Greg's Story
After a long career as a plumber, Gregory “Greg” Walker was enjoying retirement spending time fishing and hunting with his dog by his side. However, at 61, Greg’s lifestyle came to a halt when his brother, Charles, found him unresponsive in the Gulfport, Mississippi, home they share.
Rushed to Memorial Hospital Gulfport, doctors diagnosed him with encephalitis, inflammation of the brain, along with pneumonia and respiratory failure.
Doctors placed Greg on a ventilator and created a surgical opening in his windpipe, called a tracheostomy. They inserted a feeding tube directly into his stomach to deliver nutrition. Greg was given powerful antibiotics to fight the bacterial infections attacking his brain and lungs. After four weeks, the infections had cleared and Greg had stabilized though he was still unable to breathe on his own, eat, talk or walk or talk.
Greg’s doctor’s recommended he transition to Select Specialty Hospital – Gulf Coast, for further healing and recovery. Upon arrival, his physician-led, multidisciplinary team developed a personalized care plan to help him regain independence and return home.
Under the guidance of a pulmonologist, the respiratory therapy team began breathing trials, gradually increasing Greg’s time off the ventilator while closely monitoring his lung function. Each day, his breathing improved. Within 10 days, Greg was liberated from the ventilator, marking the first of several milestones in his recovery. That same day, Greg’s speech-language pathologist fitted a Passy-Muir speaking valve to his tracheostomy which allowed him to speak for the first time in a month and half. Just four days after that, Greg’s tracheostomy was removed.
Concurrently, Greg’s speech-language pathologist gave him swallowing exercises to strengthen his throat muscles so he could eventually eat again. After 11 days, a special study confirmed he could swallow safely, and was able to return to eating regular food. With that progress, his feeding tube was removed.
“I was so grateful for the staff’s patience as I slowly regained my abilities,” Greg said.
Meantime, his physical and occupational therapy focused on rebuilding Greg’s strength, range of motion and balance. Physical therapy began with core strengthening exercises, such as sitting at the edge of his bed, initially with assistance.
“I knew I was going to make it home when I could sit up on the side of the bed without assistance,” Greg recalled.
In just four days, Greg was standing, and in four more days, he took his first steps.
Occupational therapy had Greg execute arm stretches and do range of motion exercises with resistance bands and light weights to regain strength, all of which would help him manage everyday activities like dressing, grooming and eating on his own.
Throughout his recovery, Greg drew support from his family, especially Charles who visited regularly. Greg also appreciated the kindness and personal attention from the staff, who encouraged him when he needed it most.
“Everyone has been so helpful,” Greg said. The “staff is so sweet and caring… one of the nursing assistants even braided my hair for me.”
In just 16 days at Select Specialty Hospital, Greg was breathing on his own, talking, eating and walking 150 feet with a walker. He was ready to return home with Charles, where he would continue to gain strength so he could return to those relaxing days of fishing and hunting.
Greg ended his stay at Select Specialty Hospital on a positive note, “I had a great experience and loved the expert care and nursing staff.”