HERRICK House is a year-round convalescent institution for the care and rehabilitation of children recuperating from rheumatic fever. The program at Herrick House differs from that of other institutions in that mobilization is begun as soon as there is clinical and laboratory evidence that the rheumatic process is quiescent. The classic method, as opposed to this, is one of long bed rest, wheelchair, and activity-restricted convalescence.
There are a number of problems arising incident to the rehabilitation of the rheumatic patient which are different from those arising in other illnesses. There is no exact method by which the activity or quiescence of the disease may be determined. The possibility of recurrences, as in no other disease, is a sword of Damocles that threatens the physician as well as the rheumatic fever patient. The protracted period of hospitalization necessary for the treatment inevitably results in marked anxiety for the child and