by Kent Jennings Brockwell
Staff Writer
Teal Krueger is probably the most popular volunteer at St. Vincent’s Medical Center. Once a week, dressed in his green vest and official identification badge, Teal walks the halls of St. Vincent’s oncology ward to visit with patients. After going from room to room for about an hour, Teal faces his biggest challenge — leaving the hospital. It seems that most of the people he meets in the hallway either know him already or want to say hello and pat him on the head.
Literally.
For the past four years, Teal, a black Labrador, and owner/teammate Jean Krueger have been providing weekly pet assisted therapy visits for patients at St. Vincent’s. For the past year and a half, they have been focusing their efforts in the hospital’s oncology wing.
Both were recently awarded for their weekly therapy sessions by the Jacksonville Humane Society. Krueger and Teal received the society’s 2004 Prince Hadley Award for Pet Assisted Therapy but Krueger said Teal really deserves all the credit.
“Receiving the award was a wonderful and total surprise,” Krueger said. “To me this is more of an award for Teal. He has worked so hard.”
At first, it may be hard for some to understand how a visit from a dog could be considered therapy, but watching one of Krueger and Teal’s therapy sessions removes all skepticism one may have.
When Krueger and Teal arrive on the oncology hall, it is as if they are enveloped by a cloud of cheerfulness that affects anyone within view of the dog when they walk by. They are greeted with smiles from everyone on the hall. From the nurses to the janitor, everyone seems to liven up a bit once Teal is on call, but the real magic happens in the patient’s rooms.
After receiving a list of patients wanting a visit, Krueger and Teal go from room to room, spending several minutes in each. With a bottle of hand sanitizer in one hand and Teal‘s leash in the other, Krueger enters each room to a weary smile from a patient who may not have had anything to smile about all week. After introductions are made, Teal slowly approaches the edge of the bed and carefully lays his head near the patient’s hand where the petting and the stories begin.
Most patients tell stories of their own pets while stroking Teal’s ears and patting his cold, wet nose.
One patient that recently received some of Teal’s award winning therapy was Deborah Green. Having been in the hospital for almost a month, Green said she missed her two “spoiled” dachshunds but Teal’s visits help to fulfill her animal fix.
During the therapy sessions, Teal seems to be the most docile animal ever bred. He quietly stands at the edge of the bed and lets the patients rub and pat away but Krueger said he just is a regular ol’ dog outside of the hospital.
“He is really no different,” she said. “He is just a good dog. If I took him to the park, he would be running with the rest of them.”
She said he is so well behaved in the hospital because he understands the seriousness of the patients’ situations.
“I know how dogs respond to people,” she said. “When someone is ill, (dogs) respond to the gentleness. They are very compassionate and they know when someone is ill. They know to be passionate to them at that time.”
It truly appears that Teal understands why he is at the hospital. Never once does he pull against the leash, growl, bark or do any other typical dog-like actions. Though a very fit animal, he walks slowly beside Krueger and stops whenever someone approaches to pat him on the head. And, when he is with a patient, he is always within arm’s reach.
As the petting commences, Krueger chats with the patients about whatever they want but many times it revolves around their cancer treatment. A cancer survivor herself, Krueger knows exactly what the patients are going through and offers words of hope and a “you can do this” spirit that seems to touch everyone she visits.
“I don’t bring it up unless they bring it up,” she said, “but I have also had cancer so I understand.”
After petting Teal and talking for a while, Krueger sanitizes the patient’s hands as she and Teal say their goodbyes to head to the next patient’s room. Though they only get to spend a few minutes with each individual patient, Ann Berry, nurse manager for the oncology unit, said Krueger and Teal offer an invaluable service that has been very helpful for the patients’ well being.
“We have patients of all ages that look forward to his visits,” Berry said. “Teal is very patient with them and they enjoy the time they get to spend with him. It takes their mind off some of the issues that they are having to deal with.”
Berry said many patients are like Green and haven’t seen their own pets in a while. Teal’s visits help alleviate a little bit of that homesickness, she said.
“Many of the patients have pets at home and this has been very helpful for them,” said Berry. “Sometimes they have extended stays here in the hospital. Many also have families that live far away and can’t visit as often as they like. Pet therapy helps with that also.”
Berry said Krueger and Teal’s visits have been so successful that the hospital is considering expanding pet therapy to other areas of St. Vincent’s such as the radiation oncology unit.
“We have had a very, very good response and there are some other areas that I think would benefit, too,” she said. “This has really been a positive thing for the patients.”
Besides Teal’s therapy sessions at St. Vincent’s, there are many medical facilities in Jacksonville that benefit from pet assisted therapy. Kim Rolfe, volunteer coordinator at the Jacksonville Humane Society, said the Society acts as a liaison for dozens of local facilities seeking pet therapy.
“We can be there for anyone who needs animal companionship,” Rolfe said, “and not only hospitals but assisted living homes, rehabilitation centers and children’s homes.”
Rolfe said there is a waiting list of about 24 organizations seeking pet assisted therapy programs but the Society only has about a dozen certified volunteer teams.
Though volunteers are direly needed, Rolfe said the steps to become a pet therapy team are a bit involved. Interested volunteers must become first become affiliated with the Jacksonville Humane Society and then must go through testing and training by the Delta Society, an international non-profit agency that supports the use of animals in therapeutic roles.
She said the testing and certification process is necessary so the Society can get an accurate measure of a volunteer’s
commitment level.
“It is much better to gauge a person’s commitment level if they go though the training materials and the evaluation process,” said Rolfe. “The patients benefit so much from it that we would hate to have a volunteer there for two weeks and then they decide that it is not for them.”
But for Krueger and Teal, this is going to be something they will do for a long time.
As they leave St. Vincent’s after one of their sessions, Teal is recognized by a nurse and stopped once again just feet from the exit door.
“Can I get some therapy?” she asks. “I read about you somewhere and I think you are wonderful.”
As she leans over to pat him on the head, Teal begins to wag his tail knowing that he has brightened the day for one more
satisfied patient.