QRI’s Simulated Living Suite helps patients in rehabilitation

ASimulated Living Suite opened at Qatar Rehabilitation Institute (QRI)last year is helping patients re-learn the skills needed to regain theirindependence and reintegrate into the community.The suite, which isalso called an Activities of Daily Living room, is a home-likeenvironment with an accessible bedroom and attached bathroom. It has aliving room with a television, an accessible kitchen, and speciallyadapted equipment. A washing machine, accessible doors and windows,electric switches, plug points, a washing basin with taps, and adaptedswitches are also part of the room. Since the suite opened, a numberof patients with disabilities have been successfully rehabilitated andare now confidently living independently within their own homes.Patients who develop a disability after a stroke, spinal cord injury,head injury, Guliiane Barre syndrome (a disorder in which the body’simmune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system), andmultiple trauma-related injuries can relearn daily tasks with activitiesorganised in the suite.The self-care retraining suite’sactivities are part of Hamad Medical Corporation’s cutting-edgeoccupational therapy treatments that allow patients with disabilities topractice self-care activities under the supervision of an OccupationalTherapist. Sultan al-Abdulla, chief, Occupational Therapy at the QRIsaid: “An Occupational Therapist helps patients develop and/or regainthe skills they need to return to independent living. The team workswith patients to help them carry out the tasks they need to do at home,at work, and in the community.” He added that at the SimulatedLiving Suite, Occupational Therapists help patients learn how to use theaccessible kitchen, bedroom, and living room by enabling them topractice carrying out different tasks such as cooking, by usingequipment adapted to their needs. “We advise patients and their familieson the importance of home modifications by actually showing them how itshould look and allowing them to practice carrying out tasks in theadapted areas,” said al-Abdulla.Al-Abdulla hinted that there areplans to expand the suite’s services by introducing assistivetechnology. “Electronic aids to daily living (EADLs) enable people withdisabilities to have more control of their environment. When a personlacks mobility, motor or cognitive skills that prevent them fromperforming even the simplest tasks, EADLs can provide them with somebasic control over their daily life. Individuals can control even thesmallest amount of movement using, but not limited to, various types ofadapted switches. This is being planned for the future,” he added.