Roessingh Rehabilitation Center celebrates its 70th anniversary with an open house
ROESSINGH REHABILITATION CENTER specializes in rehabilitation care and treatment in the Netherlands, and they just celebrated their 70th anniversary: a whole life dedicated to helping individuals with disabilities manage at school, at home, at work, and in the community. Based in Enschede, the mission of this renowned center is to put assistive technology information, devices and services within reach of people regardless of their age, family and educational background, health care and social service providers, and disability. They do so with the help of experts in assistive technology, speech pathology and occupational therapy, who provide in-depth evaluations and consultation services for children and adults to identify the most suitable assistive technology needed to foster independence.
Roessingh patients present many types of conditions. They may have suffered a stroke, been diagnosed with a muscular disease or have a neurological disorder. What they all have in common, though, is that they have to face new challenges and adapt to new circumstances.
It is undeniable that conditions of the kind treated at Roessingh change every aspect of an individual’s life, and coping with this new life takes some learning and can become a daily struggle. However, most issues can be overcome with the help of professionals and assistive technology.
Rehabilitative and assistive technologies help people with disabilities manage more easily in their everyday lives, and they can also make it easier for their caregivers to tend to them.
With this aim in mind, the experienced staff at Roessingh helps develop public awareness of the issues of people with disabilities and provides resources for transition as well as training opportunities related to:
- communication
- positioning
- mobility
- intervention strategies in using assistive technology
Every week, about 500 adults and 350 children go to the center for consultation, treatment or monitoring of their progress.
An open day with a theme:
‘een huis vol verhalen’, a house full of stories
On June 2, 2018, Roessingh Rehabilitation Center held an open house to commemorate its 70th anniversary. The staff brought attendees old and young into their world to show them, through simulation, what rehabilitation entails and which services the organization provides.
With the theme “A house full of stories”, visitors listened to the stories of former patients, therapists, doctors, and patients’ relatives. Easily the most striking were the stories told from the parents’ perspectives, and particularly by mothers—who are often the first to detect that something is wrong with their child and who become their restless advocates, fighting until they are given the right diagnosis and treatment.
Guests also followed explanations about movement analysis, wheelchair skills, therapeutic computing, and walking with a prosthesis. They participated in interactive demos of rehabilitation technology and telemedicine. For example, they experienced what it is like to be supported by a virtual coach, they completed exercises through an online portal, and they learned about the use of technology and robotics to assist in moving arms or legs better.
Visitors went home with a newfound understanding and respect not only for rehabilitants but also, undoubtedly, for the fine professionals at Roessingh Rehabilitation Center. Staying mobile, gaining independence and being active members of society are, after all, essential to improve the quality of life of rehabilitants, and the experts at Roessingh help them do just that.
As an expert in mobility, REGNER® provides linear actuators to RDG KOMPAGNE, of the ROESSINGH Group
RDG KOMPAGNE is the largest supplier in the Netherlands for communication tools, computer adaptations and environmental control for people with disabilities. They use REGNER®’s RA38 linear actuators.
RA38 linear actuator main features
- Power Supply: 24 VDC
- Max. Load: 2000 N (push/pull)
- Max. Speed: 7.3 mm/s
- BID: 156 mm + stroke
- Aluminum housing
- Stainless steel rod
REGNER® provides electric linear actuators for medical devices that function perfectly at all times
To ensure the reliability of our actuators, each prototype is subjected to a comprehensive battery of tests. Our goal is to maintain our customer’s confidence in our standards.
Buildings of the Roessingh Rehabilitation Center compound: (1) PHYSIOTHERAPY, (2) SPORT HALL, (3) POLICLINIC, (4) CHILD & YOUNG CLINIC, (5) ROESSING RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT
