Columbus Community Hospital | Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care

Guided Care. Dedicated Experts.

We are committed to helping you reach optimal recovery.

A cancer diagnosis can be traumatic, and so can life-saving treatments. Chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery can harm health and cause serious medical problems that interfere with daily function and well-being. Survivors are commonly plagued with symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, insomnia, memory loss, fear, anxiety and depression.

Columbus Community Hospital's Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care has been created to help survivors physically and emotionally heal from the side effects of treatment so they can recover more quickly and more completely than they would otherwise.

Since having nearly 25 clinicians at CCH receive cancer survivorship and rehabilitation certification in 2012, including three physicians, over 140 patients have experienced the benefits of our comprehensive, multidisciplinary cancer approach. That number includes people of all various cancer diagnoses, ages, and phases of their treatment after diagnosis.

Treatable symptoms in patients with cancer:

Weakness or fatigue
Difficulty dressing/bathing/reaching for things
Inability to complete work or household duties
Pain
Persistent swelling
Problems with memory or speech
Muscle weakness/paresis
Joint pain/stiffness
Impaired balance/dizziness
Difficulty walking
Difficulty swallowing
Change in appetite/significant weight change
Bowel/bladder problems
Shortness of breath
Changes in mood

Our news to cancer patients is that they don’t have to live with cancer-related impairments of their daily function and quality of life as the “new normal.” Every one of the patient-reported symptoms listed above can respond well to treatment interventions in our Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care, only available at CCH’s Rehabilitative Services.

Our cancer rehab patients at CCH over the last 5 years have experienced reductions in fatigue, pain and distress to significantly lower thresholds, according to our outcomes data gathered on pre- and post- treatment assessments.

A SELF REPORTED SCORE OF > OR = 4/10 ON ALL THREE VISUAL ANALOG SCALES INDICATES CLINICALLY SIGNFICANT, SYMPTOMATIC IMPAIRMENTS.

	PRE	POST
FATIGUE 0-10 SELF REPORT (AVG)	5.6	3.5
PAIN 0-10 SELF REPORT (AVG)	4.5	1.8	ALL THREE IMPROVED TO BELOW THE THRESHOLD
DISTRESS 0-10 SELF REPORT (AVG)	5.4	3.7

*n=16; 50% had PT, 30% had OT, 20% had ST, 25% had RD indicated; 81% had >1 Therapy for >1 impairment

“Before [cancer rehabilitation] at CCH, I couldn’t get myself off the couch. The therapists find things you can do. They create a program specifically for you. My energy level is much better.” ~ Tom L., prostate cancer survivor

“Therese and Megan created an individualized program for me. I really liked using the Interactive Metronome technology and think it helped make my thinking clearer again.” ~ Rae F., stage III colon cancer survivor

We offer a one-on-one consultation, free of charge, to help create a comprehensive approach to your cancer care plan.

To set up an appointment or for more information, please call Rehab Services at 402-562-3333.

Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care co-coordinators are Jill Jakub, MOTR/L, CLT, and Michell Ruskamp, MS, CCC-SLP, who work in collaboration with Heidi Smith, BSN, RN, Oncology Nurse Specialist of Columbus Community Hospital.

If you would like more information about Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care, please fill out this request form.

Support for Thrive Cancer Rehabilitation Care services and extensive clinician training in cancer rehab has come from the Columbus Community Hospital Foundation.