December 5, 2014 at 2:51 p.m.
Therapy dogs visit patients at Ministry Saint Mary's Hospital
Therapy dogs visit patients at Ministry Saint Mary's Hospital
By Kayla Thomason-
Therapy dogs Quincy, a 4-year-old golden retriever, and Holly, a 4-year-old cockapoo, have one of the toughest jobs in the world - providing pick-me-ups to hospital patients.
Jennifer Frank, volunteer coordinator for Ministry Sacred Heart and Saint Mary's Hospitals, was approached by Nancy Diepenbrock, an employee whose dog had completed the Therapy Dogs International (TDI) program, about starting the program. With Diepenbrock's help, Ministry has been able to launch a program.
"Since we have brought the program in it's amazing to see people's reactions to the dogs," Frank said. "It's very, very positive. Everybody's always happy. It always puts a smile on people's faces, takes their minds off the negative stuff that may be happening at the time. So it's a good thing."
Diepenbrock started therapy dog work by joining a chapter in Mosinee. At that time there were no therapy dog teams in the Northwoods.
The Northwoods chapter started with eight charter dog teams. Now there are 34 teams visiting 46 facilities.
Four dogs regularly visit Ministry Saint Mary's Hospital. They usually spend an hour or two visiting patients.
"I think it puts [the patients] in a little bit of a better mood," Frank said." "It takes their mind off what they're going through at the time, it helps relieve stress a little bit and makes them happy."
Not every dog is perfect for therapy work. Therapy dogs have to be able to respond to the following commands: sit, down, come, stay, heel and leave it. They also must have basic manners.
"The main, main quality [in therapy dogs] is they have to be loving of people and absolutely rock-solid around children," Diepenbrock said. "Golden retrievers are naturally loving dogs but there is no breed restrictions. Nationally they have pit bulls that are [therapy dogs]. It's not the breed it's the personality."
Quincy exudes the loving temperament golden retrievers often exhibit. He loves everyone regardless of their size.
"Quincy absolutely loves babies, little babies in the bumper chairs, he sticks his nose on their tummy. I have the only dog in the world I have to get children for," Diepenbrock said.
She said she picked Quincy out of his litter with the intention of training him to be a therapy dog.
"As a nurse, it was such a stress reliever for me [to have therapy dogs visit] so I decided when I retire I'm doing this," she said.
She started training Quincy by enrolling him in puppy kindergarten and basic obedience, gearing him for the big test he would take after he turned 1 year old.
Dogs cannot take the therapy dog test unless they are at least a year old.
Quincy has also been tested as a disaster dog to relieve the stress of victims and rescue workers.
"He just lives for loving, his whole genetic makeup is for loving," Diepenbrock said.
She and Quincy visit Ministry St. Mary's Hospital, Howard Young Medical Center, Eagle River, schools, the library, hospice patients, two nursing homes, Frederick Place and sometimes Wausau.
Jane Prod's dog, Holly, completed therapy training in June/July of this year.
"We've only had a few visits but she's doing really well," Prod said. "I worked in health care as a nurse and I would see people coming in with their therapy dogs and I thought 'What a wonderful thing to do' so I (started this when I) retired about a year ago. Holly was just a very friendly dog and I thought she'd be good."
Holly was used to walkers, wheelchairs and IV drips before starting her lessons. She had also completed puppy class and a canine good citizenship course.
"I know when I visit some of the assisted living places some of the patients love holding on to [Holly] and she'll just sit and then they'll pet her and hug her," Prod said.
Before Quincy and Holly can visit patients they need to be thoroughly cleaned.
They spend around an hour and a half to two hours visiting patients and bringing smiles to their faces.
"We saw one [patient] one time, he just had to have his (golden retriever) put down the week before and the day I was visiting he just got a really bad diagnosis. The staff asked me to stop in his room and we walked through the door and he started crying and he hugged this dog and he hung on this dog and you don't walk away from people like that," Diepenbrock said. "If I spent the whole hour and a half with him that would have been fine."
The patients the therapy dogs visited on Thursday were very happy to see the furry visitors.
"I was excited, I was waiting, [for the therapy dogs to come)," said patient William Lemerande. "It's nice to have them around, relax, feel like I'm home."
He misses his two springer spaniels who are waiting for him at home.
"It makes things go a lot easier - having to be here - nobody likes being in a hospital but it makes it a little bit easier being here," he said.
"I think it's good for people who have pets at home and miss them while they're here, I'm sure they're happy to see somebody," added Mitzi Johnson, another patient.
Kristin Kronberger, another patient, lit up when Quincy paid her a visit. She grew up with a German shepherd and had a golden retriever when her children were growing up.
"It made my day, it's like getting a hug from an unexpected source," Kronberger said. "I was excited, I thought that was really neat."
This was a new experience for her.
"I learned that they actually have therapy dogs that come in to the hospitals and do just the therapy which I wasn't aware of so that's a neat branch of therapy animals," she said. "I think [therapy dogs] definitely [have] a place even in the nursing homes and things, their whole face just lights up. I know how I felt just seeing the dog for a few minutes. It was just so loving and so supportive and sometimes, after you had bad news or after you've been sick for a while, getting that extra love sometimes makes a difference. It can be very uplifting."
There is no such thing as a dog visiting too much, so long as you're feeling up to it, Kronberger said.
Sometimes the dog may be the only visitor a patient has all week.
"I think that they're going to find out that they're going to incorporate more and more of this type of animal [therapy] into health care practices," Kronberger said.
She imagines that they will also have dogs visit end-stage patients so long as the patients and doctors feel up to it.
"I'm really glad to be doing this as a volunteer," Prod said. "I think seeing the patients respond, the staff respond kind of lightens the day a little bit."
TDI is a national organization. It is the oldest and largest therapy dog organization. Diepenbrock chose to go with TDI because it has very, very strict standards.
"We're always happy to take on new members," she said.
She teaches therapy dog prep classes at Northern Wisconsin Canine Center in Eagle River. It is not necessary to take a prep class but it can be beneficial, she said.
For more information on how your dog can become a therapy dog, contact Frank at (715) 361-2004.
Kayla Breese may be reached at [email protected].
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