By Susan Christensen
Health and Research News Service
Book signings typically take place in bookstores.
But Hot Coffee native Dwight Owens wanted to share his life story with those who helped give the tale a happy ending.
That’s why a recent signing for Owens’ memoir “Still Standing” took place at Methodist Rehabilitation Center (MRC). Staff at the Jackson hospital helped Owens reclaim his independence after he was paralyzed in a car crash caused by a drunk driver.
The two silver vehicles parked outside Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Outpatient Therapy Center are, at first glance, nothing special.
The van could be mistaken for any average soccer mom’s grocery getter, while the sedan appears to be your garden variety Chevy Impala, one of the most popular cars on the road today.
But make no mistake, both are in fact packed with the latest advancements in specialized assistive technology that allow disabled persons to regain their independence.
On April 24, Dr. Carmela Osborne of Methodist Rehabilitation Center’s Pain and Spine Center in Flowood will present a free one-hour seminar about acupuncture therapy and its emerging role in pain management.
“It works very well for patients who might not be tolerant of certain medications or have not responded to other treatments,” said Osborne, a board-certified Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation physician who administers the acupuncture therapies.
By Susan Christensen
Health and Research News Service
It was only her first week of occupational therapy school, but Stephanie Hood had good reason to drop out and head home to Guntown.
She had just gotten word that her father, Steve, a 28–year veteran of the Mississippi Highway Patrol, had died in a car crash during a high speed chase.
Since he came to Methodist Rehabilitation Center, 13-year-old Kendarious Woods has seen speedy recovery from his spinal cord injury by an accidental gunshot wound.
But as is true for any teenager born into the information age where everything is faster than immediate, Woods can be impatient.
“I know I’m getting better,” he said during his recent stay at the Jackson hospital. “But it’s just taking too long! I know it’s only been three weeks, but I wish it could have been two days.”
By Susan Christensen
Health and Research News Service
The first time Adam Booker went to college, he mostly majored in having fun.
“I thought I was doing good by just getting up and going to class,” he said. “I’d roll out of bed, put on sweatpants, brush my teeth and just make it out the door. It was easy.”
Now, it takes 30 minutes and the help of a certified nurse’s aide to ready Booker for classes at Hinds Community College in Pearl. Yet the 25-year-old quadriplegic is a better student than he ever was as an able-bodied 18-year-old.
The medical device used to help 57-year-old Annie Johnson recover from a debilitating stroke blurs the lines between science and science fiction.
“When they were telling me about the Bioness, I said, ‘Oh, I’m going to be bionic,’” she said. “I thought it was space-age stuff.”
That’s the Bioness H200 Hand Rehabilitation System—a breakthrough medical device that has helped many patients just like her regain their independence.