Partners of RE:HOME project held a kickoff meeting on June 3rd & 4th to officially launch the project.
With an indicative financial allocation of EU funding of €6.47 million and a total project budget of €10.7 million, the specific objective of RE:HOME is ensuring equal access to health care and fostering resilience of health systems, including primary care, and promoting the transition from institutional to family and community-based care.
In NWE, Europe's most densely populated region, there are approximately 12,000 children with neurological disorders who face lifelong challenges, including severe mobility limitations. These children require personalized rehabilitation plans that address their specific needs and abilities. However, the lack of standardized practices hinders the development of comprehensive programs that can be easily implemented across various healthcare settings.
Despite advancements in medical technology and rehabilitation practices, the current landscape of motor rehabilitation lacks access to advanced technological solutions. The scarcity of advanced technologies, including exoskeletons for children, contributes to the classification of the NWE area as a medical desert. To address these challenges and improve the field of neurological pediatric rehabilitation, the RE:HOME project aims to achieve the following objectives:
1. Improve access to new technologies by delivering new exoskeleton modules for robot-assisted rehabilitation, smart garments, and also an IT platform to telemonitor and facilitate the transfer of digital technologies.
2. Establish standardized transnational training programs for both hospital and home use. Urban areas, Belgium and the Netherlands will serve as pilot countries, where training and testing sessions will be developed.
3. Implement a joint training scheme that targets healthcare professionals, parents, children, and the public. This improves access to information and knowledge about rehabilitation technologies and practice.
Different target groups have been identified: Higher education and research organisations (students from universities), Hospitals and medical centres, General public, SME and Interest groups including NGOs (parents associations and children).
The Duration of the project is 4 years (2024-2028)