A furry prescription: How CJW Medical Center's canine companions elevate patient care
On a recent Monday, Gray Underwood and Bruce Alt were making their regular rounds at Johnston-Willis Hospital with their therapy dogs when they stopped in on a female patient who was leaving the hospital that day.
The patient was beyond excited to see Zellie, Adeline, Dooly and Rudy and invited all four dogs into her bed for an impromptu photo opportunity.
“She was just thrilled. She said, ‘You all have made my day,’” Underwood recalled. “The people that like the dogs will tell us seeing them is the best part of their visit. Many of them have dogs at home that they miss or they’ve lost a dog, so they really enjoy the visits.”
The heartwarming legacy of the CJW Medical Center Pet Therapy Program started nearly 18 years ago with a single dog, Fraser. Fraser belonged to Daniel Ronquillo, an expressive therapist at Chippenham Hospital’s Tucker Pavilion founded the program and continues to serve as its dedicated animal therapy coordinator.
“It started slowly with Fraser, and then we added another, and soon I just had tons of people reaching out, eager to be a part of it,” Ronquillo said.
This powerful human-animal bond is not just anecdotal; research has shown that therapy dogs positively affect patients’ pain levels and satisfaction with their hospital stay. They provide invaluable social support, help lower blood pressure, and causing improvements in mood and other indicators of distress.
Today, the program thrives with more than a dozen dogs regularly making rounds to see patients at both hospitals. Most of the dogs belong to volunteers who handle them, but some belong to hospital employees and are handled by Ronquillo or their owners.
To ensure the highest standards of safety and care, dog owners must become volunteers at these HCA Healthcare facilities and the dogs must become certified therapy dogs.
“The program has really evolved over the years,” Ronquillo said. “The administration loves it; the community loves it.”
“The nurses and the staff – they are probably as in love with the dogs as the patients,” added Maria Gilmore, manager of volunteers for CJW Medical Center.
Gilmore said that finding volunteers and dogs is typically not a problem as the program spreads by word of mouth among the community due to volunteers, hospital colleagues and former patients.
“There was a patient who met Amber, one of our beloved dogs here, who loves to get into the bed with people to cuddle if they’re OK with that,” said Ronquillo. “That patient recently reached out and said what can I do to become a part of this program. And now he is ready to have his dog become involved.”
On a typical day, the dogs and their owners will make their rounds throughout both hospitals covering most medical units, some intensive care units, inpatient rehabilitation and a stop in administration to say hello. They will often start at nurse stations to see if there are particular patients who might enjoy a visit and continue walking the halls and popping in to see who else might be interested.
Some of the dogs have special focus areas. Ronquillo handles Biscuit and Boddhi and takes them to inpatient behavioral health at Chippenham Hospital for group therapy sessions. Others, like Underwood’s 12-year-old Wiggles, spend most of their time visiting patients and survivors at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Network at Johnston-Willis Hospital.
“They will borrow Wiggles and she will hang out with them for hours,” Underwood said. “The cancer survivor patients who come back for mental support actively look for her and ask, ‘Where is Wiggles?’ She even has her own chair for naps.”
Joy Singh, director of outpatient behavioral health services for CJW Medical Center and Biscuit’s owner, said she has noticed that patients moving from inpatient to outpatient care find tremendous comfort in the dogs helping with that transition.
“It really helps build trust and comfort and they’re very open to the program. It makes that transition so much easier and they get so excited,” she said. “When patients who step down see Biscuit, they’re like “Oh my God, it’s Biscuit!’ He’s like our ambassador.”
Underwood, who is the lead volunteer for the program and has been visiting the hospitals with his dogs for a decade, said that everyone benefits, including the dogs.
“It’s very rewarding and the dogs love it,” he said. “Our dogs are completely spoiled because just about every nurse station we visit now keeps treats. So, the dogs know exactly where the treats are and look for the nurse who’s going to open the drawer.”