Being in the hospital for nearly a month and learning how to walk again is challenging to say the least, particularly for someone as young as 16.
But one Carle Health patient received a well-deserved boost thanks to 250 pounds of mini horsepower and the efforts of the staff at the Children’s Institute at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana.
Now a rehab patient, Tiffani Howell got out of her wheelchair and took several assisted
steps with her newfound friend, Babe, a mini horse from Gateway Family Services of Illinois. Sara Krewson a Child Life specialist at Carle Health worked with Gateway to arrange for two mini horses, Babe and Cali, to visit Howell at Crystal Lake Park, near the hospital.
“It helped to soothe me a bit more and I walked further than I have before,” she said. The Howells have two dogs at home in Cerro Gordo, but no horses. Sporting her own long braids, she said, “I like being able to braid the horses’ hair.”
Krewson said specialists often support patients' social and emotional needs while in the hospital. “We were thinking what is outside the box that we can use to help keep Tiffani engaged in the rehab work she has done so far?”
Howell’s parents, Michael and Kathi, were also on hand for the visit from the mini horses.
“I knew she was going to love it,” Kathi Howell said.
A mini horse can weigh 250 to 275 pounds in contrast to a full-sized horse at 1,000 to 1,200 pounds. The mini horses travel on their own minibus with a lift that raises and lowers them from the ground.
Trained in animal assisted therapy and animal assisted intervention, the horses are still able to just be horses, Michael Remole with Gateway Family Services of Illinois said. There are six in total and they take turns making supportive visits to hospitals, nursing homes and military veteran organizations.
“Everything we do during our time with a patient is to work on how to partner with the horse relationally and how the horse can also help take care of the patient and their needs,” Remole said.
Carle Health Center for Philanthropy is one of the supporters of the Child Life program at Carle Health. To learn more about how child life supports pediatric patients, go to carle.org. Click here to learn more about the Children’s Institute at Carle Foundation Hospital.
But one Carle Health patient received a well-deserved boost thanks to 250 pounds of mini horsepower and the efforts of the staff at the Children’s Institute at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana.
Now a rehab patient, Tiffani Howell got out of her wheelchair and took several assisted
steps with her newfound friend, Babe, a mini horse from Gateway Family Services of Illinois. Sara Krewson a Child Life specialist at Carle Health worked with Gateway to arrange for two mini horses, Babe and Cali, to visit Howell at Crystal Lake Park, near the hospital.“It helped to soothe me a bit more and I walked further than I have before,” she said. The Howells have two dogs at home in Cerro Gordo, but no horses. Sporting her own long braids, she said, “I like being able to braid the horses’ hair.”
Krewson said specialists often support patients' social and emotional needs while in the hospital. “We were thinking what is outside the box that we can use to help keep Tiffani engaged in the rehab work she has done so far?”
Howell’s parents, Michael and Kathi, were also on hand for the visit from the mini horses.
“I knew she was going to love it,” Kathi Howell said.
A mini horse can weigh 250 to 275 pounds in contrast to a full-sized horse at 1,000 to 1,200 pounds. The mini horses travel on their own minibus with a lift that raises and lowers them from the ground.
Trained in animal assisted therapy and animal assisted intervention, the horses are still able to just be horses, Michael Remole with Gateway Family Services of Illinois said. There are six in total and they take turns making supportive visits to hospitals, nursing homes and military veteran organizations.
“Everything we do during our time with a patient is to work on how to partner with the horse relationally and how the horse can also help take care of the patient and their needs,” Remole said.
Carle Health Center for Philanthropy is one of the supporters of the Child Life program at Carle Health. To learn more about how child life supports pediatric patients, go to carle.org. Click here to learn more about the Children’s Institute at Carle Foundation Hospital.
Categories: Redefining Healthcare, Community
Tags: Carle Foundation Hospital, child life, Childrens Institute, pediatrics