Rehabilitation patients and residents of care centres and nursing homes require care by professional practitioners in order to keep (or regain) their mobility. These professionals, doctors, physiotherapists or ergonomic therapists, are the key to increasing mobility. The field of physical therapy has shown a strong increase in professionalism in recent years, whereby the use of professional treatment plans and measurement instruments has become more prevalent. At the cutting edge of the profession are modern tools such as computer games and simulations. Research at MIT in Boston and elsewhere suggests that simulations have three positive effects on patients: 1.The computer simulations stimulate and motivate the patient. 2.The patient practises more often. 3.Direct feedback from the simulations speeds up the learning process. These studies also indicate that patients can use the skills that they learn in virtual environments in real life.
What does a treatment centre need?Computer games and simulations, which are of great value for both physical rehabilitation and continuous mobility, have not been generally available until now. Thus far, therapists have had the choice between experimental and military systems costing hundreds of thousands of euros (or dollars) or consumer game consoles such as the Wii or EyeToy. The latter are not always satisfactory for professional use as they lack exercises and functionality targeted to rehabilitation and physical therapy. Furthermore, the consumer games are created with a younger audience in mind and are often unsuitable for older players. To meet the need for an affordable professional virtual training system, SilverFit has developed a system that gives care centres the ability to use state-of-the-art rehabilitation games. The SilverFit system falls in the same price range as professional treadmills and other 'traditional' physical therapy equipment.
Want to know more?SilverFit organises training days for therapists who want to learn how to use virtual reality physiotherapy systems in practice. It is also possible to visit one of our test locations. Please contact us for more information.