Cordell native Scott Hines, who has been hospitalized for 2 ½ months battling COVID-19, could possibly be home in Ft. Cobb by Oct. 15.
That is what his wife Becky Hines said last weekend.
“He’s now in Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Center that is a stand alone facility but is connected to Integris Southwest Hospital in south Oklahoma City,” she said.
“They transferred him there on Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 29,” she added. “He’s feeling good but therapy wears him out. Otherwise, he’s feeling good.”
Becky explained that her husband is undergoing Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy and Music therapy. “The Speech and Music Therapy are to help with his breathing and his muscles,” she said.
She noted last weekend Scott is in Therapy 3 ½ to 4 hours a day and that will continue for another couple of weeks. “They want him to be able to walk alone with a walker so he could come home by Oct. 15,” she was thinking.
Becky further commented, “That could be shorter, it could be longer, depending on how he does.”
She said Scott is eating pretty good. She pointed to how COVID messes up smell and taste. “Some things taste back to normal. Meat still tastes funny to him, but he’s able to eat and drink whatever he wants.”
She said her husband has lost at least 50 pounds, noting, “I hope he can gain some weight and get stronger.”
He’s sleeping good for the most part, but she stressed that although Jim Thorpe is a rehab facility, it’s still a hospital setting so nurses come to check on him during the night. Her sons Kellen and Cameron had not seen their dad since he entered Grady Memorial Hospital in Chickasha on July 17. Last Friday, Oct. 2, marked the 11th week Scott has been in a hospital and that evening they got to see him in person for the first time since then.
Though they couldn’t come inside the facility, there is an outside area where they were able to visit with their dad, Becky said.
“He’s pretty much back to normal,” she stated. “The doctors at Integris Baptist, before he was transferred to here, said he should make a full recovery.”
Scott has built a winning tradition as Ft. Cobb High School boys’ basketball coach, claiming seven state championships and two runner-up titles since taking over there in the 1997-98 season, his wife has said.