Team member stories: How can therapy dogs help in medical settings? Just ask Bri Fossell and Heidi.

Community paramedics offer care to vulnerable and underserved populations by traveling throughout their local area. Bri Fossell’s therapy dog Heidi offers specialized care on four legs that you just don’t get anywhere else.

“Heidi has been doing pet therapy since she was two years old and she is just fantastic at it,” Fossell said. “She’s a pet therapy dog for Prisma Health and goes with me every day to work around hospitals and local events. She rides in our work car and visits staff and patients. She can also go to nursing homes and just about anywhere Prisma Health goes, she is ready to go.”

Therapy dogs like Heidi provide quiet support through their simple, comforting presence. Quietly loving, Heidi breaks up difficult work days for clinical staff or provides a moment of levity and love for patients facing uncertain days ahead.

Prisma Health is always looking for new ways to care for our patients, our staff and our communities at large. We’re not just here to heal… we’re here for good.