At A Glance
- Ranken Jordan’s outpatient therapy program provides coordinated care for medically complex children through physical, occupational, speech, and aquatic therapy in a welcoming, supportive, and fun environment..
- Guided by its unique Care Beyond the BedsideⓇ model, Ranken Jordan incorporates play into everything patients do, including therapy.
- In addition to a collaborative therapy team, specialized therapy equipment, and quick appointment scheduling, Ranken Jordan offers community-building events and activities that support both children and their families beyond regular therapy visits.
For many children and their parents, therapy can feel intimidating. At Ranken Jordan, we work hard to make it feel something else entirely: encouraging, engaging, and even fun.
Whether a child is building strength in our warm water therapy pool or practicing movement through play, our outpatient therapy team is focused on helping children reach their goals in an environment designed for kids.
Here are six things we want families to know about outpatient therapy at Ranken Jordan.
1. We are experts in pediatric complex care.
Simply put, we’re drawn to complexity. We’re not intimidated by a child who is very complex and we say yes as often as we possibly can because it is our vision that all medically complex children live their best lives.
Many of our patients receive multiple therapies at Ranken Jordan — including physical, occupational, speech, and aquatic therapy — so our therapists work closely together to coordinate care and goals.
2. Everything we do is focused on play.
For all patients at Ranken Jordan, we follow Care Beyond the Bedside, an ethos that encourages healing through play.
Ranken Jordan is not your average hospital. We have an indoor and outdoor playground, a merry-go-round, and a 1,500 gallon fish tank kids love to look at. While therapy is the priority, we believe children learn and heal through play so we keep appointments fun and create a warm environment children and parents enjoy.
3. We are home to the only warm water pediatric therapy pool in the region.
Aquatic therapy in our therapy pool is a great way for kids to have fun in the water while rebuilding strength or focusing on muscle relaxation.
The pool is accessible by steps, ramp, roll-in chair or lift so it works for a variety of abilities. We also encourage parents to get in the pool during the appointment to help their child feel comfortable. It also gives the family a chance to bond doing something many parents and caregivers with a medically complex child don’t get to do: spend time together in a pool.
4. Kids have access to specialized therapy equipment that’s hard to find in our area.
In addition to our therapy pool, we have a unique, universal exercise unit (colloquially known as the “spider cage” but it’s not scary!) which allows a therapist to help a child move using a suspension system.
To the best of our knowledge, we are the only hospital within two hours of St. Louis to offer it.
We also have the Galileo vibrating plate which helps with muscle training, another piece not prevalent in hospitals.
In addition to this specialized equipment, we have a wide range of therapy resources on site so patients can practice with equipment similar to what they use at home.
5. We try to get kids an appointment as quickly as possible.
We pride ourselves on monitoring patient demand and therapist availability to ensure we don’t have a wait list. We know caring for a child with complex medical needs and trying to get appointments can be daunting, so we work hard to get children scheduled as quickly as possible.
6. We offer activities beyond scheduled appointments.
We have amazing resources and programming at Ranken Jordan and it’s not just for inpatients. Outpatients and their families can attend popular events like Family Fun Days and Challenger Baseball.
We also offer specific events for outpatients to help our families build community and meet other families with a medically complex child.
Learn More
Whether a child needs short-term support or ongoing therapy, our team is committed to helping kids build strength, confidence, and independence in an environment designed just for them.
If you’re interested in an appointment for your child, please call (314) 872-6400. Please note appointments require a referral from a doctor.
