St Joseph's Hospital - Pulmonary Rehabilitation

Provides assessment and treatment for clients living with chronic lung disease who are motivated to stay independent, live better and breathe easier
Focused on enhancing quality of life by offering a comprehensive and individually tailored approach to chronic lung disease through evaluation of the client's lung disease, providing education, skills and supervised exercise, with goals to:

• Help clients better understand their lung condition
• Increase self-confidence and self-reliance in day-to-day management of lung disease
• Reduce the intensity and impact of symptoms of lung disease
• Prevent or reduce hospital admissions, reduce length of hospital stays and physician visits
• Provide a personalized exercise program to increase strength and endurance, decrease shortness of breath, and improve overall quality of life.
• Encourage/assist clients to maintain their pulmonary health and overall fitness post-program

The Pulmonary Rehabilitation Program focuses on the following skills:

• Enhancing understanding of the cause, progression, and treatment of chronic lung disease
• Optimizing inhaler medications techniques
• Breathing techniques to reduce the feeling of shortness of breath
• Airway clearance techniques to control coughing and improve mucous clearance
• Strategies to help conserve energy and perform daily activities more easily
• A personalized exercise program to help improve shortness of breath and overall quality of life