AD – Physiotherapist October 2013
We have been using the Sit to Stand Trainer in the LTC home where I work for approximately 3 years now. The most drastic changes are seen with residents who are starting to have leg weakness and that can no longer stand up without some sort of physical help. Having the sling under them to give them a boost of even as little as 10 pounds and the handle to pull themselves up with makes such a huge difference!
When a resident starts to have difficulty standing on his/her own, or, by the transfer safety assessment is soon to be deemed needing a mechanical lift for transfers, this is the best time to get them started. This is where you will see the difference.
The other big difference I saw is that residents with cognitive difficulties, who have forgotten how to stand, are assisted with a very good physical cue, by having the sling underneath their bottom. We have a resident who no longer remembers how to stand on his own or with verbal cues and even with physical, manual cues, doesn’t stand up. With the sling underneath him, however, he goes up into standing and then we let him stay standing for up to 5 minutes and even do side-to-side weight shifting with him. The hardest thing to do with this gentleman is to get him to sit back down again. I think that he just enjoys standing so much that he doesn’t want to sit back down. He is no longer transferred manually; he is transferred with a lift at all times because of his reduced cognitive function. I am absolutely certain, however, that with the assistance of the Sit to Stand Trainer, we are helping him maintain some leg and trunk strength and usually the standing also helps his digestive system.
We have also used the Sit to Stand Trainer with a gentleman who hadn’t stood/walked in more than 3-4 years. He still had active leg ROM, just not enough strength to walk. He loves using the Sit to Stand Trainer. We started him with 30 lbs of assistance (it really doesn’t take much because the pounds of lift are strategically placed right where they count) and with time, we were able to wean the amount of assistance down. This is where you will see a difference.
Becky Farley
PhD, MS, PT
Founder NeuroFit Networks/
Parkinson Wellness Recovery, Tucson, Arizona:
To implement neuroplasticity-principled approaches for individuals with Parkinson disease (PD), therapists need equipment that allows an individual to practice at intensities beyond self-selected effort or energy expenditure levels. The NeuroGym Bungee Mobility Trainer (BMT) is a wonderful innovation that allows an individual with PD to achieve success using high effort to drive motor output for larger, faster movements with no fear of falling! Thus, individuals with PD can focus attention instead, internally, on the sensory feedback associated with those better/bigger movements. The opportunity to perform larger and faster movements with success and repetition, affords the retraining of the appropriate timing and amplitude of the accompanying postural responses. The therapist can then focus their attention on further enhancing the learning experience by providing reward based feedback while progressing the (1) difficulty of the training by adding motor and cognitive loads, (2) the complexity of the movement sequences, and (3) the unpredictability of practice through contextual interference techniques. This type of equipment can also be integrated into group community programs or be used in other FUNctions like Wii, dance, sports, and strength training for optimizing emotional engagement and social networking experiences. Thanks for the innovation! We need more!
Chris Chirumbolo, MPT, GCS
Executive VP of Rehabilitation Services
Carespring Healthcare Management
Loveland, Ohio:
Indianspring of Oakley admitted a resident 2 years ago for long term care. She had been requiring use of a mechanical sit to stand lift from admission due to her inability to stand. Her inability to stand was from severe OA in her left knee. She had not been able to stand without maximal assistance by the staff from another LTC facility.
In November 2011, the resident was on a basic seated exercise program and one of the therapists trialed her on the body weight supported sit to stand trainer. She was able to stand with 60 lbs of counter weight and could stand for 2 minutes. She loved it.
We obtained a PT evaluation and spent much of the first few weeks using the device to promote training of the sit to stand movement, static standing tolerance activities and some weight shifting. Over the next several weeks, we incorporated other PT related exercises and gradually decreased the counterweight forces on the device.
By the end of January, the resident was walking over 100 feet with a rolling walker and was transfering with contact guard assist. The nursing staff did not require use of the sit to stand lift anymore and was easily being assisted with her ADL’s throughout the day.
Currently, she is now on a maintenance walking program and has a significant improvement in her quality of life. The patient is ecstatic.
Jenny Sandborn MS OTR
Regional Director of Rehab
ProStep: Tendercare Wyoming Success Story
Mrs. H. is an 82 year old female who was admitted to Tendercare of Wyoming five days after undergoing a bilateral total knee replacement. Prior to her hospitalization, Mrs. H. lived with her daughter, and was modified independent with ambulation, and independent with her activities of daily living (ADLs). Upon admission to Tendercare of Wyoming Mrs. H. was approved by her surgeon to weight bear as tolerated on her legs. However, she required the assistance of the SARA sit-to-stand lift for transfers, due to the fact she was not tolerating much weight on her legs. Throughout the course of her rehab stay, she received Physical Therapy five times a week and Occupational Therapy six times a week.
Mrs. H.’s therapy treatment included ADL re-training, transfer training, gait training, functional therapeutic activities, manual therapy, electrical stimulation (e-stim), and neuro-muscular re-education. Two key pieces of Mrs. H.’s therapy were the Accelerated Care Plus e-stim and the NeuroGym Bungee Mobility Trainerr. With the use of e-stim to minimize pain and the NeuroGym Bungee Mobility Trainer to assist with off-loading weight, Mrs. H. made significant progress toward her goals in a very short period of time. She went from ambulating eight feet in the parallel bars twice in a therapy session to ambulating one hundred feet twice in a therapy session within just 2 days.
With continued use of the Bungee Mobility Trainer, Mrs. H. was able to increase her ambulation distance to 150 feet in another four days. She then had gained the strength and confidence to ambulate 150 feet with a rolling walker and minimal assistance.
Mrs. H. was able to achieve her long term goal of returning home. She was able to return home with her daughter at a Modified Independent level, only 22 days post-op. Without the e-stim and the Mobility Trainerr, Mrs. H. would not have made the significant progress that she was able to achieve in such a short period of time.
Donald Hushion, Hudson, Quebec
7 years ago, at age 66 I experienced an ischemic stroke. It left me paralyzed on my right side and as a result, dramatically changed my life. My newly acquired passions for golf and curling were now beyond me. I needed new activities and goals to get passionate about – that’s just who I am. After 6 months of limited rehabilitation, I recognized the need to focus on exercise opportunities because of the way and rate which my body was already atrophying, and the impact that it was having on my life and well-being.
I eventually came to realize that I had no choice but to try and stay more physically active, and to remain socially active in the community as well, or I might just as well file myself away within the confines of my office and live my life vicariously on my computer. I am happy that ‘well-being’, both physical and mental, for me and for others, has gradually became my mantra and my mission.
I knew that Physical Park was one of the few facilities accessible from Hudson QC where I live that was interested in supporting older people and people with handicaps like mine with specialized programming and equipment. Physical Park is one of the few gyms in our area to have NeuroGym equipment specially designed and built to support the rehabilitation of people with neurological problems. I can speak personally to the fact that their “sit-to-stand” machine and “bungee mobility trainer” are proving extremely beneficial to me and people like me who have walking and balance problems due to a stroke or other disabilities. This unique equipment, along with their highly experienced and motivated staff significantly improves the probability of real rehabilitation progress. I know this for a fact.
Many of us have come to realize that not only is there hope but real physical and mental progress is actually being gained by those who have demonstrated that they are able to make the personal commitment to give it a chance. All it requires is that we make a decision… a decision to take advantage of the exceptional opportunities that are available to us. Thank you, NeuroGym and thank you, Physical Park. You have given me a future to look forward to, and indeed, am living already.