady

Barbara Grady, a former data processor and business owner who is now retired, volunteers at Magee at least two days a week in the evenings, helping patients in the dining room during dinner.

“When a person says thank you to me, it’s like giving me a million dollars, because they don’t have to do that,” Barbara says. “I get my pleasure out of serving and helping, so when they say thank you to me, it is really rewarding.”

Barbara’s first visit to Magee was in the 1970’s when her mother was a patient recovering from a stroke. For a number of years, Barbara lived in North Carolina raising her family. She returned to Philadelphia in 2008. When looking for a place to volunteer, she remembered Magee and began volunteering in July 2009.

“Barbara has been a dedicated volunteer in the Dining Services Department,” says Thomas Rodriguez, Food Services Manager. “Her focus on service has resulted in a great experience for our patients and made her an invaluable part of the Dining Services team.”

“I have established a rapport with the kitchen staff,” Barbara says. “When I started, I was open to any location to volunteer, and the dining room staff just clicked with me. I have been here ever since.”

Thank you, Barbara, for your years of service!

To learn more about volunteering at Magee, visit MageeRehab.org/get-involved/volunteer.

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Keith Newerla (KN): Tell us how you were injured.

Leon (LH): I was injured on March 26, 2007. As I was coming home from work, I was a victim of a gunshot wound to the spine in an attempted robbery. As a result I am a C6 ASIA A complete.

KN: You have been living with your disability for some time now, what took you so long to get involved in wheelchair sports?

HAPPENINGS IN

Magee’s Wheelchair Sports Program

LH: I was always afraid of worsening my spinal cord injury if I played a sport.

Basketball Team Plays Halftime of Sixers Game

KN: Within the last year you decided to give rugby a try.

What has that experience been like?

LH: I never thought I would feel the rush of competition again, and it gives me that feeling. Wheelchair rugby is amazing; it’s intense, hard-hitting fun on wheels.

I enjoy being on the team. It’s almost like a second family.

On and off the court, everyone just meshes so well.

KN: Can you explain to our readers what the ThinkFirst program is?

LH: ThinkFirst is an injury prevention program. We hold assemblies at schools and community centers. We promote a culture of safety and talk with kids about how the decisions that they make today can affect them for the rest of their lives.

KN: What is your role within the ThinkFirst program?

LH: I am a VIP speaker for the ThinkFirst program which means I tell the story of how I became injured to the group. Although I did not directly cause my injury, my story helps kids see that guns are never the answer.

KN: What do you enjoy most about being part of the ThinkFirst program?

Summer Waterskiing Trip

LH: The biggest reward for me is knowing that I have opened the eyes of today’s youth. Not many people understand what we in the disabled community have gone through and continue to go through on a daily basis. The ThinkFirst program gives me a platform to explain that to people. Hopefully through my presentation, they will realize that life should not be taken for granted, and that what they decide to do doesn’t only just affect them, it affects many people, some of whom they don’t even know.

If you are interested in having a ThinkFirst program presented in your area or if you are interested in becoming a speaker in the ThinkFirst program, please contact Community Programs Coordinator Keith Newerla at 215-587-3412 or KNewerla@MageeRehab.org.

Magee’s First-ever Ski Trip

To learn more about Wheelchair Sports opportunities, contact Sports@MageeRehab.org.

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SPOTLIGHT ON RESEARCH: WHAT’S NEW AT MAGEE AND THE RSCICDV Magee Rehabilitation Hospital, together with Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, has served as the Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley (RSCICDV) for over 38 years. This is a federal designation from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR), a division of the Administration on Community Living. This competition is awarded every five years, and all Model Centers must reapply each cycle. The RSCICDV has done so and has been re-awarded each time since 1978.

The Model System of Care emphasizes three elements of service delivery: clinical care, dissemination, and research.

The clinical care element is fully met, and exceeded, by our comprehensive continuum of clinical care, from the emergency medicine available at Jefferson, all the way through to Magee’s Lifetime Follow Up System of Care.

Dissemination is fulfilled by staff from both Magee and Jefferson with all the publications and presentations that we produce annually, for both professional and consumer audiences. And the element of research is a full slate of projects, done both independently at our own Center, and in collaboration with other SCI Model Centers across the country.

The RSCICDV’s projected SCI Model System Research projects have been identified for this current cycle: October 2016 through September 2021. Along with the extensive data collection we do on all new persons incurring a traumatic spinal cord injury and engaged with our inpatient system of care, we are supporting the following studies:

In Fall 2016, Magee and TJUH, operating as the Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley, were once again awarded a five-year SCI Model Systems grant from NIDILRR, the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. The RSCICDV is one of only 14 such systems in the country and has held this distinction for more than 38 years.

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COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS 1. Identifying Upper Extremity Motor Capabilities Required to Perform Self-care and Fine Motor Tasks. With this project we hope to identify key actions critical to performing tasks independently which could help us to prioritize goals of activity-based exercise programs and facilitate patient clinical programs.

2. Stakeholder Perceptions and Clinical Assessment of Cardiometabolic Disease/Syndrome after Spinal Cord Injury. With this collaborative investigation, we hope to identify information from people with spinal cord injuries about their knowledge of the cardiometabolic disease (CMD) risk factors, and how it relates to them specifically. Individuals will be followed over two years to determine impact.

3. Interactive Telehealth and Biofeedback Sensor System for Pressure Ulcer Prevention after SCI. The goal of this collaborative project is to establish the efficacy of a sensor and feedback technology system for promoting effective pressure relief behaviors and reducing risk of pressure ulcer development among wheelchair users. This project includes the use of teaching modules and technology.

4. Characterizing the Experience of Spasticity after Spinal Cord Injury.

This survey modeled project aims to acquire and analyze patient selfreport data on the characteristics of spasticity they experience, and its influence on activities of daily living. This analysis should therefore lead to a discussion of approaches to effective spasticity management.

SITE-SPECIFIC PROJECTS 1. Zoledronic Acid (ZA) to Prevent Bone Loss after Acute SCI. This investigation utilizes a one-time infusion of ZA within the first three weeks post spinal cord injury, to attempt to decrease the amount of rapid bone loss that commonly occurs after a traumatic spinal cord injury. Subjects will be followed for a year after the infusion.

2. Predicting Neurological Recovery after Traumatic SCI. This project is tracking the natural neurologic recovery patterns following a traumatic spinal cord injury. Individuals are retested over the course of one year, to determine how the different severities of injury naturally evolve. It is hopeful that this knowledge will broaden our ability to prognosticate for patients and families in the future.

We at the RSCICDV are hopeful that these investigations may contribute to the body of knowledge supporting the lifelong care and quality of life for those with spinal cord injuries.

— Mary Schmidt Read, PT, DPT, MS Spinal Cord Injury Program Director & Research Coordinator

GIVERS CORNER:

The Beerley Family Gives Back with “Moose’s Fund”

George “Moose” Beerley was a patient for the first time at Magee in 2009 after a work injury that caused significant damage to his spinal cord, paralyzing him from the chest down. Over the next six years, he returned to Magee many times for care as an inpatient and an outpatient. During his extensive stays at Magee, Moose and his family would talk with patients and families and learned about the many challenges they faced upon discharge. At the time, none of them probably knew that a seed was being planted for the future.

Moose passed away in 2016, and his family wanted to do something at Magee to honor his memory. After months of planning and conversations, Moose’s Fund for Magee Patients was created and funded with a very generous gift from the Beerley family.

This fund will have a few primary goals. It will help patients with needs as they return home, including ramps, lifts, and other equipment. It also will help with outpatient therapy needs like transportation, extended therapy sessions, and wellness scholarships.

Lastly, it will help our adolescent population and hopefully develop a program for former patients to try golf, a game that Moose loved.

Team Magee with the Beerley family at the announcement of Moose’s Fund.

Moose at his daughter’s home in California toasting the birth of his grandson

This fall, Moose’s wife, Anne, and their children, Brent and Maggie, joined Magee staff in the 5th floor gym to celebrate Moose’s legacy and the start of the fund. It was a wonderful day, and Moose’s Fund for Magee Patients began to make a significant difference for patients right away.

Since the fall, Magee staff members have done their part to honor Moose’s legacy by providing help to several patients and families.

“It felt so good to be able to say, ‘Yes. We have a way to help you,’” says Sarah Myer, who along with her team of Case Managers is on the front line of helping patients and families prepare for discharge.

Rose Battiato, who manages Magee’s outpatient sites, has also found joy in being able to help when needed. “We love to see people thrive, and sometimes a little help enables them to do that. Thanks to Moose’s Fund, we can help people in many different ways,” Rose says. “When we see patients continuing toward their goals in the Wellness Center, we know Moose would be happy.”

We are grateful to the Beerley Family and promise to do our best to honor the legacy that Moose left behind.

To learn more about how you or your family can support Magee patients, please contact Mark Chilutti, Assistant Vice President of Development at 215-587-3226 or MChilutti@MageeRehab.org.

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MAGEE REHABILITATION HOSPITAL

1513 Race Street Philadelphia, PA 19102-1177 Phone: 215-587-3000 MageeRehab.org BELIEVE

Address Service Requested

Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Philadelphia, PA Permit No. 2269

DID YOU KNOW? Magee Rehabilitation Hospital was created thanks to a generous gift that Anna Magee left in her will?

We know, we know. Updating your will isn’t always at the top of your to-do list. But as everyone at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital knows, everything can change in an instant.

By planning ahead, you can help ensure our patients have access to the highest quality therapies, the latest technology, and cuttingedge programs and services. But most of all, your generosity will give patients what they need most: the ability to BELIEVE.

Here is some sample language to include Magee in your will: “I give, devise and bequeath to the Magee Rehabilitation Hospital Foundation, a charitable corporation existing under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the sum of ______ dollars (or ______% of my residuary estate), or (description of securities, property, etc.).”

For more information about the Anna Magee Society and planned giving, please contact the Development Department at 215-587-3090 or PlannedGiving@MageeRehab.org.