College of Saint Mary professor, students help quadriplegic improve balance, movements

Doctors told Kent Templien he would never walk or use his arms again following a utility task vehicle accident. Instead, they tried to prepare him for a “new normal.”

He was determined to prove the medical professionals wrong.

Four years later, Templien is walking, aided only by a rolling walker. Now, the 56-year-old is working to improve his movements and balance under the guidance of Dr. Andrew Shim, director of the Kinesiology and Exercise Science Program, in the human performance lab at College of Saint Mary (CSM).

A life-altering accident

Templien was deer hunting on his property near Tecumseh when the accident occurred. The Omaha man saw another hunter on his land, got in his UTV and planned to speak with him. But as he approached, a front tire on the UTV fell off a terrace. The vehicle rolled, throwing Templien, who was not wearing a seat belt.

He was taken by medical helicopter to Bryan Medical Center West Campus in Lincoln, where he was diagnosed with central cord syndrome, an incomplete traumatic injury to the cervical spinal cord.

While Templien’s spinal cord wasn’t completely severed, it was deeply bruised. “I’m officially a C4, C5, C6 quadriplegic,” he said.

Templien spent about three weeks in the hospital following surgery to repair his broken neck. During that time, he learned to stand and pivot. He was making progress. But after he was moved to a rehabilitation facility, Templien suffered a second injury to his neck, which he said was worse than the initial injury. He returned to the Lincoln hospital for a second surgery. “There I was back to not being able to move anything again,” he said.

Templien began his recovery at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln before moving to QLI in Omaha. He spent four months there, determined to walk again. Templien’s wife, Juli, and daughters Mia and Brooklyn were by his side throughout the ordeal.

After plenty of hard work at QLI, Templien found himself on his feet again. He no longer uses a wheelchair. Instead, he uses a rolling walker. “They made a difference,” he said. “It’s a magical place.”

Finding balance at CSM

Since his discharge from QLI, Templien has sought other treatments to improve his condition. “It’s just finding the opportunities and not giving up,” he said.

Dr. Shim has known Templien for three years. Both are members of the West Omaha Rotary Club. Dr. Shim invited the Omaha businessman to the human performance lab at CSM to help him gain strength and improve his balance. After gaining approval from his physical therapist, Templien began training in the lab twice a week using an experimental device called a shuttle balance. “It wasn’t meant for people in his condition,” Dr. Shim said. “It was developed for athletes. But I thought, ‘Why not try?’”

“It’s another type of therapy,” Templien added.

Dr. Shim and his undergraduate students work with Templien, challenging him more each time he comes in. “That challenge might be five steps walking backward, turning this direction, turning that direction, seeing if he can stand without grabbing the hands in a static position even though it’s very unstable,” Shim said. “Those are things that we’re trying to do – create more stimuli for his central nervous system. That’s our goal, with the understanding that there is some kind of faster synapse or some kind of re-connectivity of his nervous system that will allow him to hopefully respond to movement. That’s where we’re at.”

Templien has recently been working on proprioceptive training, which includes external sensory stimuli without visual referencing. “In other words, not relying on vision and more towards feedback from muscles, nerves, joints and skin,” Dr. Shim said.

Pretest and post-test scores show Templien’s efforts have enhanced his balance. “He has greatly improved,” Dr. Shim said.

“I’m walking faster,” Templien said. “I’m four years past injury. Usually, the old adage with a spinal cord injury is what you get back in 18 months to two years, that’s really about it. I’ve blossomed in the past two years. The first two years was getting the basics under control.”

Soon, the Omaha resident hopes to set his walker aside. He recently spent a whole day just using a cane. “I’m almost ready to go to a cane, but it’s this stuff that gets me in trouble – the spasms and loss of balance, which this is helping with,” he said.

Templien is grateful to Dr. Shim and CSM for the opportunity to use the lab. “He’s doing some good deeds for me, and I’ll pass them on,” he said.

- By Leeanna Ellis