Rehabilitation Reunion planned at St. Luke's

September 23, 2009 
 
Rhonda Muhlenbruch of Iowa City spent over 20 years as a nurse, including about 11 years as an emergency room nurse. Never did she think she would become a patient with a disease that affects only 10,000 to 15,000 individuals in the United States each year.

Last February, after a simple fall, Rhonda developed a condition known as necrotizing fasciitis, which is also commonly known as flesh-eating bacteria. Her treatment and recovery – which included the amputation of her right arm – took her from the edge of death to St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

“I only saw necrotizing fasciitis once,” said Muhlenbruch, 49. “I don’t think it’s all that common, although when you read the literature about it, I guess it’s more common than people realize.”

Muhlenbruch became all-too-familiar with this aggressive illness after Feb. 25, 2009. On that day, she was carrying her grandson while walking to her car at a local store when she tripped and fell.

“I grabbed his head with my left hand and then turned to my right so I wouldn’t land on him and landed on my elbow,” she recalled. “It didn’t hurt the very first day, and then the second day I went to work and it started to swell and hurt a bit, so I went for x-rays and they said it was broken.”

As the pain escalated, Muhlenbruch was admitted to the hospital and became progressively sicker within a 24-hour timeframe. She had developed necrotizing fasciitis and was diagnosed as having toxic shock syndrome. Her organs began to shut down. Two days after her fall, the limb where the infection had started, Muhlenbruch’s dominant, right arm, was removed at the shoulder. She spent time recovering at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics before two weeks of intensive rehabilitation work at St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

“Probably the biggest thing was her overall weakness,” explained Craig Dove, DO, St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation medical director. “Rhonda had to learn self-care skills, and not only was she weak, she didn’t have an upper extremity anymore, so she had to learn all these new techniques. Basically, we had to get her stronger so she could get up and around and take care of herself.”

“One of my biggest concerns was how am I going to do my hair and put my makeup on,” she recalled. “They taught me how to do that. They were wonderful. There was not a bad egg in the bunch at St. Luke’s. They taught me mundane things you just wouldn’t think of – like opening jars and taking hot things out of the oven.

“We have quite a few stairs at our house and we would work on the stairs every day,” Muhlenbruch continued. “They taught me how to use my opposite hand to hold the railing. Carrying groceries. If they wouldn’t have gone over it, I think I would have gotten home and thought ‘OK, now what do I do?’”

She credits her faith and family for her recovery – along with the countless doctors, nurses and specialists who helped her along the way. In time, Muhlenbruch hopes to receive a prosthesis and eventually return to her most recent career as a customer service rep, but for now, she’s thankful for time she can spend with her husband, children and grandchildren.

“I thank God I’m here to see them,” she said. “I have hope for the future. I’m alive. That’s the huge thing.”

Rhonda Muhlenbruch will be sharing her inspirational story with other former St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) patients at an upcoming reunion on Tuesday, Sept. 29.

Who:
Former patients and family members of St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

What:
Rehab Reunion

When:
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
5-7 p.m.

Where:
St. Luke’s Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Therapy Gym, 6th floor
(Valet parking is available at the West Entrance)

Why:
Come learn what’s happening at St. Luke’s, reunite with others

How:
Please RSVP to 319/369-8877