Comprehensive Care Propels Priscilla to Pre-Stroke Level of Living

GERMANSVILLE, Pa. — Priscilla McGinley was in her happy place. The skiing conditions at Blue Mountain Resort that January day were perfect. The active, then-71-year-old from Germansville was doing something she loved with a good friend and all was right with the world.

Until it wasn’t.

“I felt fine,” Priscilla said, “but my friend must have noticed something was happening. She suggested we sit when we got to the bottom of the hill. It took me awhile to realize that something was wrong.”

Tim, Priscilla’s husband, was skiing on another slope when Priscilla’s friend called him and told him to come quickly. By now, Priscilla was clearly in trouble. She had a headache and nausea, then became incoherent and confused. Another friend and ski patroller came on the scene and evaluated Priscilla.

“He told us that she needed to go immediately to the hospital,” Tim said. “I was scared out of my mind.”

Doctors in the emergency room determined Priscilla had a brain bleed resulting in a stroke. Priscilla lost strength in her legs, arms and hands. Even more alarming were her impaired cognitive functions. This was a high energy, independent woman accustomed to driving herself around, cooking and managing the household finances on the computer. Now, she struggled to think clearly. Words escaped her when she tried to speak.

After one week in an acute-care hospital, Priscilla was stable enough to transfer to a rehabilitation hospital. Tim said he knew immediately the best place for his wife of 38 years to achieve optimal recovery: Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Hospital.

“As a firefighter, I had seen other firefighters who had been hurt or accident victims go to Good Shepherd with excellent results,” he said. “The hospital where Priscilla was had its own rehabilitation unit, but I wanted Good Shepherd.”

As Lehigh County-area residents, Tim knew Good Shepherd’s reputation for excellence, but they had not personally experienced Good Shepherd’s brand-new hospital in Center Valley; it’s where Priscilla was admitted to the Stroke Rehabilitation Program.

“I was totally amazed by the place,” Tim said.

Priscilla’s private room was a spacious, light-filled haven providing comfort to her and to Tim during her three-week stay.

“It looked like you were entering a fancy hotel,” Priscilla recalled. “It was a very upbeat atmosphere.”

Priscilla began an intense program of inpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy.

“They worked on restoring her dexterity and strength in her hands,” Tim said.

To help improve her balance and strength in her legs, physical therapists used the Zero-G Gait & Balance System, an overhead track and harness system that safely allowed Priscilla to practice walking and balance while supporting her body weight.

“The equipment there is phenomenal,” Tim said. “So are the people.”

Priscilla’s upbeat spirit propelled her forward. When the time came to be discharged for outpatient therapy, once again, she and Tim chose Good Shepherd to maintain the continuum of care that achieved such promising results.

“There were facilities closer to where we lived, but Priscilla doesn’t do well with down time and I was looking for some place where she could get all three therapies,” Tim said. “Good Shepherd in Palmerton was recommended.”

Priscilla arrived using a rolling walker and with some lingering strength deficits in her arms and hands. But perhaps her biggest challenge was to restore as much of her cognitive function as possible.

“She couldn’t use her cell phone and needed help just putting on her makeup and combing her hair,” said Susan Lawfer, DPT, physical therapist and site manager at Palmerton. “Her speech was impacted as well, and she had basic oral and reading comprehension difficulties. She couldn’t even process basic instructions like going to the balance bar and lifting her leg.”

For the next 10 months, Tim drove his wife to Palmerton for therapy three times a week.

“She was always motivated,” Susan said. “And as difficult as it was, she was always positive, never negative or depressed. And Tim was just remarkable. He had a lot of patience and gave her wonderful support.”

The drive that had served Priscilla well her entire life never left her. It was there 24 years ago when she fought and triumphed over breast cancer, and it was there in her determination to get back to her pre-stroke level of activity. Priscilla achieved a major milestone in her recovery when she was cleared to start driving again. Not long after, she was discharged from all her therapies. She is now getting back to her activities of daily living: self-care, working on the computer, texting on her phone, cooking and other household chores.

Tim and Priscilla credit Good Shepherd with her remarkable recovery.

“The care that they gave her was incredible,” Tim said. “Good Shepherd is without a doubt just great.”

Priscilla still finds it difficult sometimes to find the right words when speaking, but that doesn’t hold her back. She hopes to ski again. She and Tim have two trips planned to do just that in Colorado and Maine.

“My goal is to do more,” Priscilla said. “I’m 72, but I feel like I’m 32!”