Cliff's Story
Clifford “Cliff” Bellenir was at work as a welder and suddenly couldn’t speak. His coworkers realized something was wrong and called 911.
Cliff was rushed to Genesys Regional Medical Center in Grand Blanc, Michigan, where a brain scan revealed a ruptured aneurysm, causing bleeding in his brain and a severe right-hemisphere stroke. Cliff’s life-threatening condition required advanced surgery and he was flown to Henry Ford Providence Novi Hospital where an emergency operation was performed to control the bleeding. Surgeons had him on the table for seven hours.
“Everything was challenging,” said his wife, Christal. “They weren’t sure he would make it through the flight, then brain surgery.”
But Cliff, a father of four daughters, pulled through.
Following surgery, he was unable to breathe on his own, move independently, talk, eat or speak. He needed a ventilator to breathe for him; a feeding tube supplied him with nutrition and hydration. To protect Cliff’s airway and provide a more comfortable connection to the ventilator, his medical team performed a tracheostomy, surgically inserting a breathing tube in Cliff’s airway. In addition, the stroke had affected motor control of the right side of his body. In the weeks following, the Providence medical team stabilized Cliff and attempted to liberate him from the ventilator without success.
The medical team recommended Cliff transfer to a rehabilitation hospital for further healing and recovery. Christal chose Select Specialty Hospital (SSH) – Oakland for Cliff’s next level of care.
When Cliff arrived he was still on the ventilator and severely weakened from his long hospitalization. He was unable to sit without assistance or use his right arm. In addition to the surgical wound on his head, he had acquired a pressure wound at the base of his spine that needed to be addressed.
Cliff was assessed by Select Specialty Hospital’s physician-led, interdisciplinary team which developed a personalized care plan for him.
“His goals were to get off the vent and get the trach out,” said Christal. “They wanted to get him moving, eating and talking again.”
The next three weeks were instrumental to Cliff’s recovery. The nursing staff provided around-the-clock care, checking his vitals, providing medication, ensuring he was comfortable and caring for his wounds. Nurses kept the sites clean and properly bandaged, guarding against infection – all of which helped his pressure wound improve significantly.
Cliff began a series of breathing trials that involved lowering his ventilator settings for increasing amounts of time so that his lungs had to do more of the work. Just two days after admission, Cliff was able to breathe independently for short bursts. Two days later, he could breathe without the machine.
A week later, speech therapists fitted Cliff with a special valve that pushed air through his vocal cords. In a major milestone, he was finally able to talk to Christal and his daughters.
Christal said that’s when she realized Cliff was turning a corner in his recovery.
Concurrently, Cliff was making good progress with his physical therapy. Too weak to sit up when he admitted, Cliff and his therapists first focused on strengthening his core muscles with repetitive exercises, such as sitting on the edge of his bed and reaching for cones that he had to stack. Exercises such as sit-to-stand movements and standing for increasing amounts of time rebuilt muscles in his legs and hips.
His hard work and grit paid off. One week after admission, he was able to stand with assistance for the first time. Six days later, Cliff took five steps with a rolling walker as a therapist held the gait belt around Cliff’s waist with one hand and guided his walker with the other. Soon Cliff was navigating the halls.
In occupational therapy, Cliff washed his face with a washcloth, brushed his teeth and combed his own hair, either balancing on the edge of the bed or standing in front of a mirror.
Cliff also worked on strengthening his right side, focusing on his upper extremity mobility and strength.
But challenges remained. Cliff’s swallowing was impacted by the stroke. His speech therapists helped him with exercises for his jaw, tongue and throat so he could safely swallow. Once Cliff passed a special test that verified he was able to swallow and keep food in his digestive tract, he was cleared to begin eating. He started with liquids, then pureed and later soft foods to ease his transition back to regular meals.
“Now he can eat, breathe on his own, use the bathroom, walk, talk, dress himself and brush his own teeth,” said Christal.
Lastly, the love and support of his family was instrumental in his recovery. Christal was by his side daily participating in his therapy and witnessing the many milestones Cliff achieved. Cliff and Christal shared their thanks with the rehabilitation team as well as the nursing staff for their compassion and motivation throughout his stay.
Three weeks after admitting, Cliff discharged to continue his recovery journey at an inpatient rehabilitation facility.
When asked for advice for future patients, Christal said, “I understand how other families may be scared, however, you can rest assured that your loved one will be taken care of here.”