(Katie Laur at Washington Park, Cincinnati OH - 2012 / Photo credit: Jonathan Goolsby / The Lonely House)

It’s not often that we get to care for living legends. Recently, we had the honor to do so when WNKU personality and bluegrass artist Katie Laur came to stay with us for a short-term rehab stay.

Laur is an unusually fine writer. You may have seen her Americana music blog, The KLog: Notes from the Old, Wood-Burning Computer, or her articles in the pages of Cincinnati Magazine. It is in the latter that she wrote a candid account of her convalescence experience at Marjorie P. Lee. She chose us on a recommendation from her friend — another former patient — and we’re honored that she did.

It’s not often that we have an opportunity to share with you, in our residents’ own words, what the care experience is like at Marjorie P. Lee. But Laur’s article provides excellent insight for caregivers and for people who may be in the process of deciding on a physical rehab provider.

Making you as comfortable as possible

No one would choose to need physical rehabilitation. Most of our short-term patients come to us following a hospital stay and are recovering from an injury, illness or elective surgery (like knee replacements and hip replacements). That’s why we work hard to provide a care environment that is conducive to your complete recovery.

Marjorie P. Lee, Laur wrote: “...had wide hallways, Oriental rugs, fresh flowers, and a grand piano in the reception room. Outside my window on the first floor, I could see trees and wooden furniture painted a crisp white, vines twining around pillars in a kind of winter sleep. I could hear birds singing in grey leaden skies.”

“They brought lunch to me on a tray,” she remembered, “and it was surprisingly good. Dessert was a frozen yogurt dish, which you might find at a really good restaurant. It was studded with chocolate chips, and chocolate shavings topped it.”

The only thing you should have to worry about during your stay is getting well — not whether or not the grounds are cheery, the interiors are bright, or the food is good. Those factors should be givens.

(At Englishtown Music Hall, New Jersey - 1977)

Our care providers are your biggest cheerleaders

We take great pride in making sure that our patients are cared for by staff members who are courteous, gentle and professional. Our Episcopal Retirement Services team members are chosen carefully. We look for people who believe strongly in our mission to provide dignified, person-centered care. And we’re always glad to hear when our patients make personal connections with us.

“For dinner I went to the dining room, pushing myself behind a walker, but I was supposed to be accompanied by a nurse, so Jay went with me,” Laur recalled. “He was quickly becoming one of my favorites, quick and efficient, with a wicked sense of humor. We became friends instantly.”

But, in any recovery experience, there’s a time for friendly banter and jokes, and a time to get down to the business of helping you get well. Convalescence isn’t easy. It can be physically taxing.

“My lazy days were coming to an end, though, soon to be replaced by physical therapy,” she wrote. “It started with two of us throwing a large inflated ball at one another. Wait a minute! I thought. This is much harder than it ought to be.”

“I couldn’t seem to balance myself, and my equilibrium went completely haywire when the therapist added a new wrinkle,” Laur continued. “I stood on a foam cushion and tossed the ball, and to add to the difficulty, I had to pick a small fabric-wrapped sack out of a box and throw it in another box while balancing on the cushion. When it was over I was exhausted.”

But she kept trying. And she got stronger, day by day, week by week. And all that work paid off. She’s back home.

Don’t take our word for it — ask our patients

Read Laur’s whole article at the link above. She doesn’t pull punches — she discusses the good points and the challenging points of her recovery experience.

But it’s rare that folks in Cincinnati who need a short-term physical rehab provider can get such clear insights, without personally knowing someone who has been through a similar experience.

It’s an excellent read, and one we’re happy to pass along to you. Be well.