Nathan Davis was cautiously optimistic when he entered St. Lawrence Rehabilitation Center in April using a wheelchair.
His biggest concern, he said, “I didn’t want to leave here the way I came in. I wanted to be able to walk out of here.”
And after three-and-a-half weeks, that’s exactly what he did.
“I’m going home,” Davis, a Trenton resident, said May 19, the day before he was released. “I believe God put these angels around me. The staff goes above and beyond. They pushed me and helped to give me confidence in myself.”
Davis, who is just one among the rehabilitation hospital’s hundreds of thousands of patients over the years, was pleased to learn the nonprofit is marking its 50th anniversary this year.
“Continue to keep God first, keep pushing and keep smiling,” Davis said in his congratulatory message to the staff.
Pandemic restrictions limited how the 116-bed, diocesan-sponsored, fully credited rehabilitation hospital that provides both inpatient and outpatient care could celebrate its golden jubilee. But the staff was able to enjoy a dinner held on April 26 and both the facility and its grounds were decorated with banners and balloons.
“We really have seen ‘miracles’ here,” said Amy Brewer, director of physical therapy. “Here, we allow the patients to try and reach their full potential.”
Firm Foundation
Based in Lawrenceville near the intersection of Route 206 and I-295, St. Lawrence Rehabilitation Center shares a 40-acre campus with the Morris Hall complex and Villa Vianney, the diocesan residence for retired priests. The hospital was originally established as Morris Hall Health and Rehabilitation Center and had a licensed capacity of 203 beds – 50 for rehabilitation and 153 for skilled (long-term) nursing services. The center received its first patient April 26, 1971, and was dedicated by Bishop George W. Ahr May 22, 1971.
In 1983, because of increased demand for rehabilitation services, the center was permitted to temporarily convert 26 beds from long-term care to rehabilitation use. The center formally submitted a Certificate of Need to make the 26 beds permanent for rehabilitation. In November 1990, the department of health granted approval for an expansion of 10 beds, bringing the total number of rehabilitation beds to 86.
In 1993, with the approval of Bishop John C. Reiss, construction began on a five-year renovation project, and the new facility was dedicated in 1998 by Bishop John M. Smith. The center has a state-of-the-art outpatient therapy department that includes a gym and an onsite apartment for activities of daily living. The center employs about 400 staff members who provide an array of services, including brain injury rehabilitation, chronic pain management, burn care services and respite care.
In 2020, St. Lawrence provided services to 1,350 inpatients and 15,000 outpatient therapy visits.
Meeting Today’s Needs
Today, St. Lawrence offers a wide range of acute and sub-acute services including physical and occupational therapy, speech therapy, therapeutic recreation and social and psychological services.
There are specialized programs for brain injury, stroke, neurologic disorders, orthopedics, Parkinsonism, amputees, vestibular/balance rehabilitation, a driver program, as well as services for medically complex patients needing cardiac or post-operative management. The staff includes a full-time physiatrist, more than 60 specialists and internal medicine physicians.
Medical records are connected with the Trenton Health Department so that patient information can be shared. Technology has expedited the ordering of equipment for patients to use at home and allows for teletherapy. iPads have helped with physician consultations andfamily visits and training for home care.
Brewer and colleagues Darlene Hanley, CEO of St. Lawrence and Morris Hall, and Marlene Stankus, the hospital’s assistant administrator and director of speech and ancillary services, are quick to cite the professionalism and strong sense of family that exists among the staff.
“It’s very encouraging and uplifting to see patient progress,” said Hanley, who will retire in December after 30 years of service.
“There is a true spirit of camaraderie, of teamwork among the employees,” she said, acknowledging that the bond was further strengthened during the pandemic.
“It was all hands on deck.”
Stankus, a 33-year-employee and member of Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton, added that the staff’s professionalism is recognized by the patients and their families.
“It’s amazing to see how many people who were here as patients in the 1970s come back to visit us or send us Christmas cards,” she said. “It’s also heartening to have former patients return to the hospital to serve as volunteers.”
Spiritual Component
St. Lawrence serves those of all economic means and faith traditions, and spiritual outreach such as Mass and the reception of the Sacraments are available to patients who wish to practice their Catholic faith during their stay.
The 50th anniversary is much more than celebrating the establishment of the hospital and recognizing its advances, said Father Angelo Amaral, chaplain in both St. Lawrence and Morris Hall.
“We are also celebrating our faith as Catholics,” he said. “We are celebrating the presence of Jesus in the lives of all of our patients over the past 50 years.”
Because of the pandemic, Father Amaral had to make numerous adjustments in how he practiced his ministry. Instead of regularly visiting with patients at their bedsides, he had to stand at a distance, wearing a surgical gown and mask. The only time he could enter the room was to administer the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.
Because the hospital chapel was converted to accommodate other pressing needs, including COVID testing, Father Amaral celebrates Mass daily in Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel at Morris Hall, which is livestreamed and made available to all patients and residents of both St. Lawrence and Morris Hall, all of whom have TVs in their rooms.
With restrictions being eased, he is permitted to have eight residents join him in the chapel, all socially distanced. Along with Mass, he visits each of the Morris Hall sites on a rotating basis to administer Holy Communion and hear Confessions – and St. Lawrence when called upon. But he is always available to anoint patients. “I get the call, I go,” he said. “Anytime, day or night.”
While the majority of patients he has encountered are Catholic, Father Amaral also ministers to non-Catholic patients who might want to receive spiritual counseling. He prays with them and offers a blessing.
“I believe that especially when people are sick, they feel that by being in the presence of a priest, they actually feel the comfort of Jesus,” he said. “It’s not me they want to see or where they find comfort. It is through me the patients feel the presence of Jesus, it is through me, that Jesus reaches them.”