Pulmonary Rehabilitation
Breathe Better, Live Better
Developing a lung condition can seriously diminish quality of life for both the person affected and for their family. Pulmonary rehabilitation offered through MyMichigan Health can often enable you to return to a more active and enjoyable life.
How Pulmonary Rehab Can Help
Our goal is to reduce your shortness of breath and improve your overall strength and stamina. Successfully controlling some physical symptoms improves the ability to participate in day-to-day activities.
While treatment results can vary by patient and condition severity, our program is designed to lessen the physical and emotional impact of chronic lung diseases and maximize your breathing capacity. Pulmonary rehabilitation cannot cure lung disease, but it has been shown to decrease the number and length of hospitalizations and help you to be more in control of your breathing.
Personalized Treatment
Pulmonary rehabilitation available through MyMichigan Health offers a physician-directed multidisciplinary team approach, including respiratory therapists, exercise physiologists, and nurses. The focus is a personalized approach to therapy with an individualized treatment plan.
The program consists of:
- 2-3 sessions per week for 8-12 weeks
- Therapeutic exercise that includes aerobic strength training
- Education on lung anatomy, breathing retraining, oxygen utilization and safety, medication awareness, nutrition and much more, to help you live a more active, enjoyable lifestyle.
- A positive atmosphere that helps set realistic goals to breathe more efficiently with the lung function you have
- Breathing technique training to help overcome moments of panic and assist you in returning to normal breathing
- Increased endurance levels so that you can walk longer distances with less shortness of breath
- Increased sociability and sharing of personal experiences with other people who have chronic lung disease
- Improved understanding of self-management with home oxygen use and the oxygen requirements of your body
Ongoing Support
MyMichigan Health offers Better Breathers Club, a free support group for individuals with chronic lung conditions and their family and friends.
For additional educational program offerings and support, please contact the Pulmonary Rehab location closest to you.
Who Can Benefit from Pulmonary Rehab?
You can benefit from pulmonary rehab if you have:
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD), such as - chronic bronchitis, emphysema and asthma
- Other diseases that cause breathing problems, including - interstitial lung diseases, pulmonary fibrosis, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, sarcoidosis or any other breathing-related problem
- Lung transplant or lung reduction surgery patients benefit from pulmonary rehabilitation and it is often a prerequisite
Costs, Insurance and Referrals
Pulmonary rehabilitation is often covered by Medicare and most commercial insurances when ordered by a physician. A Pulmonary Function Test (PFT) is required to determine if you qualify for Pulmonary Rehab. Please inquire about a PFT or discuss your PFT results with your physician to determine if you qualify.
If you have questions about coverage, your insurance carrier or your employer’s benefits department is the best source of information.
