Rehab revolution at home
Unique assistive technology for therapy exercises.
Lorena's story
When a young woman with many plans for her future unexpectedly became neurologically ill, it meant a life change. Lorena was in her early 20s when a genetic defect almost completely restricted her physical mobility overnight. After transplant therapy, which was followed by several strokes, she was, apart from her left arm, disabled from the neck down.
Lorena spent the following year and a half in inpatient rehab. When she was finally allowed to return to her parent’s home, she was completely confined to her bed and wheelchair. However, due to the extensive support of the social environment of the family, a new extension to the family home with a care bed, care bathroom and barrier-free access became ready to use.
Being permanently bedridden meant that Lorena was at a significantly increased risk of pressure sores, venous thrombosis, and blood clots. Also, her remaining muscle strength and overall health were in danger of declining. That would have led to the young woman being admitted to the hospital again.
The all-in-one solution for rehab at home
The new extension to the house has a Guldmann ceiling hoist system with the GH3+ trainer module and a positioning lock installed.
With a single-track ceiling rail, bed and bath are connected barrier-free. The product design of the ceiling hoist, which won a Red Dot Design Award for simple elegance, high quality, functionality, and flexibility, blends seamlessly into the individual interior design.
Training, training, training
With the support of the GH3+ trainer module in combination with elastic training bands of various thicknesses, Lorena succeeded in activating and training out of bed. In addition to strengthening exercises for her arms and legs, it was also possible to perform pelvic exercises to strengthen the muscles in her buttocks and thighs so that she was able to lift her back from the mattress.
The upper body was also supported through abdominal exercises to move more independently in the long term. Due to her exercises, Lorena was later able to participate more actively in repositioning, personal hygiene, and dressing.
As rehabilitation continued, these exercises helped her get out of bed independently and move from a sitting to a standing position.
Almost like a fitness centre above the bed
By putting on the trainer module with support, Lorena practised moving from a sitting position on the edge of the bed or from a wheelchair and strengthened her muscles needed for walking. The trainer module with positioning lock helps balance the patient's weight of up to 100 kg and can be controlled by hand control. This innovation enabled the young woman to exercise more independently and receive less support from her caring parents, who were instead able to focus fully on the quality of Lorena's training together with her physiotherapist.
No more falls and herniated discs
Today the ceiling hoist provides ergonomic safety for the caring parents in all lifting, repositioning and transfer situations in the everyday care for Lorena. Typical health risks for caregivers, such as the risk of common falls, acute and chronic pain from lifting or any resulting herniated discs, can now be avoided. The easy-to-use GH3+ Trainer Module is connected to the power supply all the time via the ceiling rail, so it is always charged and ready to assist with any care task.
The right prescription for getting well
Regular therapy exercises that are consistently continued at home after discharge from the hospital or rehab facility increase chances of regeneration and quality of life for neurological patients by a factor of five verifiably. But while individualized early mobilization of ICU patients is increasingly becoming standard practice in ICUs thanks to new studies and guidelines, the situation after discharge to home is much less clear:
For patients in Germany with statutory health insurance that suffer from a neurological disease, the terms and conditions for cost coverage by the health insurance companies for medical devices that enable mobilization training are often non-transparent. At the same time, regular devices from other manufacturers do not offer a solution that combines lifting, transfer and rehabilitation exercises in one product.
Trainer Module
Guldmann pushes the boundaries of what is possible with an innovative, premium-class medical product that offers a set of brand-new rehabilitation options for the home.
With the GH3+Trainer module, Guldmann manufactures the world's only ceiling hoist with dynamic weight relief thereby setting a completely new standard of inpatient care. The integrated trainer module with positioning lock opens new possibilities for patients with neurological diseases and their caregivers: In addition to safe lifting and transfer situations, it also provides extensive exercise capabilities for mobile rehabilitation.
Regular therapy exercises have been shown to help patients with neurological diseases to have a fivefold higher chance of recovery, and to gain an overall higher quality of life through greater participation in everyday life.