A total of 91 neighborhood health centers in the city have been equipped with intelligent rehabilitation appliances like limb-training robots, digital occupational-therapy equipment and a combined traditional Chinese and Western therapy, to offer qualified rehabilitation training and services to residents near their homes.
Shanghai started the community-based rehabilitation service project in 2021, when the first batch of 46 neighborhood health centers were approved as models through adding equipment, expanding rehab space and equipped with more medics and therapists, said Shanghai Health Commission on Tuesday.
So far, another 45 centers have been named as models, offering rehabilitation services for children, stroke patients, people with heart disease, respiratory disease and pelvic floor problems, as well as training for people with disability or fracture.
Targeting to meet people's different demands, the centers also design services in line with its community residents' features and requirements.
The project is welcomed by the residents, especially the elderly.
A 67-year-old man who suffered stroke said he could stand steadily and walk better after only two training sessions at the Dapuqiao Neighborhood Health Center. He practices leg exercises with the support of a lower limb robot.
"I can walk on the machine with the help of the robot and I am so happy," said he, who lives in a nearby complex.
The golden rehabilitation period for people who suffered a stroke is the first year, during which they can regain much function and mobility if they receive proper training under professional guidance. So a convenient, professional and nearby rehab service provider is extremely important to the patients, doctors said.
