For many stroke survivors, rehabilitation is a very important part of the recovery process. Studies indicate that 60 percent of stroke survivors can benefit from aggressive rehabilitation intervention, with 80 percent of those treated through rehabilitation services returning to their homes, work, schools or active retirement.*
The effects of stroke may cause you to change, relearn or redefine how you live. Stroke rehabilitation is designed to help you adjust to these mental and physical challenges and return to independent living.
The Rehabilitation Institute of St. Louis offers specialized programs for stroke survivors. A neurologist or a physiatrist, a doctor specially trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation, directs each stroke rehabilitation program and is assisted by an experienced rehabilitation nursing and therapy staff.
The Stroke Program offers the following services / activities:
- Patient and Family Support Groups -
Discuss the challenges following stroke
- Peer Counseling -
Offers information and support to stroke survivors and their families
- Community Re-Integration Outings -
Multidisciplinary focus on the skills necessary to function in the community
- Activities of Daily Living Suittes (ADL) -
Offers patients the chance to practice real-world situations prior to returning home
- Partial Body Weight Supported Walking -
Allows the patient to participate in gait training in a comfortable and "fall free" environment
- Wheelchair Seating Clinic -
Seating and positioning specialists determine the type of wheelchair most appropriate for the patients’ individual needs
- State-of-the-Art Scopes and Strobes -
Used to evaluate vocal cord and swallow function
- Splinting and Casting Facilities -
For dystonia, positioning, or movement dysfunction
- Evidence-Based Aphasia Clinic -
To improve the client's ability to communicate for a higher quality of life, using principles of evidence-based practice
- Assistive Technology Lab -
Designed to assist with designing adaptive equipment for increasing independence with ADL's
- Occupational Performance Center (OPC) -
Staff work with the patients to introduce "work" in the early stages of rehabilitation. Day treatment and outpatient staff works with patients in developing structured work activity groups (SWAGS), which allow a client to simulate real life job activities in an atmosphere that mimics the actual work environment.
- Outpatient Services -
Assists patients in maximizing their functional recovery throughout the continuum of care
- VitalStim® and Experia -
Provides functional electrical stimulation and biofeedback to improve swallowing
- REO™ -
Robotic technology to improve arm movements following a stroke and other neurologic conditions
For more information about the Stroke Rehabilitation Program or to make a referral, please call 314.658.3900.
