COUNTYWIDE : Schuller at Home, Is Called ‘Improved’

The Rev. Robert H. Schuller was released from UCI Medical Center on Tuesday to continue his recuperation from brain surgery at home.

“He was much improved from (Monday),” said Dr. Ronald F. Young, chief of UCI’s neurosurgery division, after examining Schuller and reviewing laboratory tests.

Schuller, the charismatic host of TV’s “Hour of Power” and founder of Garden Grove’s Crystal Cathedral, underwent two brain surgeries earlier this month in the Netherlands after an accidental bump on the head caused clots to form under his skull.

He will begin six weeks to three months of recuperation at his home in Orange and will participate in physical and speech therapy on an outpatient basis, Young said. The eloquent Schuller does not have a problem forming words, he said, only in finding the right ones. “On occasion, he trails off a little bit, saying, ‘There, you see, this is the problem,’ ” Young explained, adding:

“Unlike (Monday) when he was quiet, he was very talkative (Tuesday), telling stories from the past, telling me about his home in Hawaii.”

Schuller does not need a full-time nurse, but it is still not safe to leave him alone, Young said. “He could fall and harm himself.”

Family members said they had celebrated Schuller’s 65th birthday at the hospital Monday night, and planned another small celebration at his home Tuesday.