3-D Occupational Therapy With Dr. Dido Green

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Dr. Dido Green, of Tel Aviv University’s Dept. of Occupational Therapy, was inspired to work with children with motor disabilities through her love of ballet. She retired her ballet shoes and became an occupational therapist. For over 20 years, she has worked with children with motor disabilities. Now, she is pioneering a new “virtual” method to analyze movement patterns in children; thereby, creating a means to more effectively treat and monitor children with motor disorders. 

Dr. Green is using a virtual tabletop that looks much like an old video game. The system is  called the ELEMENTS SYSTEM. It was created at Australia's Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology as a way to move kids with disabilities and use virtual reality tools to provide home-based treatments.
It allows three dimensional exercises to be combined with two dimensional graphical movement games in the tabletop.

Now, in “parent terms,” this is invaluable because many children find therapy regimes tedious, difficult, and boring.  This makes getting the child to do therapy exercises and practice skills nearly impossible.  Dr. Green claims that the virtual tabletop appeals to children as young as three and as old as 15. The movement-oriented games allow the child to reach therapy targets in a way that is comfortable and fun.

Some parents may also find it difficult to do daily treatment regimes at home. Dr. Green’s goal is to bring the system into the home for therapist, child, and parent to use as a treatment resource. Remote rehabilitation using the ELEMENTS SYSTEM would mean that the therapist could be located one place, log in with a webcam, coach the child in their home, and monitor daily progress. 

So, far the research around the children that have been using the ELEMENTS SYSTEM is nothing short of impressive. The research cites one child with a paralyzed hand that used the interface for three days a week for one month. This child began to perform more complicated movements such as opening a door and buttoning a sweater for the first time in her life.

This could change the way we think of therapy, and the entire method by which it is provided.  


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