LOL (laugh out loud) is more than just an acronym; it’s a fun way to exercise your lungs and enhance lung capacity. However, when you are struggling to breathe, laughing is often the last thing on your mind. If you want to improve your lung health, check out RiverView Health’s Pulmonary Rehab program. The team can help you breathe easier and LOL.
March 9-15 is Pulmonary Rehab Week. According to RiverView’s Cardiopulmonary Coordinator Wanda Sorum, BS, RRT, pulmonary rehab programs are few and far between in the region, with Crookston, Grand Forks, and Fargo offering the few programs available.
Pulmonary rehabilitation is a supervised program that helps people with lung disease breathe and live better. RiverView’s program includes
-Exercise to improve strength, energy, and oxygen use
-Education to help the patient understand their condition, symptoms, medications, and
breathing techniques
-Nutritional counseling to ensure the patient maintains a healthy diet
-Psychological counseling to address mental health issues that can accompany
chronic disease
-Energy-saving techniques to teach the patient how to conserve energy
The program may benefit people with chronic lung diseases like COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), bronchiectasis, or pulmonary fibrosis. While it is best to start pulmonary rehabilitation before the disease becomes severe, it can also help people with advanced lung disease.
COVID-19 Increases Patient Load
RiverView’s program demand has increased since COVID-19 began, according to Sorum. “We have had quite a few post-COVID patients that have benefited from pulmonary rehab to decrease their shortness of breath and improve their functional capacity,” she stated. “With rehab, they were able to return to work or their daily activities.”
Even patients who had COVID but did not have to be hospitalized have found that the pulmonary program has improved their lung function, Sorum reported. Patients also benefit from the accountability the program requires and the camaraderie of being with others who understand their circumstances and can share tips and experiences. “Pulmonary patients come in with many concerns about what they can do and what we may expect them to do,” Sorum said. “We take each patient individually and work with them in a slow, steady fashion toward the goals they choose. The most satisfying part of working in pulmonary rehab is seeing the patients progress further than they ever thought possible.”
From Cardiac Rehab Graduate to Pulmonary Rehab Patient
Linda Aanenson of Fertile exercises in RiverView’s Cardiopulmonary Rehab several days a week. After having a heart bypass, Aanenson was a patient of RiverView’s Cardiac Rehab program and now the Pulmonary Rehab program, which she says is much easier because of the strength she gained from the cardiac program. Patients’ heart, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation are monitored as they exercise. If needed, participants use supplemental oxygen while exercising. “The girls are awesome,” Aanenson shared of RiverView’s Cardiopulmonary Rehab Team. “They explain a lot and keep an eye on you. If you need to go through a program and you have a choice of where to go, come here. Do your best and go from there.”
RiverView’s Pulmonary Rehab Team consists of Sorum, Stephanie Korynta, RRT, Brook Lambert, CEP, and Alecia Perry, RN. Sorum said the team has worked with patients with a variety of needs, including one waiting for a lung transplant. Through pulmonary rehab, RiverView’s team helped the patient prepare for the surgery and then helped with recovery afterward.
Along with a transplant, other qualifying conditions include
– COPD
– COVID-19
– Bronchiectasis
– Sarcoidosis
– Pulmonary Hypertension
– Pulmonary Fibrosis
– Interstitial Lung Disease
– Lung Cancer and Lung Cancer Surgery
– Lung Volume Reduction Surgery
– Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
RiverView’s Pulmonary Rehab program runs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Participants usually attend sessions three times a week for eight to 12 weeks for up to 36 sessions.
If you have shortness of breath, talk to your primary care provider about your options. Pulmonary rehab may be what you need to get back to your LOL status. For more information on RiverView’s program, call 281.9411.
