After a serious fall, retired musician Norman Grossman needed physical and occupational therapy. He and his wife chose The New Jewish Home’s Manhattan facility for its proximity to their apartment, and were delighted with the high-quality care he received.

Norman Grossman made a living as a musician, playing the trumpet at “everything from fish market openings to the opera,” he said. He retired, and at 91 he was active and independent, enjoying life on the Upper West Side with his wife, Helene. And then, on Christmas Eve, everything changed: “I tripped on a step going into a restaurant and ended up in the hospital.” After surgery for a fractured hip, he came to The New Jewish Home—half a block from his own home—where he received rehabilitation therapy for six weeks.

Norman was intensely focused on his recovery, and he found the rehabilitation team supportive and skillful. Five days a week, his physical therapist, Roza, brought him to the gym and taught him exercises to build strength and regain mobility. Six days a week, his occupational therapist, Matthew, had Norman simulating everyday activities—“getting in and out of a car, taking a shower, doing tasks around the kitchen,” he recalled. “They were very competent, very attentive to my needs. When Matthew and Roza couldn’t be there, they left detailed notes for the covering therapists, telling them what to do, what my response would be, and how to get me to do more.”

Norman’s therapist Roza commented, “He expressed daily how happy he felt that he was getting stronger and was able to move without pain. He welcomed each therapist with a beautiful smile.”

In addition to the therapists, the Grossmans were grateful for the nurses and CNAs they encountered. “They were fantastic, very responsive and helpful to both of us,” Helene said. They also appreciated their interactions with Zofia Tryjanski, Director of Rehabilitation. “The staff were compassionate and fully invested in their patients,” Helene said. “They also gave me, his caregiver, several pointers on how to assist him when we went home. I can’t thank them enough!”

Norman enjoyed visits from his children and grandchildren, while Helene was by his side every day, arriving in the morning and staying until he finished dinner and went to bed at 7:30 p.m. “Norman liked to go to bed earlier than other patients, and the nurses accommodated that,” she said.

After six weeks, Norman was discharged and Helene pushed him home in a wheelchair. Within 24 hours, a nurse arrived to check in on him and to set up outpatient physical and occupational therapy, which started almost immediately.

“Norman uses a walker to get around the apartment,” Helene said. “His new job, assigned by his physical therapist, is to take the elevator to the lobby to get the mail, using his walker.” Norman and Helene are optimistic that he’ll regain the level of independence he enjoyed before his fall. They are grateful for the excellent treatment he received at The New Jewish Home and for the milestones along the way, big and small—like holding his four-month-old granddaughter for the first time.