May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and in any medical facility, it can be both physically and mentally challenging for patients. At Essentia Health-St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Brainerd, there are capable canines helping put minds at ease.
“It’s a bright spot of their day and their week, really,” stated Joe Galloway, FOCUS Unit chemical dependency counselor at Essentia-St. Joseph’s. “The therapy dogs are calming and uplifting. There’s always a smile, even for those who are down and having a rough time in their life. It’s a beautiful thing.”
There are plenty of mental health benefits Essentia Health employees have witnessed between each patient and pooch, including emotional support and stress reduction.
“They seeing us coming through the door, and they—I’ve seen them drop to their knees, and just lay on the floor and holding Maddie and start crying,” said Connie Christensen, an Essentia Health pet therapy volunteer and Maddie Jane’s owner. “Having Maddie Jane there, it just gives them that break to enjoy a hug from a dog, a pet from a dog.”
For volunteers with the program, the stories created from the bonds patients and therapy dogs form cannot be overstated. Pet therapy volunteer Gladys Bhymer told one such story about an interaction with her dog, Chloe.
“We were the only ones in the room with this lady. I sat Chloe on the bed beside her, and [Chloe] was licking on her hand as I was holding it, as the lady took her last breath. This lady loved dogs, and it’s just how appropriate that she had a dog with her in her final moments.”
According to the Hope for Depression Research Foundation, depression affects over 18 million adults in any given year. For Essentia Health, playing any part in helping raise their patients’ spirits is all the facility can ask for.
“Just about everybody experiences some kind of depression or anxiety during the course of their life. It’s important that we’re here and try to provide some services and some hope,” Galloway said.
“People are dealing with really big things,” said pet therapy volunteer Kari Gohman. “For just a minute or two, they see [my dog] Lenny. They get to smile and pet him and go somewhere else.”
According to the Essentia Health Volunteer Services Manager Rose Zupan, there are roughly 100 pet therapy volunteers between both St. Joseph’s Medical Center and the clinic.
