Alliance Health Center in Meridian recently added animal assisted therapy to its adult inpatient programming.

Bennett, the four-legged son of Alliance recreational therapist Hannah Culpepper, was recently certified as a therapy dog after months of training.

“Patients start smiling when Bennett walks onto the unit,” Culpepper said in a news release. “Having him there creates an atmosphere of patient engagement.”

Bennett was introduced during a recent open house of the Milestones Unit, which provides treatment for senior adults. Many of the referrers who attended engaged in a variety of animal assisted therapy interventions that are utilized on the Milestones Unit.

“Several referral sources that came to the open house mentioned the significant benefit that this type of therapy will add to the care we provide and they look forward to seeing how it benefits the patients they refer,” said Cindy Dyess, Director of Business Development at Alliance.