10/15/2009

Southern Indiana Rehab Hospital receives Build-A-Bear Foundation Grant

Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation has provided a one thousand dollar grant to Southern Indiana Rehab Hospital to provide care and training for their facility/therapy dog Lily.  The grant will help cover the cost of veterinary visits, food, additional training and community awareness.

Lily, a female two year old Golden Doodle, provides opportunities for patients to participate in pet-visitation throughout the day, as well as one-on-one treatment sessions with therapists.  The animal's presence provides a safe home like feeling with a less isolated and sterile atmosphere.  Therapists use the dog as a tool to elicit a response, whether physical or verbal, from patients. Lily is great for the rehab due to her hypo-allergic coat.  

The Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation is committed to making life more bearable for children, families and pets, in need of a helping paw.  With the sale of each full-sized Bearemy’s Kennel Pals® friend -- a collection of Build-A-Bear Workshop® plush dogs -- one dollar is donated to domestic pet programs including local animal shelters, stray pet rescue and rehabilitation organizations, and pet education programs around the country.  These funds are available to qualified non-profit organizations in the Untied States and Canada though a quarterly grant process.

About SIRH

Southern Indiana Rehab Hospital is a 60-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital providing comprehensive, high quality rehab and medical services for adults and children with injury, illness or disability. A combination of physical, speech and occupational therapies are used with rehab nursing and advanced technologies to improve an individual’s functional abilities.  For more information about SIRH visit sirh.org.

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