WOODBRIDGE, Va. – Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center is bringing much needed comprehensive physical therapy treatment to the Woodbridge area as the healthcare facility introduces its new Sentara Therapy Center.

Standing as the first-of-its-kind therapy center in Northern Virginia; the new comprehensive rehabilitation center offers neurological rehabilitation, handles orthopedic injuries and conditions, spine therapy, occupational therapy, pre- and post-surgical rehab, balance therapy, manual physical therapy, plus Sentara’s S.A.F.E. Program geared toward fall prevention and education, all in an outpatient setting.

The overall goal of Sentara Therapy Center is to serve the rehabilitation needs of patients, their physicians and the community with comprehensive and quality care through personalized attention and our licensed, specially trained, dedicated staff.

“The Woodbridge area has experienced a lack of accessibility to comprehensive outpatient neurological rehabilitation. Often, survivors of stroke and other acquired brain injuries are required to travel long distances to find highly specialized physical, occupational and speech therapy services to best recover function and improve their quality of life,” said Sarah Sidar, MS, OTR/L, Team Coordinator, Sentara Therapy Center. “Due to this lack of accessibility, they unfortunately often go without. Finding outpatient therapy clinics who accept a variety of insurance for reimbursement has been a local challenge as well, and Sentara is here to provide those comprehensive services while accepting most insurance plans offered in Northern Virginia.”

The design of the center embraces an open gym concept as the team worked to create an environment that allows the therapist to improve their patient’s dynamic function.

Sidar explained that the space incudes open areas that allow their patients and therapists to work together on a variety of activities to improve balance, strength, and coordination.

The center also houses several private treatment rooms that allow for different treatment options: physical and occupational therapists who may want to work on manual therapies to improve joint function or reduce pain, or speech therapists who may need a quiet space to work on voice and language activities.

The Sentara team also offers treatment modalities such as e-stim and ultrasound to benefit patients.

The center utilizes lower impact exercise equipment, such as nu-step and upper body ergometer, in addition to equipment like exercise cable columns and the treadmill, to accommodate the needs of patients at any level of functioning, whether they are highly mobile or find it very difficult to get up and move around.  

The therapy programs also incorporate the use of tablet and computer based apps and websites, in addition to using online materials for exercise prescription.

“This allows our patients to carry over their therapeutic activities in the home and community. And most importantly, we have physical, occupational, and speech therapists who are highly skilled in assessing the needs of their patients and using the equipment to its’ fullest efficacy,” said Sidar.

The center has installed a two-way safety door to the bathroom for emergencies and state-of-the-art rehabilitation equipment throughout the facility; including electric hi-lo tables, ultrasound and electric stimulation units, treadmills with special speed control, and plentiful balance equipment.    

“We created an open reception area which improves engagement with our patients and to optimally organize our rehabilitation equipment in the gym to provide ease of movement.  This takes planning electrical solutions like our pull down extension cords,” said Alan Wilson, Sentara Healthcare, VP, Rehab Services, Rehab Services Administration.

One unique aspect of Sentara Therapy Centers is the patients’ ability to access online resources to carry-over their therapy programs at home.

The online tool, Medbridge, allows patients to log onto their program at home, and not only access their exercise program, but watch videos of those activities being done correctly. The occupational therapist is also trained in the use of Saebo products to aid in the recovery of function after neurological injuries that impact arm and hand function, and has incorporated this into practice.

Construction of the Sentara Therapy Center began May 24, 2018 with substantial completion on Aug. 17, 2018. Innovative Architecture & Interiors served as the architect while Scott Long served as the general contractor.

A ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of the new center took place on Jan. 16, 2019.

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AL-ASHA, Saudi Arabia – A new rehabilitation and long-term care facility is in the works from Al Moosa Medical Group as a part of the group’s mission to expand their influence across the region in an effort to address a need for focused rehabilitation and long-term care hospitals.

The design of the roughly 645,834-square-foot facility was recently unveiled by Malek Al Moosa, the CEO of Al Moosa Medical Group.

The 24-bed unit will offer an efficient and functional treatment facility, serving as a rehabilitative and long-term care oasis in the region to provide rehabilitation programs for sports injuries, bone injuries for adults and children, spinal injuries, and neural and brain injuries.

The project enables the medical group to establish a foundation for a universal model of care as well as granting the facility the ability to bend and change to meet the way particular units function, evolve, expand and contract. This new facility used virtual reality to design each major space as a means of design iteration and was designed within the virtual environment, allowing for real-time feedback.

HDR was selected as the architect; bringing together design and planning experts to create a master plan for the new facility for Al Moosa, which aims to reflect the highest level of international medical and architectural design.

The facility is designed to reduce energy consumption and preserve the surrounding environment, essentially laid out as a micro village, embracing the oasis surrounding landscape and encouraging healing through its connection to nature.

Key features include tiered green steps originating on the ground level rise to the rehab center containing the gym and pool, shading the parking below and offering healing and visual engagement for patients and staff as part of the rehabilitation regimen.

A gym and pool structure displays an expansive green roof.

An enclosed garden within the lobby, complemented by personalized gardens and rehabilitative green spaces at every inpatient floor of the bed tower, ensures access to nature, irrespective of mobility for everybody.

A shielding enclosure created by a seamless and continuous solar screen wraps both the taller inpatient bed tower as well as the lower rehab gym and pool.

A winding screen follows a rippling pattern and is designed to parametrically change from façade to façade to compensate for the solar heat gain of its specific location and function. Lastly, on the inpatient tower, the screen opens up to the multi-level hanging gardens at the corners of each triangular floor plate.

All spaces were designed to create the most positive experience for patients to minimize anxiety and stress. Patients and visitors will arrive through a five-star hotel-style lobby with abundant waiting areas and surrounding retail outlets, including a pharmacy and dining as well as a hanging garden and water features.

The double-height volume and transparent layout will allow visitors to navigate the facility with ease. Patient rooms are designed to improve the patient and visitor experience, allowing space for families and loved ones to visit and connect socially while providing views of the regional landscape.

Reports from HDR Architecture contributed to this story.

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PLAINVILLE, Kan. – Construction of the Rooks County Health Center (RCH) officially broke ground on Phase II, marking near completion of its locally accessible and state-of-the-art rehabilitation center on July 17.

With the help of Oklahoma City-based, Okla. Miller Architects and Commercial Builders of Hays, Kan. – RCH successfully completed Phase I of the hospital expansion in February 2017, marking the opening of the 2800-square-foot MRI/Nuclear Medicine addition.

The roughly 11,000-square-foot expansion will be home to the entirety of RCH’s rehabilitation services including Physical, Occupational, Speech Therapies, and Cardiac Rehab.

AJ Thomas, CEO of RCH, as well as the former Director of Rehabilitation Services at RCH, stated that the new facility will provide patients and the community access to advanced care with unique features. These features include a zero-entry therapy pool equipped with an adjustable floor with variable water depth and an indoor walking tracking. Thomas added that with this expansion, they will be able improve their ability to serve the growing demand for therapy services, allowing patients to save time and money on travel and lodging expenses.

Furthermore, the new MRI and Nuclear Medicine suite, RCH formed Doctors Without Delay, introducing the first regional walk-in clinic in addition to various proactive and preventative health screening initiatives offered monthly, including discounted lab screenings on the first Friday of every month and after hours mammogram screenings on the second Tuesday of each month.

RCH has been previously recognized by the state and country for their work, ranging from heightened positive outcomes for stroke and heart attack events, low readmission rates among discharged patients and sepsis education and treatment protocols. This fall, RCH will be honored in New York for its work in preventing sepsis and promoting sepsis awareness in the region, being the first critical access hospital in the nation to be given said honor.

The new rehabilitation center is being financially supported through private donations, area community foundations and charitable trusts including the Dane G. Hansen Foundation, William H. Andreson Charitable Trust, Pat Berkley Taylor Community Fund, Heartland Community Foundation and the Rooks County Health Center Auxiliary.

Full completion of the rehabilitation center is expected toward the end of 2019.

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