Feed: Vision Aquatics - AggScore: 27.1
Summary: Vision Aquatics
They are called Exercise Pools, Fitness Pools, Aquatic Therapy Pools, Workout Pools or Athletic Training Pools but when all is said and done you need a pool designed for your needs. A Therapeutic Pool that will help get your patients back to health more quickly or help your athletes outperform the competition. Vision Aquatics lets you design your pool and uses only the most innovative technology available today. Our mission is to help you build the pool of your dreams!
Video Cameras in Therapy Pools
Video technology has improved
significantly over the past several years, and should be a key
part of your planning for your aquatic therapy
practice. Like any other element in your
practice, how you plan to use technology or a modality is just as
important as having access to it. It may be
fun to have a video system, and it may be a great selling feature
for prospective therapy patients, but the technology can set your
hydrotherapy practice apart, if you plan for it.
Several therapy pool manufacturers
offer camera systems as integrated components to their pools, or
systems can be purchased as accessories that can be used in a
variety of settings. Typically, the feed from
one or more video cameras can be viewed by both the patient and
the clinician on a monitor (although some prefer the patient not
see the feed), and the feed can also be recorded on a DVR or
similar machine. Some of the benefits
include:
- An accurate perspective on patient movements, limitations, etc.
- Assists the patient to perform desired activities correctly
- Some systems offer tools that will measure patient capabilities and progression
- Patients may feel more accountable in their treatment when they know they are being monitored via video
Insurance companies may be more likely
to reimburse aquatic therapy as they see indisputable clinical
evidence of progression, which can help an aquatic video system
pay for itself in no time at all.
It is much easier to integrate a great
video system while your hydrotherapy pool is being specified and
built, but it is not impossible to add the feature at a later
date. Vision Aquatics therapy pools integrate
multiple cameras right into the pool, and offer a variety of
systems for the clinician. For the finest
aquatic therapy pools on the market please visit www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at
616.957.4819.
Date Published: Feb 09, 2011 - 3:23 pm
Hydrotherapy Pool Changing Rooms
Little things can make a big
difference when designing space to support hydrotherapy in a
physical therapy clinic. The patient changing
room – be it ever so humble – is one of those little things to
which more attention should often be paid.
Many of the floor plans reviewed for
installations feature one, or more often two, changing areas for
patients who will use a therapy pool. It takes
a little time to change clothes (especially during the winter
months) to prepare for aquatic therapy. It
takes even more time to change back, especially since most people
will want to take a rinse shower. Lack of
space to accommodate this seemingly innocuous activity can become
a bottleneck for optimizing billable hours for hydrotherapy –
knocking down potential profits.
Some hydrotherapy pools are only built
to support one, or perhaps two, patients simultaneously. If
patients are staggered, then one or two changing rooms might be
able to accommodate most situations. When a
therapy pool is designed to support multiple patients, then this
architectural afterthought can limit your productivity and
profits.
Check with your scheduler and your
PT’s on what would work well for your
situation. While the cost of constructing
additional changing areas will vary from area to area, the lost
profits from not paying attention to this bottleneck can hold
your clinic back for a very long time. The
money “saved” could well cost you for years.
Which brings us to an interesting
perspective: When viewed as a business, hydrotherapy has almost
nothing to do with the cost of the pool. It
has everything to do with the generation of additional revenue,
patient and referring physician good will, clinical results,
employee retention, and increasing profitability.
Little things can make a big
difference. How you design your facility and
which therapy pool you purchase may well determine the clinical
and financial reach and success of your clinic.
For the finest aquatic therapy pools on the
market please visit www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at
616.957.4819.
Date Published: Feb 09, 2011 - 3:19 pm
Deep Water Running
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Deep water running in warm water
hydrotherapy pools has become a common story in the media as we
hear about athletes recovering from injuries.
Combining the benefits of warm water with the always-beneficial
attributes of running and walking, deep water running is
effective for both high-performance athletes and beginners
alike.
Deep water running normally requires a
combination of deep water (naturally) that is at least 5’ deep, a
tether, and a flotation belt. For optimal
results, a 6’ deep well supports full off-loading, and laminar
water flow at variable controlled rates creates the best
results. Variable flow rates allow for
progression, one of the key factors in water running and
exercise.
David K. Brennan, M.Ed from the
University of Oklahoma – Tulsa is a recognized expert and early
developer of deep water running. His articles
and perspectives found through a simple internet search will
assist any clinician or fitness trainer in developing a strong
water exercise program incorporating deep water running.
While some advocate the use of
underwater treadmills to support deep water running, these
typically have an unnatural gait associated with them, take up
valuable hydrotherapy pool floor space, and are unnecessary when
a proper propulsion system is available.
Treadmills are discussed at greater length in other blogs.
Deep water running offers the runner
all of the benefits of warm water (enumerated elsewhere) while
conditioning, rehabbing, or training. For any
of these activities, deep water running eliminates the pounding
and stress of working out on land, it allows activities to begin
sooner than on land, and progression is easily measured.
Deep water running is most effective
in a deep well, against laminar propulsion, and under the
guidance of a trained instructor. For deep
water running belts, visit www.aquajogger.com. For the
finest aquatic therapy pools on the market please visit www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at
616.957.4819.
Date Published: Feb 03, 2011 - 3:01 pm
Salt Water vs. Fresh Water Therapy Pools
Saltwater pools have been commonplace
in Australia for decades, gaining widespread acceptance in the US
in the past 15 years. Market competition and
advances in technology have made these systems more efficient,
self-cleaning, and less expensive, supported by water quality
monitoring options.
Putting salt in an aquatic therapy and
aquatic sports fitness pools is an alternative method of
sanitation by converting the salt (NACL) into chlorine without
the use of the typical commercial liquid or dry chlorines.
Most common saltwater chlorine generators use
3000-3500 parts per million of salt to water.
Teardrops are about 9000 parts per million,
explaining why you can safely open your eyes under water with no
irritation.
For aquatic therapy and aquatic sports
fitness, saltwater pools add another healthy dimension to the
healing properties of warm water. Salt water
has a silky feel, and will not dry out your skin like commercial
chlorines. Saltwater-generated chlorine will
not ruin swimwear, bleach your hair, leave a white chlorine
residue on your skin, and won’t sting your eyes or turn them
red.
Another advantage to salt water
chlorinators is air quality. We have all
walked into an indoor poolroom and been assaulted by the
overwhelming smell of chlorine. This smell is
created by the off-gassing of chloramines produced by the
reaction of chlorine and organic material in the pool water.
This gas is not only toxic, but long-term
exposure to chloramines in high concentration can be deadly.
Salt water-generated chlorine eliminates the
potential for production of chloramines and unhealthy air
quality.
Maintaining saltwater pools includes
some of the same procedures fresh water pools.
It is important to maintain water chemistry
balance such as PH, total alkalinity, total dissolved solids
(TDS), calcium hardness, and conditioner levels.
There is no more cost of or storage of caustic
chlorine chemicals. Salt can be corrosive on
certain metal components, stone products and concrete surfaces
with continued exposure, which must be sealed or
protected.
Saltwater chlorine generators provide
aquatic therapy and aquatic sports fitness operators, clinicians
and patients with a healthy alternative to the typical commercial
chlorine sanitized fresh water pool. To
experience the healthy alternative of great water and air quality
for your facility or aquatic center combined with the finest
aquatic therapy pools on the market please visit www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at
616.957.4819.
Date Published: Feb 03, 2011 - 10:09 am
Construction for Hydrotherapy Pools
Let’s face it – most physical
therapists are not construction engineers, material experts, or
maintenance managers. Once you have made the
decision to add a hydrotherapy pool to your list of modalities,
how do you determine which type of pool to purchase?
There are four major type of
construction for hydrotherapy pools: built in place (also known
as a Gunite pool); molded fiberglass; vinyl liner; and pre-built
tile. While there is no perfect solution to
construction type, it is helpful to understand the pro’s and
con’s of each type prior to making a decision.
Whichever you choose, you will be living with the decision on a
daily basis.
Gunite pools can be built after a
building is framed in, and the surface has a reasonable life
expectancy. Workstation design is typically
limited, and propulsion systems are also
limited. While basic hydrotherapy can be
practiced in a Gunite pool (often at a hotel or a fitness
center), the lack of propulsion and workstations limits the
impact of this investment.
One might say that the development of
contemporary aquatic therapy was ushered in through the
development of the fiberglass pool. Using this
technology, the pool is shaped to include a range of integrated
workstations, steps, and propulsion. Aquatic
treadmills have recently been added to many of these pools,
giving them more capability. Drawbacks include
the need for periodic resurfacing, limited floor space and
patient capacity, and a non-clinical appearance.
Vinyl liner hydrotherapy pools are
built using a framework of steel sheets over which is placed
sheets of vinyl. Very popular recently, these
pools can be installed in buildings where access is limited, they
can be very cost-effective, and they come in a wide range of
sizes. Drawbacks include many health agencies
will not approve them, the liners sage and need periodic
replacement, and the design precludes both workstations and true
propulsion.
Pre-built tile hydrotherapy pools are
a unibody construction finished with tile that can be built in
any form and shape. Properly built with the
right materials, a pre-built tile therapy pool will last more
than twenty (20) years, they typically have significant flat
bottom floor space, and easily incorporate various workstations,
deep wells, and propulsion systems. Drawbacks
include an opening required to set the pool into place.
There is a choice in therapy pools
that you will live with for many years. Inform
yourself by talking to a wide range of
manufacturers. You are invited to visit
www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at 616.957.4819.
Date Published: Jan 29, 2011 - 8:54 am
Profitability in an Aquatic Therapy Program
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Physical therapists have to be more
concerned about how to drive profits now more than
ever. Everyone knows what is happening to
operating costs, cuts in reimbursement rates, and the costs of
working with insurance companies. Just staying
in business is hard enough. Finding ways to
increase physical therapy clinical profits is even
harder. Hydrotherapy offers clinics an
opportunity to develop substantial profits, when done the right
way.
Hydrotherapy, or aquatic therapy,
remains a differentiating modality, as most clinics have decided
not to invest into a pool for one reason or
another. Many clinics are land-locked, don’t
have the internal training / expertise to support hydrotherapy,
or don’t yet understand its benefits. Useful
for a number of treatments, patients can often enter therapy
sooner in a hydrotherapy pool and require fewer visits to
complete therapy. Warm water therapy relaxes
patients, making it easier for them to accept and practice their
therapy.
Most clinicians practicing
hydrotherapy believe they build patient and referral preference
because of the satisfaction their customers feel with the mix of
land and aquatic-based therapy. Building the
clinical brand and patient volume is one key area of increasing
profits.
In many states, reimbursement rates
for hydrotherapy can be as much as 40% higher than for land-based
therapy. While reimbursement rates continue to
be cut, hydrotherapy continues to be a great option for
increasing profits.
Why not invest into a hydrotherapy
pool? Most will cite the cost of the pool as a
major stumbling block to adding this important modality to their
practice. Using the Vision Aquatics Free Cash
Flow Analysis tool, it quickly become apparent that the
investment into a therapy pool is not an
issue. At just 60 patient visits per week, the
most expensive Vision Aquatics pool provides a return on all
acquisition, installation and operating costs in under nine (9)
months. Three-year free cash flow is
calculated at over $500,000.00.
Need to drive higher profits at your
clinic? Visit www.visionaquatics.com. For
more information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either
at doug@visionaquatics.com or at 616.957.4819.
Date Published: Jan 24, 2011 - 7:25 pm
Fitness Pools
The world of aquatics is taking a
major step forward in moving beyond the conventional swimming
pool as the preferred medium for aquatic fitness. A brand
new range of industry-defining aquatics fitness pools is ready to
introduce to the worlds of aquatic fitness and aquatic
therapy. Utilizing water as fitness equipment is taking a
giant leap forward.
The sports world has long valued the
benefits warm water brings for athletes (human and animal) as a
healing modality. The stories of famous athletes returning
to competition earlier than otherwise possible by using aquatic
therapy are well-documented in a variety of publications.
Knowing that injuries can come not only through competition, but
through training as well, the new range of fitness pools from
Vision Aquatics acts as prehabilitation to prevent injury during
the training process.
This range of fitness pools are
designed to support a wide range of users, from occasional
geriatric exercising to highly-intense triathletes to bariatric
group exercising. Vision Aquatics fitness pools are
designed to support specific activities, from general aquatic
exercise to aquatic spinning to circuit training in a pool.
Now, aquatic therapy can be migrated into aquatic fitness in such
a way that athletes and those in exercise programs can safely
achieve their fitness objectives without subjecting themselves to
the physical impact often associated with land-based
exercise.
There are three types of fitness pools
from Vision Aquatics, with each type having various models and
options designed to specific applications. Some level of
aquatic therapy can be achieved in each of these pools, giving
them a dual capability.
Open Water Fitness Pools feature
multiple cross-pool propulsion systems against which users can
walk, swim, spin, or do floor exercises. The model shown
has three different floor levels to support people of different
height, and the benches have hydrotherapy jets for relaxing
muscles. This pool is for a wide range of users.
Open Water Fitness Pool –
Multi-Level – 14’ x 30’ (below)
The Circuit Training Pools feature a
range of exercise stations to support a wide range of activities
and motions that train the entire body. Deep water running,
stair work, plyometric stations, swimming against current,
spinning, running against cants and lateral skating are among the
activities supported by this aquatic equipment. This pool
is for athletes in cross-training or for those seeking general
fitness.
Circuit Training Pool – 10’ x
20’ (below)
The Sports Endurance Pool is for
endurance athletes training in a safe environment with taking the
physical pounding often associated with their sports of
choice. This aquatic equipment supports deep water running,
spinning against propulsion, and swimming against propulsion
while also offering plyometric exercises.
Sports Endurance Pool – 10’ x
20’ (below)
What better way to supplement your
investment into aquatic therapy than through providing aquatic
fitness through Vision Aquatics Fitness Pools. Of course,
there is a long list of compelling reasons to invest in a Vision
Aquatics aquatic fitness pool that you may want to check
out. These state of the art aquatic fitness pools are not
yet ready to be viewed at www.visionaquatics.com. But for more
information and pricing, you may contact Doug Gregory either at
doug@visionaquatics.com or at 616.957.4819.
Date Published: Jan 21, 2011 - 9:58 am
Productivity in an Aquatic Therapy Enviroment
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| Vision Aquatics Therapy Pool |
Productivity is defined as the measure of outcomes relative to the investment required to produce those outcomes. In the world of aquatic therapy, these can be measured both by clinical outcomes and financial outcomes. Both are important in measuring effectiveness and to providing an investment foundation.
Most aquatic therapy reimbursement requirements are based on a ratio of one therapist to one patient, while aquatic fitness and exercise can support one leader to many customers. So, the productivity of the therapist to patient is similar from one aquatic therapy pool type to another (although the efficiency of the therapist in one pool design may vary from that of another). Most clinical productivity, then, will depend on the breadth or degree of aquatic therapy that is supported by each pool design. The greater the number of differentiated clinical workstations in a pool, the better the propulsion system, and the more user-friendly the pool is, the greater will be its clinical productivity.
Business productivity in an aquatic therapy pool stems more from dividing the total investment required to purchase, install and operate a pool into the number of patient visits the pool will support over a period of time. Factors impacting this equation include the overall size of the pool (always measure as water surface area), the size of the pool bottom that is flat (where patients can be comfortable when not using a workstation), the number of available workstations, the number of patients that can receive individualized therapy (important for reimbursement acceptance), and other factors. Figure a minimum of 25 square feet per patient. When determining the number of patients that can simultaneously use a pool, we suggest using your own calculations instead of relying on manufacturer data.
Our experience indicates that properly managed programs using a Vision Aquatics therapy pool most often will repay the sum of the cost of the pool, the cost of installation, and the costs of staffing and maintaining the pool in less than one year. This is true due to the high productivity designed into each Vision Aquatics therapy and fitness pool.
The productivity of your investment into aquatic therapy is important. We know of no other pool on the market that comes close to the productivity achieved in Vision Aquatics pools. Of course, there is a long list of other compelling reasons to invest in a Vision Aquatics aquatic therapy pool that you may want to check out. These state of the art aquatic therapy pools can be viewed at www.visionaquatics.com. Or for more information, you may contact Doug Gregory either at doug@visionaquatics.com or at 616.957.4819.
Date Published: Jan 20, 2011 - 7:14 am
Propulsion in Aquatic Therapy
Basic aquatic therapy can occur in a wide variety of aquatic environments, from the local Y to a swimming pool to a custom therapy pool with built-in workstations. The benefits of aquatic therapy in these environments are well-documented and widely-supported. What is not so well understood by the physical therapy community and referring physicians are the benefits of propulsion in aquatic therapy pools.
Propulsion adds to the range of benefits that can be offered in this important modality. Two key benefits for the clinician are progression and challenge. Controlled water propulsion normally offers the clinician the ability to predetermine and set the level of resistance created by the propulsion system to the abilities of the patient, gradually increasing the resistance as the patient gains in their treatment. Like adding weights to a progressing patient on land, adding resistance through propulsion in water is an important tool in progressing patients in water.
Propulsion in aquatic therapy pools can also be designed to challenge patients through addressing the various planes and attitudes through which a patient can improve their balance, their strength, and their endurance.
Additionally, propulsion in aquatic therapy pools replaces the need for aquatic treadmills by supporting the physical therapist in gait work and exercise. While a recent study at a major university has been trumpeted to validate the use of aquatic treadmills, the study did not test treadmills against propulsion systems, and there was no control group. Other industry experts believe that aquatic treadmills do not support natural motion, and that supporting patient needs utilizing propulsion and at times deep water gait training is more effective. Treadmills also take up significant floor space in aquatic therapy pools, space that cannot then be used for other protocols.
Propulsion takes many forms in aquatic therapy pools currently being marketed into the physical therapy industry. Badu jets are commonly used in some popular aquatic therapy pools, but the basically blow aerated water in a general direction, are difficult to target to the area of need, and their range of effective application is limited.
Forms of paddlewheel propulsion are also commonly used. These systems normally provide propulsion over the broad width of the pool, subjecting everyone in the aquatic therapy pool to its forces, whether they need it or not. While often described as providing laminar flow, the uneven nature of this delivery system combined with agitated wave action and aeration do not equate with use of the term “laminar flow” from an engineering perspective.
The TheraStream™ range of propulsion systems applied exclusively in Vision Aquatics pools provide truly laminar flow propulsion that is easily controlled, cleanly targeted, and instantly reaching targeted propulsion levels. These state of the art aquatic therapy pools can be viewed at www.visionaquatics.com. Or for more information, you may contact Doug Gregory either at doug@visionaquatics.com or at 616.957.4819.
Date Published: Jan 18, 2011 - 5:49 pm
Vision Aquatics, The Most Innovative Aquatic Therapy Pool on the Market
Vision Aquatics’ state-of-the-art aquatic therapy pools are manufactured in the United States using full-time, in-house research and development resources – the only company in the industry with such capabilities. This research and development is the core of Vision Aquatics™, and helped produce the company’s greatest competitive advantage: the TheraStream™ and SportStream™ Current Propulsion Systems.
Vision Aquatics™ is raising the bar in the aquatic therapy pool industry, and quickly emerging as the market leader. Relying on the latest research and development and consulting with therapy experts in the field, Vision Aquatics™ is dedicated to developing the most effective, innovative aquatic therapy treatments, specifically for you and your patients, at a competitive price.
For more information, visit www.VisionAquatics.com
Date Published: Nov 04, 2010 - 5:48 am
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