By Martin Ross, HSCI Volunteer
When Miss Sarah enters the ward, smiles blossom, hearts lift as blood pressure drops, and, for a moment or two, thoughts of pain, anxiety, and illness fade away.
Pretty strong medicine for 10 pounds of shih tzu-style bedside manner. Don’t worry: Miss Sarah is credentialed for hospital duty, as a registered therapy dog.
Therapy animals are becoming a growing Twin Cities presence, “going just about anywhere you can imagine,” according to Rhea Mays, therapy dog evaluator with the Alliance of Therapy Dogs and a member of McLean County’s Town and Country Kennel Club. Mays coordinates therapy dog visits at Advocate BroMenn and OSF St. Joseph Medical Centers, offering canine support for patients of all ages.
UCLA Medical Center found that a 12-minute canine visit improved heart and lung function in 76 hospitalized heart failure patients by lowering blood pressure, reducing the release of harmful hormones, and relieving anxiety. For many patients, a canine visitor simply provides a welcome respite from medical procedures, proddings, and questions, Mays maintains.
“They provide a pleasant distraction, for our patients,” notes Advocate Bromenn Volunteer Services Director Sue Seibring, who oversees the hospital’s “Hound Rounds” visits. “They bring more smiles to faces than any other care provider would. Our staff gets some therapeutic benefits, as well. They help reduce stress and anxiety that occur in hospitals.”
Therapy dogs are prohibited from the Intensive Care Unit, and cannot visit patients in isolation, those with new babies, or during patient food service. However, they provide acute relief for those undergoing chemotherapy at Advocate BroMenn/OSF Community Cancer Center. “The dogs are able to sit on their laps or visit with them while they’re having an infusion, which is a very, very stressful time,” says Mays.
Therapy dogs exert a generally calming influence in the mental health unit, “if you have the right dog in the right situation,” Mays says. A variety of breeds are well-suited to therapy duty (golden retrievers and toy breeds seem particularly adept), but she emphasizes that “it’s the dog’s temperament that makes the difference.”
Dogs also have become a welcome addition to Twin Cities library reading programs, where their attentive, non-judgmental nature bolsters confidence in young problem readers. Town and Country and Illinois State University Health Promotion and Wellness host a monthly canine-student encounter at ISU’s Milner Library aimed at relieving the stress of university life.
Charlie, a rescue German shepherd mix, is de facto head of morale for Bloomington’s Heritage Health, Therapy, and Senior Care facility. Heritage Activity Director Jill Presutti notes both human and four-legged “family” are welcome to visit residents, and the East Walnut Street facility brings in local rescue dogs and cats and even miniature “therapy horses” to bolster residents’ spirits. Charlie — an Alabama rescue owned by Administrator Susan Holifield — roams the Heritage corridors daily, entering residents’ rooms strictly by (generally enthusiastic) invitation.
“They like to give him treats,” Presutti confides. “He doesn’t jump; he doesn’t bark; he doesn’t go wild. He really brings a lot of joy to residents. A lot of the times, I think it makes them feel more like they’re at home.”
Charlie also boosts staff morale — employees frequently shuttle him to “work” when Holifield is out of town. He has become a celeb of sorts, with his own annual calendar featuring a dogged-up Charlie highlighting various aspects of resident life and care. This year’s calendar revisits “The Best of Charlie”; past themes have included resident rights, healthy living, and Heritage’s recent remodel.
“He has a lot of personality,” Holifield muses. “He’s a little diva.”
To help fill a growing community need for volunteer therapy animals, contact Mays via therapydogs@tckc.org. To explore pet adoption, contact the Humane Society of Central Illinois at 309-451-1000 or online at hscipets.org.