Spinal Cord Injuries & Rehabilitation

A spinal cord injury is when injury has occurred to the spinal cord or nerves near it. A spinal cord injury can be considered complete or incomplete. A complete injury is when all feeling or movement is lost below the injury location. An incomplete injury is when there may be some feeling or ability to move below the injury location.

For someone who has experienced a spinal cord injury, early intervention through rehabilitation can help prevent further disability and reduce the possibility of complications.

At our hospital, our interdisciplinary healthcare team works with the patient and family members to provide the highest quality of life possible following a spinal injury. We coordinate treatments to enhance the patient’s physical, emotional, and social abilities. We focus on preventing further injury, while enhancing sensory and motor functions.

Treatments include (as appropriate):

• Physical Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Speech Therapy
• Dysphagia Management
• Assistive Technology
• Neurogenic Bowel & Bladder Management
• Respiratory Therapy
• Family & Caregiver Education
• Home Evaluations
• Case Management

Shawn Wilbur has been named Chief Executive Officer of ClearSky Rehabilitation Hospital of Rio Rancho. The new inpatient rehabilitation hospital will open this fall at 2401 Westside Boulevard SE in Rio Rancho. The hospital will feature 25 private patient rooms and provide rehabilitative services to patients living with disabling injuries or illnesses such as strokes, brain injuries, hip fractures, spinal injuries, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and other debilitating events.

Wilbur brings nearly 22 years of experience to the hospital, having served in leadership roles in business development, recruitment, referrals, community relations, marketing, and sales. Most recently, she was responsible for a rehabilitation hospital’s inpatient and outpatient admissions and business development programs, including referral and customer service strategies.

Wilbur earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Madonna College in Livonia, Mich. She continued her education to become a paramedic. She then attended Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Mich., to become a Registered Respiratory Therapist.

“I’m looking forward to helping the hospital fulfill its mission in providing a higher, specialized level of rehabilitative care to the community,” Wilbur says. “We plan to make a positive impact on the community by meeting this unmet need for rehabilitative services, while allowing community members to remain closer to their homes, families, and primary care providers while receiving care.”

Services at ClearSky Rehabilitation Hospital of Rio Rancho will be physician-led and include physical, occupational, and speech therapy; rehabilitative nursing; case management; respiratory therapy; dietary services; and other specialized care. Following discharge, patients will continue to receive further resources as needed, such as follow-up physician appointments, outpatient therapy, or home health.

ClearSky Rehabilitation Hospital of Rio Rancho is a member of ClearSky Health, a premier rehabilitative healthcare provided dedicated to healing and transforming the lives of individuals who live with disabling injuries and illnesses.