‘Best job ever’: How Grand Strand is using dogs to bring smiles to patients

A grieving family recently was walking out of the intensive care unit at Grand Strand Medical Center. Their minds likely focused only on an ailing family member.

Before anyone else noticed them, Kula, a golden retriever that’s one of 10 volunteer dogs at the hospital, walked over to the distressed family and snuggled up against them, providing a brief relief for a few family members who smiled through their tears.

“I looked at Kula, and he walked right over to them,” pediatric director Kandi Valentine said, tearing up as she recounted the story to The Sun News. “It’s why we do what we do.”

It was a moment that might not have been allowed just a few years earlier.

Valentine, who was hired at the hospital in 2016, wanted to implement some changes to improve the quality of life for patients. While the pet therapy was new to the Grand Strand Medical Center, it was being used elsewhere, especially to help people dealing with trauma.

Kula and his furry mates now bring comfort to patients of all ages. They’re a part of the pet therapy program at the hospital that was launched by Valentine and child life specialist Taylor Wilson.

When Valentine hired Wilson, the two began thinking of improvements to help patients feel more comfortable.

“When Kandi hired me, she said we need dogs and I agreed,” Wilson said. “It was something we were used to having in our careers.”

The dogs come five days a week and are present for major celebrations. One group that specifically benefits is the staff who see the dogs walking through the hospital. Mary Lou Farr, Kula’s owner, said she has seen staff members who looked stressed in a hallway instantly switch to a smile when they see one of the dogs coming.

Wilson said the pets bring joys and familiarity to patients going through challenging times. Being in the hospital can be scary and temporarily separate families while one member goes into surgery. The dogs can help be a meaningful distraction from all of it.

“They’re amazing, they do quite the amount of work across the hospital,” she said.

Wilson said she has the best job ever. She gets to be around kids, play with dogs and help people cope with stressful times. Sometimes she does all three at once as she makes sure patients are taken care of while staying in the hospital.

“It’s a lot of joy and a lot of surprise, and I like kind of busting the walls down a little bit and having a good time,” Wilson said.

And the dogs are a big part of Wilson’s job. When the dogs are “at work,” they are calm but not boring. They enjoy playing with the patients and interacting with them in a safe way. This is a serious job for Kula, Farr said.

She said her dog knows when it’s time to go to work. Farr puts on his scarf, and he drops his goofiness and gets ready to work.

“He seems to have a knack to see who needs him that day,” Farr said.

To become a therapy dog, the pet and owner require training. The process to becoming a therapy dog is different than becoming a service dog. Therapy dogs can be petted and interacted with in ways that service dogs cannot.

Wilson and Valentine said the program has been a success and something they’re proud of. While originally started to help kids, it has since expanded across the hospital to adults. While older patients enjoy seeing the dogs’ visit, Wilson said the owners also help patients feel less alone.

“It brings a lot of joy and quality of life to the patients,” Wilson said. “It brings them joy, comfort and familiarity.”

This story was originally published December 14, 2018 at 2:57 PM.