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Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute

History

Timeline

  • 1942: Sister Kenny Institute established in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
  • 1952: Sister Elizabeth Kenny, the Australian nurse who pioneered physical therapy treatment for polio, died.
  • 1955: Salk vaccine developed to prevent polio.
  • 1963: Sister Kenny Art Show for Artists with Disabilities established.
  • 1975: Sister Kenny Institute merged with Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
  • 1981: Sister Kenny Institute received its first accreditation by the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF); reaccreditation received in each survey year thereafter.
  • 1984: Sister Kenny Institute received the Outstanding Facility Award by the National Association of Rehabilitation Facilities.
  • 1987: Sister Kenny Institute awarded the Governor’s Award for Application of Innovation and Technology.
  • 1989: Kenny Kids Pediatric Rehabilitation program opened.
  • 1995: Center for Advanced Rehabilitative Technologies created.
  • 1999: Sister Kenny Sports & Physical Therapy Center network established for outpatients. Sister Kenny Foundation formed.
  • 2000: Official name changed to Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute.
  • 2005: Sister Kenny Spine Center opened.
  • 2008: Sister Kenny Research Center facility opened at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.
  • 2009: Comprehensive Outpatient Rehabilitation (CORe) program established.
  • 2011: CORe program now offered at 9 Allina Health hospitals.
  • 2012: Sister Kenny Sports & Physical Therapy Center continues to expand; now in more than 20 communities. STAR (Survivorship Training and Rehabilitation) Program® - first certified program in Minnesota.

Did you know that Sister Kenny was not a nun?

Elizabeth Kenny was born in Australia in 1880. She was trained as an army nurse and treated the sick for 31 years in the bushlands of Australia. She was granted the honorific the title "Sister" — used in British countries for "nurse."

Sister Kenny beside a child's bed

In 1911, when she encountered her first case of polio, Sister Kenny was unaware of conventional polio treatment — immobilizing the affected muscles with splints.

Instead, she used common sense and her understanding of anatomy to treat the symptoms of the disease.

Sister Kenny applied moist hotpacks to help loosen muscles, relieve pain, and enable limbs to be moved, stretched, and strengthened. The theory of her treatment was muscle "re-education" — the retraining of muscles so that they could function again.

In 1940, Sister Kenny traveled to the United States and eventually to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where, in 1942, the Sister Kenny Institute was established.

Sister Kenny poses with kids and a cake

Sister Kenny's pioneering principles of muscle rehabilitation became the foundation of physical therapy.

Today, Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute is one of the premier rehabilitation centers in the country, known for its progressive and innovative vision.

Arvid Schwartz

Polio survivor plays the cards he was dealt: A look back at Sister Kenny's polio treatment

In 1952, at the peak of the polio epidemic, 12-year-old Arvid Schwartz spiked a fever, complained of muscle fatigue and ultimately experienced paralysis. The family doctor urged he immediately go to the Elizabeth Kenny Institute in Minneapolis. "I didn't know when or if I would return," explains the now 69-year-old Schwartz.