New Accessible Technology to Democratize Assessments and Individualized Care
CoordiKids is implementing world first technology to enhance the experience of therapist and client through Markerless motion capturing. This technology is available on the cloud, at the comfort of the client’s home or in the therapist’s preferred place of work.
Improve Observations to Monitor Progress
CoordiKids provides online, engaging content for children, to guide them through different activities from the comfort of their home. All the exercises are video recorded, accessed online, and available any time. The child follows the graded course to develop foundational sensory motor skills. Excellent feedback is reported from parents, teachers and therapists regarding the progress and positive changes in children using the course as prescribed.
However, CoordiKids needed an assessment tool for parents and therapists to monitor participation and progress. The obvious strategy is to compare the child’s posture, movement, and participation to those of the model in the videos. However, parents and teachers have not developed the necessary observation skills and cannot monitor progress effectively by observations only.
Parents, even when they try to learn more to support their children, aren’t formed to be therapists and lack the professional experience to report and assess their children; some exercises might be performed incorrectly and sometimes motivation is needed to continue with the course.
Traditional paediatric occupational therapy assessment
Standardized motor skills assessments:
1.Quantitative assessment using physical measurements:
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- Measure time e.g. time maintaining balance or time taken to complete a pegboard task.
- Measure range of movement e.g. range of reach or range of movement.
- Measure range of movement in a specific joint, e.g. using a goniometer.
2.Quantitative assessment using observations:
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- Measure posture by observing the general posture in different positions.
- Measure timing by observing reaction time while participating in e.g. ball games.
- Measure rhythm by observing how well the client follows a beat when participating in movement routines.
- Measure sequential memory of movement by observing how well a client remembers a sequence of movements.
3.Qualitative assessment using observations:
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- Concentration and attention to task.
- Motivation to participate in a task.
- Self-confidence before and during participation in a task.
- Task satisfaction after completing a task.
Results can differ between experienced and inexperienced therapists
Although the assessment methods mentioned above are often standardized, they rely on the experience of the therapist; the training of the therapist in using a specific assessment and on the therapist’s observation skills. For example, when measuring standing balance, the standardized assessment instruction indicates that the child’s foot may not change position on the floor. However, the experienced therapist will also note the extent of arm movements, body swaying and ease of performing the task, as well as the emotional reaction while participating in the task.
CoordiKids researched many options to measure progress using reliable instruments. After meeting with the creative team of Point Motion that challenged the usual ways of providing engaging musical tools for assessments, we were able to join efforts and make magic happen.
Point Motion world first technology
Point Motion provides cutting-edge technology that capture human motion and translates it to valid data for assessments. The camera on any device is used to capture the range of movement, and reaction time, of the client while building a positive self-esteem. What makes this motion capture technology special, is that it translates human’s movements to musical sounds; music is used as motivation towards successful participation. Data is captured and saved to monitor performance over time. The technology of Point Motion is an answer to a need identified by Coordikids, as well as many other therapists.
Music is used to motivate the child towards improved performance. Music plays while the child performs well but as soon as incorrect or out-of-sync movement is captured, the music stops. This is a fun way towards optimal participation, as it reinforces the positive reaction and ignores the negative reaction. The child completes the exercise feeling successful, although a few mistakes might have been captured.
CoordiKids and Point Motion
CoordiKids and Point Motion developed a CoordiKids (CK) Progress Tracker, available to all CoordiKids members. The CK Progress Tracker will be used at the beginning of the child’s journey on CoordiKids, and at regular intervals to capture progress. We at Coordikids believe that recordings of progress, and participation, are essential motivators.
Once again, CoordiKids is at the forefront of development to bring aspects of occupational therapy to the home, at affordable prices. CoordiKids members can reduce individual occupational therapy sessions as the foundational sensory motor skills (posture, balance, bilateral integration, left-right concepts, rhythm, and many more) are developed at home.
Enhance therapy services
CoordiKids and Point Motion are the perfect partners to enhance the services of any private practice or institution over many disciplines, including occupational therapy, physical therapy, exercise physiology, and speech pathology.
Allied Health Professionals can join CoordiKids Providers to offer the courses to clients for home and/or for use at a preferred place, such as a school, gym, or private practice. CoordiKids is ideal and easy to adapt and create individualized physical rehabilitation programs.
Marga J Grey is a paediatric occupational therapist with a passion to help as many children as possible in affordable ways. After decades in private practice, she developed CoordiKids to serve children all over the world. At present, she works from her home studio in Brisbane to develop additional courses, to provide Telehealth sessions and to create innovative options for clients around the world.
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