Therapy Dogs. Outline 4/11/2016 BRENDAN CURLEY, DO, MPH WITH PRINCESS DANGER CURLEY

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Therapy Dogs BRENDAN CURLEY, DO, MPH WITH PRINCESS DANGER CURLEY Outline Our story (Princess Danger and Myself) will be told throughout the talk Background- Start of Therapy Dogs What does it take to

1 Therapy Dogs BRENDAN CURLEY, DO, MPH WITH PRINCESS DANGER CURLEY Outline Our story (Princess Danger and Myself) will be told throughout the talk Background- Start of Therapy Dogs What does it take to get certified? Patient story Research into Safety/Benefit Major Centers using therapy dogs Patient story #2 Benefits in your office What to have volunteers bring beforehand Maintaining certification Sample visit 1

Sample visit Likely snoring and farting from one of us Disclosures I have no relevant

2 Main purpose of this talk Have some fun and hear some heart warming stories! Not a traditional lecture More an informal talk about therapy dogs and their role Sample visit Likely snoring and farting from one of us Disclosures I have no relevant disclosures for this talk on Therapy Dogs Someone once offered me 5 dollars as a thanks, but I said no 2

3 Our Story Princess Danger and myself in Philadelphia This is the beautiful, intelligent woman responsible for me and Danger s lives together She got an engagement ring, I got the puppy Clear winner, right? Princess Danger born on 11/30/2009 English Bulldog from New Jersey (Don t call her Snookie!) 3

A Ham from Day 1 Therapy Dogs cannot be certified until they are 1 year of age Must be well trained, good manners, and well controlled Dogs of all shapes, sizes, age and breeds are welcome as long as

w Alliance of Therapy Dogs) at 13.5 months Therapy Dogs The use of therapy dogs has been credited to Elaine Smith R.N.

4 A Ham from Day 1 Therapy Dogs cannot be certified until they are 1 year of age Must be well trained, good manners, and well controlled Dogs of all shapes, sizes, age and breeds are welcome as long as they meet those requirements Princess Danger was certified by Therapy Dogs Inc (Now Alliance of Therapy Dogs) at 13.5 months Therapy Dogs The use of therapy dogs has been credited to Elaine Smith R.N., who started having her dog (a golden retriever) volunteer in 1976 Founded Therapy Dogs International Therapy Dogs are registered and insured by a central agency Paws can Heal, the program at Phoenix Children s Hospital accepts multiple different registrations, preferred being Pet Partners Dogs have to be 1 year old to be registered Does not afford any special rights such as a service dog or a seeing eye dog 4

5 Therapy Dogs Have been shown to decrease anxiety in an outpatient radiation oncology setting (Journal of Community and Supportive Oncology) Are used in many different settings Nursing homes, hospitals, pediatric hospitals, outpatient clinics Libraries Colleges (Medical schools, including Midwestern) to decrease stress during finals/exam periods Who can Benefit? Children having dental procedures People receiving cancer treatment People in long-term care facilities Those with chronic heart failure Veterans with PTSD Doctors, nurses, med students, respiratory techs, and the list goes on and on! 5

approved in teams She s not a working dog, she s a therapy dog Provide comfort and stress relief to patients, staff, and family members Visit nursing homes,

6 No really, what is a Therapy Dog? Trained, tested, and certified to be able to consistently and safely provide comfort and affection to people in various situations Therapy dogs are tested and approved in teams She s not a working dog, she s a therapy dog Provide comfort and stress relief to patients, staff, and family members Visit nursing homes, hospitals, schools, etc. Testing Princess Danger has been tested and passed testing with Therapy Dogs Inc, and Pet Partners She has passed a behavioral veterinarian psychological exam at Penn Has volunteered at Penn, WVU, and now Phoenix Children s What is an average test? What is required? 6

Testing Sample issues: Accepting a friendly

approximately 15 therapy dogs at the time the

7 Testing Sample issues: Accepting a friendly stranger Walking though a crowd Come when called Crowded and petted by several people LOUD NOISES! Strange people Penn Joined HUP s PUPs One of approximately 15 therapy dogs at the time the program started Volunteered for 1.5 years at their program 7

8 WVU Only second therapy dog ever at WVU Basically had to start the program from scratch Little to no guidance Lots of resistance from administration, infection control, and anyone who wasn t used to seeing a dog in the hospital Patient Story 1- She didn t want to talk 8

9 Major Centers using therapy dogs US News and World Report Top 5 Hospitals 1) Mass General 2) Mayo (Minnesota) 3) Johns Hopkins 4) UCLA 5) Cleveland Clinic 9

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12 Patient Story 2 Can you come see this patient? Story continued He had a very aggressive form of leukemia that he had fought valiantly, but he had lost the battle. He was on comfort measures, being given only medications to make his last days of life as comfortable as possible. He was much younger than his sunken eyes showed, as I was able to tell by his young wife and high-school-aged daughter 12

They had spent 18 years raising their daughter, and now he was dying

13 They were obviously having such a tough time with his imminent death. I thought about how hard it must be for him and his wife. They had spent 18 years raising their daughter, and now he was dying as she was about to become an adult, and her mom would be left alone. Enter Chunk! 13

The family left that day broken, their husband and father taken from them prematurely and unfairly.

14 The patient died the day after the puppy joined their family. He passed peacefully, surrounded by his family. I was at his bedside and let them know that he had died, and their emotions came pouring out. The family left that day broken, their husband and father taken from them prematurely and unfairly. Cancer is not a fair disease, especially when it relentlessly attacks the young and innocent. We did everything we could to save his life, and in the end we could not succeed. However, Princess Danger had changed their lives forever. I am sure that when they look in the eyes of their dog, they will not only see their lost loved one, but will always remember the day my therapy dog changed their lives. Sample Visit 14

15 Questions? 15

DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN SERVICE

DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN SERVICE DOGS AND THERAPY DOGS Differentiating between service dogs and therapy dogs is not a matter of splitting hairs or political correctness. Each classification has a very different