Boston resident Barbara Nemias was becoming increasingly concerned over the health of her mother, whose respiratory problems had required that she be on a ventilator in a New York skilled nursing facility for almost 19 months. She was eager to have her mother, Barbara Jordan, age 78, closer and was selected Radius for her care. She was worried about the daunting ambulance costs to transport her mother from New York to Massachusetts, but Radius Director of Admissions and Marketing, David Carvelli, RN was able to make it possible without her having to pay the out of pocket expense.

In the New York facility, there were multiple attempts to wean her off the ventilator…without success. Usually she would acutely decompensate and develop complications. At that time she opted for a Code status of “Do Not Resuscitate – DNR” as she and her family believed she would be on a ventilator for the rest of her life. This was her situation as she came to Boston and Radius as a chronic vent patient.

Remarkably, within two weeks after checking into Radius, Barbara Jordan was off the ventilator, in time for her birthday. She said that her pulmonologist, Dr. Martin Joyce-Brady, was so determined to get her off the vent that “he got me to believe it was possible, and I did it.” Her tracheostomy was removed one month later.

Dr. Brady picks up her story: “From the first time I saw her, I was hopeful about her ability to wean. At Radius, we assess every patient; we look at lung function without letting previous history of failure determine the future. The MD-patient relationship is important: It's more than just the medicine, it's the gaining of a patient's trust. We did have some difficult episodes with Mrs. Jordan at first. After all, she had accepted the fact she'd be on a ventilator for the rest of her life. She would become short of breath and return to the ventilator. She was also anxious when her trach was to be removed. We worked through these times and she continued to progress. She came to trust us and believe in herself that she could do it. The trust, the encouragement and her strengthened confidence enabled her to progress. This was a very successful case.”

Mrs. Jordan is a full-blooded Indian, a member of the St. Regis Mohawk tribe. During her recovery members of the tribe had “sweat lodges” for her. At these lodges they conduct a purification ceremony for sick tribe members. In a room of intense steam and heated rocks and water, people pray. They purify themselves and petition the spirit world to then purify the individual for whom they are praying. Then they drink tea that has been prepared by medicine people in the tribe who are knowledgeable about plants and herbs.

Mrs. Jordan 's health continues to improve. After six weeks she was discharged from Radius to a local skilled nursing facility. Prior to coming to Radius, she had not walked for two years. Now she gets around with a rolling walker and uses oxygen. She continues in rehabilitation and is working toward the goal of transferring to an assisted living setting.

”Our whole family is indebted to Radius,” said her daughter Barbara Nemias.

PUBLISHED WITH PERMISSION.