HOUSTON — She inspired the nation with her fairy-tale recovery. Now Rep. Gabrielle Giffords must inspire herself through the ordeal of rehabilitation, and doctors say it is likely to be the hardest work she will ever do.
Just a couple of decades ago, rehab was little more than physical therapy for shuffling stroke victims and wheelchair-bound quadriplegics, a last resort after doctors had done all they could.
Now it is a sophisticated science at the forefront of treating people like Giffords, who was shot in the forehead two weeks ago while meeting constituents in Tucson. An early start on rehab is key to limiting permanent damage, and the Houston hospital where she will be treated uses high-tech tools to push the brain to rewire itself.
The Arizona congresswoman arrived Friday at the Texas Medical Center, where she is expected to spend a few days in intensive care before moving to TIRR Memorial Hermann rehab hospital. Dr. Gerard Francisco, the hospital’s chief medical officer, said Saturday that she was “even more alert today” and progressing nicely with therapy.
Instead of doctors making you well, rehab means “teaching you how to help yourself” to get your life back, said Dr. William Donovan, a former medical director of the rehab hospital who still works there part time.
It’s frustrating when your muscles and mind won’t work the way you want them to. Emotional challenges, post-traumatic stress and physical problems such as seizures, headaches and infections loom as risks that could complicate her recovery.
No one can predict how Giffords will do, or what her “new normal” will be, as the hospital’s chief executive, Carl Josehart puts it. A CT scan on arrival showed “really minimal” injury for the mortal wound she had, said Dr. Dong Kim, neurosurgery chief for University of Texas Health Science Center.
The type of bullet, its path, good trauma care and her general health before the injury bode well for her, but “a bigger impact on recovery is the amount of family and social support after the injury,” said Mark Sherer, a neuropsychologist at the rehab hospital.
After doing a head-to-toe mapping of her injuries and abilities, “we’ll have to figure out how to meet each and every deficit,” Francisco said.
