With the many locations in the Concordia family, we count patients from places far and wide. But a recent patient in the short-term rehab unit on the Concordia at Cabot campus owns the title of the patient who has traveled the farthest for Concordia’s brand of care. He came from Cumberland, MD. His journey for what he calls “a great team” took him to a couple places before he found what he was looking for at Concordia.
Walter Robb suffered a stroke on January 29 and was taken to Butler Memorial Hospital where he underwent five CT scans and two MRIs to find the source. He was transferred to a local rehab hospital to restore movement on his left side. After a week and a half there, the 77-year old father of eight was released but dissatisfied with his progress. His daughter Julie recommended Concordia at Cabot as she lives nearby, and he called it an excellent choice.
“Certain actions should produce certain results with physical therapy,” Walter said, matter-of-factly. “The staff at Concordia made a tremendous difference for me. They have a deeper interest in your welfare and a friendlier attitude, and they enjoy working with each other.”
And Walter knows something about working together: He lives in a friary with several other priests and brothers.
“After my wife died 20 years ago, I knew a lot of Franciscan friars and was involved with the Catholic Church,” he said. He thought he might be too old, but he decided to write a letter to become a Franciscan Brother of the province of St. Augustine.
Born in Winfield, he was raised on a farm and spent some time in the Navy where he learned electronics. He worked for American Glass Research and was a union electrician until 1989. And now he is part of the clergy, assisting the priests in various parishes, working in food pantries, doing the Lord’s work.
“I was amazed at the camaraderie among both staff and patients at Concordia,” he said. “There was an elderly lady in the gym working through her balance problems. Tony was prompting her to walk sideways and backwards to the beat of music. He was actually waltzing with her. He took something she enjoyed in her early days to help her with her get back on track.”
If a therapist was working with a resident and needed a chair, another staff member would step in to assist without hesitation or request.
Now back home, Robb said he still has some limitations and some work to do, but will continue therapy so he can drive. “I have a car but no keys,” he said. “You get great gas mileage in the parking lot!”
To learn more about our short-term rehab services or any of our senior living communities in western PA and eastern OH, visit the Care Levels & Services or Home & Community Services pages of our website. For general information, call our administrative headquarters at 1-888-352-1571 or message us through our Contact Form.
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