Back to fit in life again: Patient activation with the help of digital therapy devices
Niederrhein Klinik, rehabilitation clinic of the St. Augustinus Group, Korschenbroich, Germany
Beyond the approach “the therapist does something to me” to “you have to take your destiny into your own hands” – with the help of digital therapy devices
The rehabilitation clinic on the Lower Rhine near Mönchengladbach, Germany, which has been in existence for over 20 years, focuses on rehabilitation close to home. The patients who are admitted to the Niederrhein Klinik have just come from the acute hospital. After surviving a severe illness or surgery, the goal for rehabilitation is quite clear:
To restore patients to physical and mental fitness so that they can once again participate in life in all its facets. In three specialties (oncology, orthopedics, and neurology), patients are cared for both as inpatients and outpatients.
Christoph Schneider
Therapy Director at the Niederrhein Klinik
“After occasional initial skepticism, our patients are all thoroughly enthusiastic. So we have purchased three Pixformance Stations. The devices are versatile, easy to use, and simply fun!”
| Clinic Profile |
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| Location | Korschenbroich, North Rhine Westphalia |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Main Focus | Rehabilitation, Oncology, Orthopedics, Neurology |
| Patient Capacity | 240 beds |
| Therapy Direction | Christoph Schneider |
| More Info | www.niederrhein-klinik.de |
In search of a way to teach patients to become active on their own, therapy director Christoph Schneider and his team chose Pixformance’s digital therapy devices last year.
“We wanted to go beyond the approach of ‘the therapist does something to me’ to ’ you have to take your fate into your own hands’ . The individual training offer with Pixformance is optimal in this regard, as group therapy, for example, is otherwise too easy for some and too difficult for other patients. So everyone gets a completely individual training.”
Initially, Schneider and his team had doubts about whether patients would accept the new computer-based therapy. To find out, they initially decided to test the devices for six months.
For every age group and the most diverse health conditions
The modern therapy equipment is basically used in all three specialized areas in the Niederrheinklinik. But mainly in oncology. Patients there have overcome diseases such as stomach, intestinal, lung and breast cancer and are already able to move independently again. Many are still limited in terms of stamina and strength, where the digital training can pick up and support through targeted movement activation.
Sometimes the therapy devices are also used in orthopedics. For example, after spinal surgery or with artificial joints. In neurology, on the other hand, training with Pixformance is used less frequently in the clinic. The head of therapy told us that “neurological patients are often more difficult and cognitively unable to perform such training”. However, in general, the patient group that trains with Pixformance is very broad, with a wide variety of health conditions and age groups.
Training with Pixformance is now firmly integrated into the patient’s therapy plans. In some cases, additional programs are also made available.
“The patients are happy to be able to become active again themselves. You are fully motivated, and you are constantly trying to improve. Such enthusiasm is rarely shown for training on the treatment bench”, says Schneider.
The more than 200 functional exercises for independent training are versatile and range from strength and endurance to balance and stability. Exercises with balls, dumbbells, Theraband or in a wheelchair can also be carried out.
“Everything in front of the watchful eyes of the camera, which detects and notes inaccuracies in the execution of the exercise. After each exercise, the patient receives brief feedback on how well it was carried out and what he should pay particular attention to next time”, according to the clinic’s website.
Reminding patients of their own daily routine
In order to make rehabilitation as pleasant as possible for the patients, it is crucial to the clinic of the St. Augustine Group that they can retain a piece of home during their stay. On the one hand, this is achieved through rehabilitation close to home so relatives can visit in between. On the other hand, however, also in therapy. As Christoph Schneider tells us, training with Pixformance also helps patients feel particularly at home.
“The independent training reminds them of the gym and thus of their own everyday life. And that’s good for the patients, especially when you consider what serious illnesses some of them have had. They’re very grateful for that.”
Personalized training options with small staffing requirements
Besides the benefit for patients, therapists can also benefit from the digital therapy devices. Schneider particularly emphasizes the simple and fast instruction.
“The device is straightforward, and I can instruct three patients at the same time. After a short introduction by trained therapists and sports instructors, even our oldest patients train with it without any problems. It works great and saves us a lot of time. This way, we can offer personalized accompanied training for everyone with a small amount of personnel.”
Of course a contact person is always nearby for questions or adjustments, but the therapists don’t have to be there for every training session. “That in itself is a significant relief for us as therapists.”
Especially during the pandemic, Schneider is also grateful for the contactless training options. “With the QR code cards, training can be done in a hygienically safe manner, plus the devices are quickly disinfected.”
Patient care also beyond the hospital stay
In addition to the rehabilitation program, the rehabilitation clinic also offers sports activities for patients with medical conditions. This can be used in the same way as physiotherapy with a prescription from the general practitioner. However, due to the ongoing Corona pandemic, Pixformance therapy equipment has not yet been integrated here. In the future, however, this is planned in order to be able to care for the patient beyond the rehab.
The use of the Pixformance app, which enables supervised training beyond on-site therapy, is also a future goal.
“It is definitely in our interest to accompany our patients beyond their stay in the clinic. The app will certainly play a role in this,”, says Schneider about the clinic’s plans for the future.
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