Providing Physical Therapy to COVID-19 Patients: “They are People Who Need Us”

Physical therapist Leah Sansano was apprehensive at first about visiting patients recovering from COVID-19. But the minute she met her first COVID-19 patient—an older man just discharged from the hospital—and his devoted daughter, she immediately understood the power of her role and its deep rewards.

“These are human beings—they are not the virus,” says Leah, who works in VNSNY Home Care’s Queens Branch 2 and has been with VNSNY since 2005. “They are people who need us and shouldn’t be left behind.”

To care for her COVID-19 patients, Leah puts on personal protective equipment (PPE) and conducts an initial in-home evaluation to assess functional ability and develop an exercise plan. She also assesses the need for (and orders, if necessary) equipment such as a walker, commode and wheelchair. Recovering COVID-19 positive patients are generally extremely weak and need considerable therapy to recover and restore prior function, including walking and performing activities of daily living.

Throughout each visit, Leah takes care to reassure patients and their family caregivers that they are on the path to recovery. “Even wearing full PPE, which can be intimidating, I want them to feel comfortable. With my first COVID-19 patient, the daughter said, ‘I never thought anyone would come visit. You are my hero.’ That’s the reward, seeing how much you are needed.”

Following their initial in-home evaluation, patients who are deemed appropriate candidates can choose to connect with a VNSNY therapist over FaceTime to continue their rehabilitation plan. PT Bella Borukhova of Queens Branch 3 conducted her team’s first video visit earlier this month and was glad to be able to do it. “Instead of putting their therapy on hold, patients can continue their therapy and continue getting better,” says Bella. She demonstrates each activity over the patient’s phone or computer screen, then carefully observes as the patient repeats it—monitoring for pain, shortness of breath and other red flags.

Best practices for virtual visits are similar to traditional in-home visits, and the outcomes appear to be comparable as well, Bella notes. “It comes down to the consistency of patient participation and the involvement and support of a committed family caregiver.”

Even when they aren’t faced with a pandemic, community physical therapists are known for being resourceful and collaborative. During this COVID-19 emergency and the potential shortages of PPE that has accompanied it, physical therapist David Friend of Queens Branch 4 has taken this resourcefulness and collaborative spirit to the next level. David reached out to his father, an international importer/exporter, who drew on his connections in China to get more 50,000 masks committed to VNSNY. The first 1,000 masks have already arrived at VNSNY, and the rest of the masks are en route.

“I care about all the people I work with, and I want them to be protected,” said David, who has been with VNSNY for 15 years and works primarily in Far Rockaway. “We’re all in this together.”

To read more VNSNY Heroes of 2020 stories, click here.