Select Specialty Hospital - Omaha

10/01/2025

It’s National Physical Therapy Month. Our theme throughout October is, “Your future is better with PT!” We will highlight how physical therapy can lead to a better, stronger tomorrow.

Our physical therapists are here to guide patients through every step of recovery, from hospital to home. For our patients, that means helping them return to the moments that matter. For our physical therapists and physical therapist assistants, it means making a difference and helping people move forward.

Join us throughout the month as we highlight the power of physical therapy.

09/27/2025

Michael Scott has a lot of faith in physical therapists. And he has a lot of faith in himself. When a motorcycle crash paralyzed his legs, it didn’t take long for the 29-year-old to move from acceptance to adapting to and overcoming his spinal cord injury. A physician-led team of physical, occupational and recreational therapists from HonorHealth Rehabilitation Hospital were there to help, with innovative technology and helping him develop strategies for everyday tasks like dressing himself.

To learn more about Select Medical’s network of hospitals, visit: https://www.selectmedical.com/about-us/

Lying in his hospital bed moments after a doctor gave him some of the worst news of his life, Michael Scott found solace.

09/26/2025

Spinal cord injuries (SCI) demand highly specialized care. At Select Medical specialty hospitals, an interdisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, therapists, and dietitians and others collaborate to address the complex challenges patients’ face – from blood pressure fluctuations and pain, to muscle loss, pressure sores and digestive issues that can lead to malnutrition.

“Good nutrition plays a supportive role in recovery,” said Camilla Johnson, clinical dietitian, Baylor Scott & White Institute for Rehabilitation. She supports and educates patients with SCI during their rehabilitation. “In the hospital, good nutrition reduces the length of stay and … it enhances overall outcomes,” she said.

Here are four ways our dietitians contribute to patient care to promote healing and prevent complications.

09/25/2025

Laz Reeder checked into a hospital for hernia surgery, but aspirated during anesthesia and went into respiratory failure. The 35-year-old Florida man needed two life support machines to survive. A month later when Laz had stabilized, his wife Sierra turned to the continuum of care at Select Specialty Hospital - Pensacola and Select Medical Rehabilitation - Pensacola to continue his recovery and rehabilitation. Laz had mountains of motivation waiting for him at home: his baby daughter, Nyla.

Read his full story: https://bit.ly/3IEJZPj

09/25/2025

Life changes with a spinal cord injury (SCI). Nurses play an important role in supporting patients with an SCI and their loved ones as they navigate their recovery journey.

As instrumental players on our physician-led multidisciplinary care team, nurses direct care and advocate for their patients’ physical and emotional needs as they recover and prepare to return home after rehabilitation.

Our Registered Nurses (RNs) provide 24-hour hands-on care, tending to a range of needs from administering medications to monitoring patients’ bowel and bladder functions to ensuring patients change position frequently to avoid pressure wounds. Nurses also reinforce therapy, helping patients put into practice exercises to strengthen deconditioned muscles and new ways of dressing and grooming.

Additionally, nurses offer emotional support to their patients with an SCI – problem-solving with them as they work through challenges. In preparation for discharge, nurses also ensure patients and their loved ones are aware of community resources to support their independence and well-being.

09/22/2025

Patients living with spinal cord injury (SCI) can experience sensory challenges that inhibit mobility and create fall risks. Fall prevention education is a focus throughout the SCI rehabilitation journey by Select Medical specialty hospital teams, including physical therapists.

Physical therapists help educate individuals with SCI about fall risk by integrating safe mobility strategies early into their care plan. For instance, the introduction of any new equipment, such as a bed or wheelchair, increases the risk for falls. Fall prevention is also underscored in a comprehensive rehabilitation plan of care across disciplines to incorporate equipment that builds muscle strength, promotes balance and improves mobility.

Deep commitment and collaboration across the interdisciplinary team of rehabilitation specialists is essential to ensuring the safe discharge of our patients with an SCI.

09/18/2025

We asked our clinicians to talk about the importance of the environmental services team, and they did not disappoint.

09/17/2025

Diagnosed with congestive heart failure at age 32, Robert Sauerwein kept surgery at bay for almost two decades by managing his condition with medication. That changed when he passed out while dining at a restaurant. Emergency services rushed Robert to the hospital. Several interventions, surgeries and device placements followed.

After 11 weeks, Robert stabilized and was ready to focus on the next step—strengthening his lungs to free himself from the ventilator and returning to eating and drinking. For that, he chose Select Specialty Hospital - Harrisburg for critical illness recovery. After success there, he continued building strength at Penn State Health Rehabilitation Hospital before returning home.

Read his story: https://bit.ly/4gzK9nW

09/17/2025

A devastating rollover car accident left 19-year-old Nathan Beck with a spinal cord injury. Two spinal fusion surgeries were necessary to prevent any further damage to his spinal cord. Once he was stable, Nathan transferred to Select Specialty Hospital - St. Louis. There, his care team would help him regain the strength to move on his own and care for himself again.

To learn more about Select Medical’s network of hospitals, visit: https://www.selectmedical.com/about-us/

A devastating rollover car accident left Nathan Beck with a spinal cord injury. Two spinal fusion surgeries were necessary to prevent any further damage to his spinal cord. Once he was stable, Nathan transferred to Select Specialty Hospital – St. Louis. There, his care team would help him regain t...

09/16/2025

Our nurses continually refine their skills by caring for patients with a wide range of serious health conditions. We understand the complexity of our patients’ conditions and offer robust continuing education and training to ensure our nurses are ready and confident to provide the highest quality, outcomes-based care. New nurses benefit from a range of programs that combine mentorship with hands-on experience to develop their clinical expertise and critical thinking skills.

To learn more about our professional development opportunities, visit: https://careers.selectmedical.com/professional-development/education/hospital-education/

06/19/2025

Today, we acknowledge the importance of Juneteenth, which commemorates the abolition of slavery.

02/13/2025

Adriana Perales has weathered life-long kidney disease and has had two pancreas transplants and a kidney transplant—she is no stranger to the difficulty of healing after a major illness. Following a breast cancer diagnosis, Adriana began chemotherapy but the treatment took an enormous toll on her body. Her doctors decided that a mastectomy was the best course of action and Adriana was left bed-bound and reliant on a ventilator to breathe as she recovered. Stable but weak, and unable to care for herself, Adriana was transferred to Select Specialty Hospital - Omaha. There, an interdisciplinary team developed a personalized treatment plan to help Adriana heal.

Read Adriana's story here: https://tinyurl.com/3edyjr88

10/29/2024

After undergoing triple bypass surgery, Lyle Sypal, 70, was on a medication that could only be administered in a hospital – and physicians told Lyle he might be on it for the rest of his life. Lyle and his wife faced a decision: discontinue the medication and go home on hospice care or try Select Specialty Hospital – Omaha and see if the physician-led, interdisciplinary team could help Lyle regain his health.

Read Lyle's story here: https://bit.ly/40nZlOF

09/18/2024

After complications during a surgical procedure left her body starved for oxygen, Teri Trammel awoke from a medically induced coma two weeks later. Her family, hopeful that she would one day be strong enough to return home, transferred Teri to Select Specialty Hospital – Omaha for specialized care. On admission, Teri was incredibly weak and relying on a ventilator to breathe. The physician-led team at Select Specialty Hospital implemented a personalized treatment plan that would set her on the path toward home.

Read Teri's story here: https://bit.ly/3XtpRDb

06/28/2024

Ronald Weeks awoke in the hospital three days after falling in his home. The 70-year-old plumber and business owner went through multiple surgeries to address his injuries and could not eat, breathe or move on his own. Once he was stable, Ronald was transferred to Select Specialty Hospital - Omaha. There, an interdisciplinary team of nurses, therapists and clinical staff began a treatment plan to help Ronald start down the path of recovery.

Read Ronald's story here: https://www.selectspecialtyhospitals.com/locations-and-tours/ne/omaha/omaha/page-data/location-detail-tabs/success-stories/ronald-weeks-story/