Exercise physiologist Anna Minchin says advances in robotics are helping more and more people achieve their goals and get mobile.As soon as I arrive at the clinic I look at the schedule to see which clients are coming in so I can set up the Hybrid Assistive Limb exoskeletons for the day. The exoskeleton is a wearable, neuro-controlled device used in therapy. We fit the client into it, and it can assist with walking goals or walking rehabilitation.
The technology took us 10 years to get to Australia. It is quite amazing. It’s neuro-controlled, so we put electrodes on the limb, and then we can see any muscular activity in real time. My second client is a 35-year-old male C4/5 quadriplegic. He has come in for a two-hour exoskeleton session where he will complete approximately 30 minutes of treadmill walking. We begin with warm-up exercises for his abdominals and trunk extensor muscles–and then attach the electrodes, harness and fit him into the exoskeleton. It’s all individualised.
I really want people with neurological conditions to know that there is technology out there to help them. think that perhaps they don’t have any hope of progressing, or don’t think they’re going to get any better with their physicality and functional capacity.