It was a parent's nightmare. Josie Anderson, the 16-year-old president of her sophomore class at Bothell High School, was taking a late-night drive with some friends in February 2005.
Recreational Therapist Jacki Williford visits with former patient Josie Anderson.
The driver lost control of the car and it flew off the road. Josie's head crashed through a rear window and against a tree before she was tossed against the dashboard.
For 11 days, she lay in a coma in Harborview's Intensive Care Unit (ICU), breathing on a ventilator, eating through a gastric tube.
It wasn't clear if Josie would live out her days in a vegetative state. A neurosurgical team suggested considering a nursing home for long-term care. Dr. Kenneth Jaffe, director of Children's Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, met Josie on his regular rounds at Harborview.
"He gave us hope that she might recover," recalls her father, Ed Anderson. The family put off the team's suggestion of a nursing home. On the 10th day, Josie began breathing on her own.
She was transferred to Children's Pediatric ICU the next day. "She was very confused when she awoke from her coma," recalls her mother, Anne Deacon Anderson. "She thought we lived next door to the hospital."
Josie moved to the Rehabilitation Unit six weeks later, still unable to eat or walk, still confused.
Relearning the Basics
The Rehab team helps patients relearn skills they once had or learn new ways to do things they used to do.
Physical, speech, occupational and recreational therapists; teachers; nurses; social workers; dieticians and psychologists are usually involved — and families are key members of the team each step of the way.
"The Rehab team performed miracles," says Deacon Anderson. "They became our family and were as invested in Josie's progress as we were."
Families are included in therapy sessions and are encouraged to help. But they are also taught that their child's capabilities are different now and that their way of being on the team might be to stand on the side and cheer.
Preparing a child to face life outside the hospital is the Rehab team's main goal. For many, that means starting over. The Rehabilitation team helps families understand that their lives are different now, that they'll have a new "normal."
"Our goal is to help families leave the hospital with the knowledge they need to face a changed future, and with hope for continuing recovery," says Jaffe.