The dogtor is in
How therapy dogs ease the tension for patients, families
BELLEVUE, WASH. — During a recent afternoon shift change on the oncology floor at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue, the usual suspects crowded the hallway: nurses, aides, visitors, patients in wheelchairs towing IV poles.
But one visitor quickly attracted a circle of admirers: Viansa, a yellow lab with soft ears and understanding eyes.
Viansa is part of a team of five certified therapy dogs who visit the hospital weekly with their handlers to bring patients a measure of calm and reassurance.
The dogs listen attentively as children read to them, lay a head on the shoulder of the infirm and ease the tension in a room full of anxious family members.
Karen Keenan, Viansa’s handler and a nurse herself, said that being in the hospital is often a difficult time in a person’s life, scary for both the patient and the family. A dog can offer comfort and unconditional love.
She recalled a past visit to a hospital room.
“One family was surrounding the dying patient. Viansa went from person to person. They were loving on her, crying,” she said.
Viansa was trained as a puppy to be a Guide Dog for the Blind, but she had a spot on her own eye that veterinarians worried would become a cataract. A blind dog couldn’t lead the blind, Keenan said, but her temperament — easygoing and well-behaved — made her a perfect therapy dog. CERTIFIED, TRAINED To become part of Overlake’s dogtherapy team, a dog must be at least a year old, be certified as a therapy dog, and undergo additional training in hospital procedures and protocol.
Brenda Epstein, Overlake’s resource specialist, said the dogs have to have excellent behaviour, obey commands and remain calm in the presence of noise and sudden movements.
It might seem counterintuitive to introduce a dog into a hospital’s sterile environment, but Epstein said the dogs are bathed and brushed before they arrive for their shift. And the handlers themselves use hand sanitizer both before and after entering a patient’s room. She notes that the dogs can’t visit isolation rooms, where the risk of infection is high.
Truitt, a black and white sheltie, divides his time between Overlake, the Swedish Medical Center Issaquah Campus and several nursing homes on the Eastside. His handler, Laurie Wilson, said she loves pets and had experienced the joy they could bring.
“I knew how much they helped me, calming me, bringing a smile to my face,” Wilson said.
She recalled a hospital shift several years ago at Overlake when a nurse asked if she and Truitt could visit one more room. When they walked in, Wilson said the man’s eyes were half-closed and he was lying quite still. She put a towel on the bed and placed Truitt on the towel.
“The man started to stroke him, saying, ‘Nice dog. Good boy.’ And then, ‘You’re my angel, you and your dog.’” As Wilson led Truitt from the room, the dog balked at the door. Wilson said he kept looking back, as if he didn’t want to leave the man’s side.
Allison Mollner, who handles Charlie, a 3-year-old mini Australian labradoodle, recalled a visit to an older man on the floor for heart patients. His sight was poor and his physical condition seemed fragile, so she held Charlie in her lap and guided the man’s hand to the dog.
After a minute, the man asked, “What kind of song would Charlie like?” He then started singing in a beautiful voice from a repertoire of barbershop-quartet songs. A visitor arrived, another quartet member, and together the men harmonized on another song.
“I don’t know if we would have had that moment if I hadn’t had Charlie,” Mollner said.
Keenan said that a nonverbal patient will get happy at the sight of a dog. A crabby patient will cheer up, making the patient more co-operative with hospital staff. ‘MADE MY DAY’ Patient Kathy Barnes got one look at the dog in the doorway and thumped her palm against her heart. From her hospital bed, she called, “C’mere, baby. Soft, beautiful girl.” Barnes removed the oxygen tubes from her nose so she could nuzzle with Viansa. Barnes’ face above her hospital gown was bright and animated. She called to her husband in the hall, so he could meet the dog, too.
“They do wonderful things for the spirit,” she said. “She made my whole day.”