Centre of Expertise Health Innovation

Research Group Rehabilitation and Technology

Rehabilitation means: working on recovery and a healthy lifestyle to participate in society again. Combining care technology and traditional rehabilitation care challenges the patient to exercise and be more active, making the treatment more effective. Care innovation in rehabilitation requires collaboration in the innovation process between developers, care professionals and education. It also requires research on the added value of technology in rehabilitation care.

About the research group

The research group Rehabilitation and Technology studies how technology contributes to efficient and future-proof rehabilitation care. We do this by creating, implementing and evaluation innovations for rehabilitation care, together with companies, patients and professionals. These innovations can support people's rehabilitation, for example by giving them apps to exercise on their own and to monitor their progress and lifestyle. Technological and social innovations can also challenge people to be physically active or to support other healthy behaviour. Technology in rehabilitation can also improve the care process with artificial intelligence and individually collected data or big data. The research group Rehabilitation and Technology is a joint research group between The Hague University of Applied Sciences and Basalt (www.basaltrevalidatie.nl).

2 themes

The activities of the research group operate at the intersection of care and technology and the intersection of practice-based and scientific research. The research uses a co-creation process and develops, evaluates and implements eHealth and care technology within the following themes:

better rehabilitation care through the use of technology
promoting a healthier lifestyle in people who are rehabilitating through the use of technology

We work together with our stakeholders, students and lecturers within various field labs and living labs in care. A living lab for innovative services and products for rehabilitation treatment, a living lab to support patients with domotics to live independently at home and a living lab that creates an exercise-friendly physical rehabilitation environment. This helps us to generate knowledge, strengthen the professional field and contribute to better quality care and to the education of the health innovators of tomorrow.

Team

Management assistant

Jeroen Dikken

Jeroen Dikken, PhD RN received his bachelor's degree in nursing in January 2008 and completed his masters in Health Sciences and Gerontology in July 2010. During the years of study (2006 - 2010), he worked as a nurse in both primary care and in the hospital. In 2010, he made the transition to higher education where he started his PhD research. This study focused on measuring the hospital nurses’ knowledge of and attitude about older patients in hospital (clinimetrics).

Within his current line of research 'the training of nurses in an (inter)professional context', he focuses on educational issues in nursing care practice. Through his research, he seeks to identify the training techniques required to develop successful nurse education programmes (efficient and effective) that help maintain a strong knowledge base, skills, positive attitudes and behaviour of nurses. With this research, he aims to contribute to the training of excellent nurses, which will lead to excellent quality of care. In addition to this research, he holds a number of national board positions and works as a Principal Lecturer at the Nursing School of The Hague University of Applied Sciences. He also works at the research group of Urban Ageing.

j.dikken@hhs.nl

About the professor

LinkedIn profile

dr. Jorit Meesters

Innovate rehabilitation care to enable patients to receive the best possible care, with the right use of e-health and care technology. That is the ambition of Jorit Meesters, principal researcher at Basalt, expertise centre for rehabilitation medicine and researcher at Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC) and, as of 1 November, also a professor of Rehabilitation and Technology at The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS). This research group is a joint initiative of Basalt and The Hague University of Applied Sciences for research, knowledge and innovation. Many years of cooperation between these partners in care and education have made it possible to address important challenges, such as staff shortages and the increasing complexity of the demand for care, on the basis of knowledge and experience. Rehabilitation care is increasingly supported by ICT and e-health applications.

j.meesters@hhs.nl

Students and lectures working together with patients and care professionals to develop innovations. That is how technology in care becomes the new normal for professionals today and tomorrow.

Projects

Rehabilitation with walking app 'Ommetje’

Using an app for rehabilitation is a form of healthcare technology that can help patients get and stay active. For example, the popular walking app 'Ommetje' can, with a few modifications, be made suitable for people with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) who are undergoing rehabilitation. The Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group studies which adjustments to the method and form are necessary and what effect the use of the app has on patients during and after the rehabilitation process.

Research programme: 'Basalt in motion’

Exercise is important for rehabilitation patients, and it is almost always part of the treatment. Often patients experience a barrier to active exercise because of their disability or illness. To support them, Basalt rehabilitation centre looks for solutions to get patients exercising again. This can be done with e-health applications and healthcare technology, for example. To find out what works, the Rehabilitation and Technology and the Technology for Inclusive Movement and Sport research groups participate in the 'Basalt in motion' research programme.

Breinstraat, platform for young people with TBI

Young people with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) face many challenges in their daily lives. Contact with other young people with TBI appears to have a positive influence on coping with all these challenges. On the Breinstraat digital platform the young people meet each other, exchange experiences and ask questions. The Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group studies how the platform can be improved and expanded.

The ikoefenzelf.nl platform after a stroke

For people who have had a stroke (or cerebrovascular accident, CVA), rehabilitation consists mainly of exercising. Being dependent on scheduled appointments at a rehabilitation centre or physiotherapist is no longer necessary with the many e-health applications available. The ikoefenzelf.nl platform is equipped with useful applications for CVA patients. The Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group is conducting research to improve the platform.

Cardiac rehabilitation with e-health (ACT-THOR)

People who undergo open-heart surgery follow an extensive cardiac rehabilitation programme after their operation. An important part of that programme is getting back into exercise and building up physical fitness. By using e-health applications, cardiac patients themselves can actively work on their recovery. In the ACT-THOR project (Active Lifestyle before and after Thoracic Surgery), the Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group collaborates with partners to achieve better care by supporting the cardiac rehabilitation programme with e-health.

E-health toolkit for education

Healthcare technology – or e-health – is now an integral part of the healthcare sector. A smart rollator, a plaster that monitors sugar levels or computer games as part of rehabilitation are examples of e-health that many people use every day. But how does a healthcare professional choose the right tool for the patient? And what tools are available? The Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group developed a toolkit that helps lecturers and trainers on their way.

Home rehabilitation for the elderly (Medical Delta Living Lab Geriatric Rehabilitation@home)

For many elderly people, rehabilitation at home is easier than following a rehabilitation programme at a healthcare facility. It prevents the patient from being dependent on others to get to the rehabilitation facility. Also, the patient does not have to wait until the scheduled appointment to work on their recovery. Various e-health applications can support this. But how do they best meet the needs of patients, treatment providers and family carers? Which applications work well for whom? And when? The Rehabilitation and Technology Research Group is conducting research to find answers to these questions.

Learning to live healthily during rehabilitation (NICE4ALL)

Rehabilitation after illness is an excellent opportunity to achieve a healthy lifestyle with more exercise and a healthier diet. During the rehabilitation process, the patient is consciously exercising to recover. There is room for focus and there are fewer distractions from daily concerns. However, the current rehabilitation environment is not always equipped in such a way that patients themselves can work on healthy exercise and healthy nutrition. Moreover, after rehabilitation, patients should continue their new lifestyle at home, but how can this be encouraged?

Innovating in rehabilitation and mobility (Field Lab Rehabilitation & Mobility)

Nowadays, innovative technology can support rehabilitation and encourage more exercise. By using the technological possibilities, patients also gain more control over their lives. More and more innovative products are being developed, but which ones work well? And how can they be used in practice as soon as possible? The Rehabilitation and Technology and Technology for Inclusive Movement and Sport Research Groups conduct research in the Field Lab Rehabilitation & Mobility which contributes to more and better human kinetic technology in healthcare.

About the research group