An expert, free physiotherapy app is set to revolutionise recovery for patients recuperating from orthopaedic surgery.
Created by experts from across Practice Plus Group’s nationwide hospital services, the free Pocket Physio app is an easy-to-use guide to the physiotherapy exercises you need to do to prepare for, and recover from, hip or knee replacement surgery as well as foot and hand surgery.
The orthopaedic clinical lead for Practice Plus Group, the largest provider of independent services to the NHS, surgeon Gyorgy Lovasz, said: “The app provides videos and text instructions on pre- and post-operative physio exercises. By following the exercises you can establish a strong exercise regime before surgery that you can also continue afterwards, helping you to make a speedy recovery. You can even plan your own physio exercise regime using the reminder function. It will be a real boost to our patients but it can be accessed by anyone.”
The app is divided into three main sections:
- My Exercises: A personalised list of exercises. Users browse the exercise library and tap on the star next to a chosen exercise or exercises. These will then appear on the My Exercises page.
- Browse: An extensive library of images, written descriptions and video content to help patients to follow the exercise programme recommended by their physiotherapist.
- Reminders: A function to enable patients to set prompts both for exercises and for any appointments they have in relation to their recovery.
Gyorgy said: “This app is a boon to recovery and, given the restrictions placed on us all during the pandemic, it can help those who cannot get to physiotherapy sessions or who are looking for additional help at home.”
Pocket Physio is available to download for free on the Apple App Store for iOS and the Google Play Store for Android.
Practice Plus Group healthcare services include hospitals and surgical centres (treating both NHS and private patients), GP practices, NHS walk-in centres, GP out-of-hours, prison health services and clinical assessment and diagnostics facilities. The group also delivers one of the country’s leading ophthalmology services and runs a number of NHS 111 call centres.