Life after injury: Why advanced rehabilitation is about more than just physical healing

Avhishek Swami, a supply chain consultant at Deloitte, highlights how rehabilitation programs are essential for more than just physical healing. He credits recovery therapies with restoring his professional independence and providing the emotional resilience needed to bounce back into the community.

“Rehabilitation helped me maximise whatever I am left with and successfully continue my career. It helped me heal at a psychological and emotional level, restoring my independence. Rehabilitation enabled social and community integration- which is vital, as many people can find themselves isolated in a room after an injury,” said Swami.

Swami suffered a D6 Asia A spinal cord injury after a fall in August 2020. Three months of rehabilitation at the Institute of Neurosciences gave him the courage to go back to work, go out with friends and lead a normal life despite some limitations.

Dr Suparno Ganguly, Director of Neurorehabilitation, Institute of Neuroscience, Kolkata, has co-authored a book along with Dr Lal Bhatia on life post-neurological and spinal injuries, where rehabilitation goes beyond physiotherapy. 

“People used to think rehabilitation is only about physiotherapy. It is just a small part of rehabilitation. Physiotherapy deals with muscles. But the transformation from physical improvement to functional improvement is done by an occupational therapist. The speech part and the swallowing part are done by the speech-language pathologist. Psychology part by a psychologist. The nursing and medical part is by us. It is an orchestra. Rehab has emerged over the years. Now it is a seamless transition from the acute phase to the functional phase,” said Ganguly.

The type of injuries that his department helps with include spinal cord injuries, head injuries, Parkinson's, stroke, motor neuron disease, peripheral nerve injuries, musculoskeletal injuries, and neurological conditions. The rehabilitation process during the golden period, which is three months post these injuries, defines life in the years to come.

The department includes nursing staff, rehabilitation nursing staff, physiotherapist, occupational therapist, speech therapist, pathologist, social worker, rehabilitation psychologist, and rehabilitation health assistant. 

“It is a smooth transition between the acute setup and the rehabilitation department. Here is a mixture of conventional therapy and advanced technology. We are the only ones in the robotics department in the whole of Eastern India in a private setup. It is a man and a machine department," added Dr Ganguly.

“On January 8th 2025, at 4 am, I rushed to the hospital. Doctors gave me 72 hours to survive. I flew in an air ambulance from Dubai to the Kolkata Institute of Neurosciences, which did not spare me. They made me get up and walk. Had they not done that, had they not been aggressive, I would still be lying in bed, so they gave me the courage to walk," said Dr Lal Bhatia.

“Life doesn’t end after a life-altering injury. With the advancement of medical sciences, today we can still maximise what we are left with, and there are ways. You have to modify the way you used to live, which is what rehabilitation gives you,” said Swami, who has no sensation in his lower limbs and moves in a wheelchair.

Now freelancing in Dubai, businessman Dr Lal Bhatia hasn't let a stroke stop his career. Although he still needs nursing care for dressing and balance due to left-sided weakness, he remains a vocal advocate for recovery. “You have to get out of the fear to get to the point where you can behave like a normal person with a stroke,” he says.

There is hope with the advancement of medical science for patients in eastern India, with facilities to help lead a fairly independent life. The key message is: Life does not stop.