TIRR Outpatient Programs Move to "Super Clinic"

Two outpatient programs and a related research center at The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research have moved to a specially designed "super clinic" near the Texas Medical Center. The three TIRR programs will be consolidated into 23,000 square feet in the Kirby Glen retail center, 2455 South Braeswood at Kirby Drive.

TIRR's Challenge Program is a nationally recognized outpatient brain injury program, and TIRR's Outpatient Therapy Services provides physical, occupational and speech therapies for individuals who have experienced catastrophic injury or illness. The Brain Injury Research Center, a department of TIRR that was created with the awarding of a National Institute on Disability & Rehabilitation Research Model System grant in 1988, also will office in the new space. The combined programs are expected to handle at least 14,000 patient visits annually.

"With the opening of this TIRR outpatient facility, we are able to present the patients we are committed to and those who refer to us an even better reason to trust their care to us," said E. Ashley Smith, president and CEO of TIRR Systems. "This vital new clinic exemplifies the quality of care and value of the services we provide."

"Consolidation of these three important TIRR programs gives us a more efficient delivery of services," said Louisa Adelung, president of TIRR, a not-for-profit hospital in the Texas Medical Center. "It is advantageous to our patients and researchers that patient treatment programs are taking place daily in close proximity to research in traumatic brain injury being done by one of our grant-supported Model System research centers, the Brain Injury Research Center."

WKMC Architects, their principal Don Carter, AIA, and a team of engineers and interior designers, worked with the TIRR staff to design a vibrant facility. The renovation was completed by Versicon, a general contractor. The new clinic combines the services of the three separate programs, their synergy realized in the creatively designed "office, gym, clinic" environment. By visually "opening up" the center, and making it less formal and less institutional, the comfort level of the patients increases, providing a more active environment where assisting the patient in rehabilitation becomes everyone's goal, said Adelung.

The 2,500-square-foot I.W. Marks Therapy Gym is central to all activities and will be shared by the patients of the TIRR Outpatient Therapy Services and Challenge Programs. The specialized gym includes adjustable mats for exercises, treadmills, weights, parallel bar walkers, stair climbers, wheelchair work tables, table-top exercisers, wall-pulley weight lifts, and several areas for exercise with object equipment. Marks is a former patient at TIRR, and has been an outpatient at TIRR Outpatient Therapy Services in their previous location. His financial contribution provided the funding to make this one of the top therapy gyms for patients with special needs.

The gym includes a wheelchair clinic, where the chair is fitted to the specifications of the individual patient, and patients can try different designs and cushion configurations. A large training kitchen was designed for clients of the two programs, with half of the cabinetry and appliances compliant with Americans With Disabilities standards, and the other half used for Activities of Daily Living instruction.

Floor patterns reflect milestones for distance walking and provide a way-finding device for patients. The various colored wall surfaces can be used as goals to reach in the large racetrack corridor system. A slight undulation of the core walls created by angles and curved portions adds to the interest of the space and turns the corridors into therapy areas as well. Handrails line the walls for better orientation of patients who need guidance and support.

Kirby Glen Shopping Center is a project of KB Centre Ltd. The center is approximately two miles from TIRR's Texas Medical Center location, and has easy access to Highway 288 and the 610 Loop. There is ample free surface parking.

TIRR Systems provides a comprehensive continuum of medical rehabilitation through its facilities TIRR, TIRR LifeBridge, TIRR Rehabilitation Centers, and TIRR Foundation. TIRR has been recognized as one of America's best hospitals by U.S.News & World Report every year since the inception of a nationwide survey of physicians that is published annually.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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